The evaluation of a wine can change depending on the environment and information provided.
This does not mean that the wine itself oxidizes, matures, or becomes more acidic, but rather that our own brains create various illusions, causing changes in how we evaluate the wine...
In the first place, there is almost no occasion where you would drink a wine in complete silence in a stark white, sterile room with zero information about that wine.
In other words, when we normally drink wine or have a meal, there is a possibility that our evaluation of the wine is determined by some kind of bias or environmental influence.
Here, let's explore the impact that information and environment have on wine evaluation.
The Impact of Price
While many studies have examined themes like the correlation between wine prices and their evaluations, a particularly famous one is the research titled "Marketing actions can modulate neural representations of experienced pleasantness" conducted by neuroeconomists at the California Institute of Technology.
In this study, subjects were given five Cabernet Sauvignon wines to taste through tubes while their brain activity was monitored using fMRI, but what was unique was the setup.
These five Cabernet Sauvignon wines were presented with price differences ranging from $5 to $90, but in reality, only three types were prepared. (In other words, the subjects ended up tasting the same wine multiple times.)
When researchers told the subjects the price of each wine and had them taste them, the result was that the wines presented as more expensive were indeed rated as the most pleasant.
It has been suggested that this is related to increased activity in a certain area of the brain when drinking expensive wine; however, given that even for the exact same $90 wine, people found it more delicious when told it cost $90 than when told it cost $35, it might be better to assume that price bias is almost certainly at play when drinking wine.
The Impact of Color and Environment
While the effect of price might be somewhat intuitive, what may be even more intriguing is the notion that "color and environment" influence wine evaluation.
According to research by Charles Spence, which investigated how environmental changes affect the evaluation (perception) of wine, quite unique results were obtained.
First, about 3,000 subjects were gathered in a room where lighting colors and music changed repeatedly, and they tasted red wine over the course of four days.
During the first two days, the lighting changed from white to red to green, and subjects evaluated the wine after playing music said to enhance acidity, followed by red lighting with music said to enhance sweetness.
For the remaining two days, the lighting changed in the order of white to green to red, playing music that evokes sweetness, and then switching to green lighting with music that evokes sourness before having them evaluate the wine.
As a result, what subjects favored the most was during "red lighting × music that evokes sweetness."
On the other hand, with "green lighting × music that evokes sourness," although the perception of flavor decreased, it reportedly scored higher on perceived freshness compared to the aforementioned condition.
While it might not be entirely clear what music specifically evokes sweetness or sourness, it seems certain that the environment causes changes in how wine is evaluated.
Slightly off topic, the personal feeling that drinking a natural wine while listening to techno in an inorganic space somehow matches might also stem from these kinds of effects.
Additional Note: The Impact of Sound
According to the previously mentioned Charles Spence, when investigating whether people could distinguish between the pouring sounds of soda water, Prosecco, and Champagne, subjects' flavor evaluations indeed varied depending on these sounds.
Furthermore, in an investigation where subjects dined at a restaurant using either light or heavy cutlery, those who experienced heavy cutlery were willing to pay higher amounts...
When it comes to sounds making things taste better, the sound of beer being poured comes to mind, but with wine, too, sounds may be connected in some way.
Whether it is strictly related to sound or not, having snobbish people around or people disparaging the wine while drinking it will undoubtedly bring about a significant change in taste.
Moreover, no matter how inexpensive a wine may be, if you drink it with close friends while having fun conversations, that price bias might vanish completely.
Choosing the place and the people to drink wine with might be even more important than "what wine to drink."
Choosing How You Drink for Yourself
It cannot be helped that wine evaluation is swayed by biases from wine information such as price, as well as environmental differences.
Even if told, "Do not be swayed by information; clear your mind and evaluate objectively," there is no need to go that far unless you are a professional wine taster.
Conversely, if you want to drink with an emphasis on information, drink with friends of that inclination; when you don't want to talk about wine in complicated terms, drink with those types of people and in such an environment; and if you want to drink while experiencing a sense of luxury, choose an appropriate environment. Embracing these influences deliberately might be a wonderful way to enjoy wine.
Just approaching wine selection with the stance that you will inevitably be influenced by something may significantly broaden the ways you enjoy it in the future.
References
Marketing actions can modulate neural representations of experienced pleasantness
I Smell Wine: The Science of Wine Flavor | Jamie Goode, Nobuko Ito