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Wine Tasting Via Computer

Posted by Zonk on from the snoots-replaced-by-technology dept.

smooth wombat writes "What makes a good wine? Why do some wines have a smooth, almond-like bouquet while others have a sharper, more acidic bite to them? These questions and more have usually been answered by oenologists who can list the subtle nuances of a particular wine and tell you if it's good or not. However, vinters don't have the luxury of waiting until a wine is ready to be drunk to know if they have produced a good, drinkable product. Lorenz "Larry" Biegler, who teaches chemical engineering at Carnegie Mellon University, in conjunction with industry scientists in Chile, is working on mathematical formulas to automate the fermentation process, adjusting ingredients and conditions to ensure robust flavors and higher yields from grape harvests. The researchers have been collaborating for more than two years and are studying only white wines, since reds are more complex and contain solids that make them difficult to analyze."

3 of 136 comments (clear)

  1. Seeing if the wine is "Ready"? by Ruff_ilb · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Wine tasting, as I'm sure most experts will agree, is as much of an art as anything; I doubt that people will allow a computer to tell them if a wine is "good" or not, even if it's right most of the time.

    OTOH, if the computer only tells people if the wine is drinkable, or ready to be tasted, that's a different story. As long as the computer doesn't try to encroach on the "art" side of wine tasting and stays firmly on the "science" side, I think that it could be quite a useful invention - although to a tiny demographic.

    --
    http://www.TheGamerNation.com/Forums
    1. Re:Seeing if the wine is "Ready"? by shawb · · Score: 4, Interesting

      Or if the computer could tell the vintner subtle variations in temperature or other factors during the fermentation process which would help improve the wine. Maybe evnetually the computer could help determine which woods would be the best for storing a certain batch. Computers wouldn't really be able to help a bad winemaker make good wine, but they could help a good winemaker make better wine.

      --
      I'll never make that mistake again, reading the experts' opinions. - Feynman
  2. Funny, I'm running an experiment right now. by purduephotog · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Just finished fermenting 15 gallons of Chardonnay in glass. I'm about to rack it again to clear it and start the 'experimentation' phase- precisely how much oak is needed to make this a good wine.

    The oak selection seems to be pretty dominated by Nevers, but I wish I could find out how to buy some. There's a paper out at
    http://www.wynboer.co.za/recentarticles/0400wood.p hp3 that is rather interesting- but all in good time.

    Right now, for me personally (and I'm about to start 15 more gallons of Chardonnay and 5 gallons of Pinot Grigio) I'm going for a very light oak flavour for 5 gallons- destined for Champagne- and a heavier oak that'll sit in the bottles to be served at house dinners.

    All in all- I'll take ANY computer modeling that can help me predict what my quality will be... I just doubt it'll work unless I start investing in alot more equipment ;)