We investigated recognition and identification of wine-relevant odours as a function of domain-specific expertise. Eleven wine experts and 11 wine novices participated in tasks measuring olfactory threshold, odour recognition, odour identification, and consistency of odour naming. Twenty-four wine-relevant odorants were sampled orthonasally by each participant in the semantic (identification; consistency of naming) and episodic (recognition) memory tasks. Results showed superior olfactory recognition by expert wine judges, despite their olfactory sensitivity and bias measures being similar to those of novices. Contrary to predictions based on reports of an association between odour memory and semantic processing, wine experts did not perform better than novices on the verbal memory tasks. Further, ability to recognize odours and ability to name odours were not positively correlated, although the novices' data showed a trend in this direction. The results imply that the source of superior odour recognition in wine experts was not enhanced semantic memory and linguistic capabilities for wine-relevant odours. One interpretation of the data is that wine experts were less susceptible than wine novices to verbal overshadowing. When forced to identify the odorants, experts' superior perceptual skills protected them from verbal interference, whereas novices' generated verbal representations of the odours were emphasized at the expense of the odorant itself. This has implications for training in wine-evaluation skills.

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The mental processes that enable a wine connoisseur to identify a favourite vintage have received little systematic study. Two experiments explored wine expertise by investigating perceptual processing in judgements of wine aroma. Specifically, we investigated olfactory perceptual bias, a cognitive construct concerned with how what we already know influences what we smell. Colour-induced olfactory bias was investigated in wine experts (Experiment 1) and in social drinkers (Experiment 2). We hypothesised that colour-induced perceptual bias was more likely to occur in wine experts than in social drinkers, leading experts astray. The task simulated a wine-evaluation situation where colour and aroma were open to evaluation by visual and olfactory senses. Experts were able to discriminate white wines that had been masked with colour to simulate an aged white wine and a red wine, although they did succumb to a degree of colour-induced olfactory bias. That is, experts' aroma judgements on the white wine that was coloured red were more accurate when the wine was presented in opaque glasses than when presented in clear glasses. Social drinkers found the task extremely difficult, demonstrating indiscriminate behaviour in some conditions. The data suggest that wine experts do indeed differ cognitively from novices in their approach to evaluating wine aroma. Theoretical and applied implications are discussed.

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