#WeeklyWineWrap: World's first wine inspired by brain activity analysis produced in SA

So without further ado, here’s your round-up of wine news from around the globe this week.

NeuroWine produces red and white blends according to data drawn from the subconscious

The gist of it: In a ground-breaking development born from a partnership between neuromarketing consultancy Neural Sense and BLANKBottle label winemaker Pieter Walser, 21 white wines and 20 red wines from different vineyards across the country were used to set benchmarks in terms of emotional and cognitive responses to taste experience. This data was then used to create NeuroWine (one red and one white blend). So how did they do it?

Neural Sense director David Rosenstein said the process involved the use of a device which fits around the head and picks up the electrical activity on the surface of one’s scalp.

“It looks at how the brain is functioning and the associated brain waves, which tells us various things about brain activity. Back in our laboratory, we built a model of Pieter’s brain activity with Dr Lester Ryan John, and together with the other biometric data we were able to uncover his unconscious responses to the wine tasting experience,” said Rosenstein.

This model enabled the team to determine the best performing aspects of the various varietals he was tasting, and identify the top wine varietals that appealed to his unconscious. Read more here.

Bonus factoid: Did you know that sound influences the way food and beverages taste? I kid thee not. High-frequency sounds enhance the sweetness in food, while low frequencies bring out the bitterness. So could sound replace sugar? And what kind of music should restaurants play? Read more here.

Bouchard Finlayson takes gold at the 2016 Global Pinot Noir Masters Awards

The gist of it: Bouchard Finlayson’s Galpin Peak Pinot Noir 2013 has won a Gold medal in the prestigious 2016 Global Pinot Noir Masters awards. Judged blind by some of the most refined palates globally on a panel of Masters of Wine, Master Sommeliers and senior buyers, the third annual Global Pinot Noir Masters was presented by the pre-eminent European drinks trade publication, The Drinks Business to recognise and reward the finest Pinot Noirs in the world.

The award-winning 2013 Bouchard Finlayson Galpin Peak competed against 220 wines from 18 countries and was honoured to receive one of only 22 Gold medals this year, having moved up from Silver in 2015 to Gold this year, to once again proof its alluring ageing potential.

Esteemed winemaker and ‘Pinot Pioneer’ Peter Finlayson says he is gratified with the result, even more so considering that it was a close call for the 2013 vintage, after a particularly wet season had threatened to spoil the harvest. Finlayson admits that the wine, which as the 21st edition of Galpin Peak Pinot Noir of domain grapes from the Hemel-en-Aarde Valley vineyard, was indeed faced with ‘make or break’ weather conditions.

Bonus factoid: While we most definitely wouldn’t recommend you use this fine wine for the purpose, you could use a pinot noir to create delicious home-made ice cream with a twist. See the recipe here.

Entries streaming in for the Wines of South Africa Sommelier Cup

The gist of it: The competition to make it into the WOSA (Wines of South Africa) Sommelier Cup finals is heating up. Entries have been streaming in since the beginning of March when the event was opened up to those working in the restaurant trade of the nine key growth markets determined by the competition committee (namely US, Canada, Asia, Germany, Sweden, the UK, the Netherlands, Kenya and Ghana).

As gatekeepers to consumers, these influencers are an important target group for WOSA in building the country's winemaking profile amongst international wine lovers. The idea is to expose finalists to the best in South African wines and winemaking, equipping them with the information and context to become de facto ambassadors.

WOSA CEO Siobhan Thompson says: "Now that the country's reputation for trailblazing, unusual and individualist winemaking has captured the wider public imagination, South Africa has become a 'hot' category and interest in competing in the 2016 Sommelier Cup is at an unprecedented high. Read more here.

Bonus factoid: Sweden’s Arvid Rosengren emerged from a field of 15 semi-finalists to claim the top prize at the best sommelier in the world competition in Mendoza, Argentina that we mentioned here last week.

This week’s Weekly Wine Wrap-Up was brought to you by Juliet Cullinan Wines. The 26th annual Juliet Cullinan Standard Bank Wine Festival will be hosted on 12 and 13 July 2016 at Summer Place, Hyde Park. Tickets are available at Webtickets from April onwards.