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Electronic "Tongue" Can Tell If Wine Is Good or Bad

by Dan Reilly on August 7, 2008 at 03:43 PM

Have you ever wondered if a restaurant was serving you an expensive vintage wine or just some crap they found behind the bar? Since you're not an expert, you can use a new electronic tongue that detects grape variety and age.

Like a human tongue's ability to discern different tastes, the gadget -- still in prototype-mode -- uses six sensors to measure attributes like sugar, acidity, and alcohol content. Invented by Cecilia Jiménez-Jorquera and other scientists from the Barcelona Institute of Microelectronics, Spain, the tongue was designed for wine industry workers who need to measure quality in the field and catch frauds. The device gives them a faster, cheaper, and simpler alternative to sending samples to a lab.

Currently, the tongue is being "trained" for better results by testing more samples, and the scientists who are working on it hope they can someday use the technology to taste other beverages and foods. Of course, you can always just drink what you think tastes good, no matter the year or price. We're not snobs here. [Source: Science Daily]

Tags: drinking, future tech, FutureTech, research, sensors, summernews, wine

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