A recent study tested the taste-buds of wine experts. Allison Aubrey summarizes the findings:
"We evaluated hundreds of wine drinkers," says Hayes, by having them sample/taste a chemical that measures their reaction to bitter tastes. He found that wine experts — people such as wine writers, winemakers and wine retailers — were about 40 percent more sensitive to the bitterness than casual consumers of wine. They have a more acute sense of taste. Hayes says his findings fit with prior research on so-called supertasters — people who are more sensitive to the sweetness of sugar, the sting of chili peppers and the saltiness of chips.
In the same ballpark, Jacob Sullum, pivoting off the reporting of Jonah Lehrer, ponders a diet pill that works by making people enjoy food more.
The Dish 