Will Lyons Uncorked

THE World of Wine

Scientists develop electronic wine tasters

I could soon be out of a job. Without sounding too alarmist, my days of wine blogging may well be coming to an end. This week I have seen the future and it doesn't bode well for us human wine writers. I'm referring to the Spanish scientists who are currently developing an electronic tongue that is set to be more reliable and sophisticated than the human palate.

Over at the Barcelona Institute of Microelectronics they are in the early stages of developing an 'e-tongue', which I am told is already able to tell the difference between certain grape varieties and vintages. The device works in the same way as the human tongue and is sensitive to sweet, salty, acidic, sour and savoury (umami) tastes. With miniscule synthetic membranes, each sensitive to different chemical components in a wine, the e-tongue can already distinguish the differences between the Chardonnay, Malvasia, Macabeu and Airen grape varieties. It can also tell whether the same wine is from the 2005 or 2004 vintages.

According to Dr Jiménez-Jorquera and colleagues working on the project, the samples analysed by the device will be increased to get more precise results - a form of sensory training.

Imagine the upsides. Faced with 3,000 chardonnay samples from around the world the e-tongue could just go to work. It doesn't need feeding, doesn't ask awkward questions and feels no effect from any alcohol intake. Large scale tastings may never be the same again with an army of androids working their way through a retailer's selection. But why stop there? With the electronic tongue, multiples and retailers need never employ wine buyers again - the whole category could be mechanised. Heck, the winemakers themselves could soon be redundant as wineries start to resemble the inside of a car factory. There is, of course, a serious point to this. Technology is widely used in other industries and wine is perhaps just catching up. We may be well be on the cusp of the first computer-generated wine.

Top festival tipples

Scotland has suffered a diabolical few weeks of heavy rain. If you have made the journey to Edinburgh I'm guessing your Festival experience has been made a great deal more uncomfortable as a result. With most Fringe venues rammed with thirsty Festival goers, I thought I would share with you my favourite haunts for a warming glass of wine. Le Di-Vin on 9 Randolph Place and Francesca Contini's VinCaffè on Multrees Walk are both traditional wine bars in the sense that they offer more than 50 wines by the glass. Whighams Wine Cellar, 13 Hope Street, on the corner of Charlotte Square, has a lively, wine bar atmosphere while Great Grog, 43 Rose Street, always throws up an interesting New World discovery. For a more upmarket experience Victor Contini is busy revamping his wine list at Centrotre, 103 George Street.

Deals worth digging in to

Here are a few deals worth catching this week: 2006/7 Fetzer Valley Oaks Syrah Rosé (Tesco), £4.99 (reduced from £6.99) until August 19. Clos Triguedina, Malbec du Clos 2006 Cahors (Waitrose), £5.59 (reduced from £6.99) until August 26. 2007 Pinot Grigio Superiore, Beato Bartolomeo da Breganze, Italy (Majestic), £6.24 or £4.99 each for two.