Beer & music, a perfect union!

Listening to music and drinking a good beer are, for sure, two stimulating experiences, but would you have ever thought that one could influence the other? And yet that’s how it is: the right soundtrack can make us change the perception about the beer we are drinking. It would seem just a café conversation subject, but this has been shown by a research from the university in Brussels, a town expert when it comes of talking about beer.

On the September 2016 issue of the scientific magazine “Food Quality and Preference” a study will be published, coordinated by Vrije Universiteit of the Belgian capital, entitled “The influence of soundscapes on the perception and evaluation of beers”.

During the summary presentation, professor Felipe Carvalho, one of the authors of the study, explained how his experiment was carried out. Participants tasted and judged a beer twice, ignoring it was the same, with a different background sound. Results showed, in fact, that music influences the perception of sweet, bitter, acid and even the alcohol content.

“Participants have assessed the beer as significantly sweeter when they listened to a more melodic soundtrack, and strong while they listened a harder one”, declared professor Carvalho. “To a certain degree, it is like we are transferring our experience and music sensitivity into the beer we are drinking”.

How can this bizarre effect be explained? The credit goes to our brain, where involuntary switching on of another sense takes place. Taste and hearing can therefore generate unusual pairings, and who knows, after such a discovery, someone might be tempted to try a multi-sensory experience at the restaurant or at home!

What about you? Have you got a favourite soundtrack when you are enjoying your beer? What is your playlist on various occasions (when you’re home with family, with your friends, or with your partner)?Tell us in the comment section, if you like, or follow us on our Facebook official page!