Winesthesia – Wine and sound design

Wine tasting by ear

How would you like to discover a bottle of wine to the sound of music ? What if hearing were involved in the tasting process? Can music modify or amplify the perception of sensations ?

These were the questions posed by an ear-tasting experiment that took place on Thursday November 22 during the Slash convention, the event organized by Trempolino to conclude the first edition of the European Music Incubator (EMI).

EMI is an experimental training program co-financed by the European Union’s Creative Europe Program. Its aim is to examine the future of the musician’s profession and the challenges posed by changes in the sector. Within this framework, we accompanied seven musicians around the creation of music for brands. On November 22 and 23, 2018, to bring the project to a close, Trempolino organized “Slash”. During this event, the artists who had taken the training course had to present a public creation, fitting in with one of the themes addressed by the EMI (for more details click here).

Wine, sound design, live music

We set out with the idea of working on a subject that fascinates us almost as much as music: wine. And how do you offer a live experience, with music and work around a brand ? By organizing a wine tasting, with sound creation, inspired by the terroir, the estate, the different taste components of the wine. This experience is also an opportunity for Sara Renar to put into practice what she has been learning alongside us over the past two years.

We chose to work with Muscadet “Granite”, from Domaine de l’Écu, an estate much appreciated by Muscadet lovers and one of the pioneers of biodynamic agriculture in the region.

The big day

Gathered in the premises of Very Good, a Nantes-based wine merchant specializing in natural wines, some forty guests divided into three groups set off on a musical discovery of “Granite”. The tasting was accompanied step by step by a musical creation, written for the occasion and performed live by Sara, giving some of them a chance to discover the classic tasting process.

At each stage, colors, smells and tastes have been transcribed into music, and choices in production, harmony and sound textures are also the result of gustatory sensations. After a short presentation of the Muscadet appellation, the project, the estate and the cuvée, the tasting can begin.

The first step is to observe the wine’s color and transparency. Its color and transparency hint at certain characteristics. Here, a “light gold” color, of great purity, a light color due to a recent vintage (2017). The mind can already begin to imagine smells and flavors. Musically, the creation is built, the harmony is laid down, at low volume, by looping guitar chords and playing them backwards.

Then comes the olfactory encounter, with the first and second noses. The first nose reveals the main families of scents : mineral and fruit. After lightly oxygenating the wine by swirling it in the glass, we move on to the second nose. The wine expresses more character, with notes of flint, citrus and subtle hints of oyster shell. With the succession of the two noses, we complete our visual perception, adding olfactory characters. So we’re going to translate this journey with music, by adding musical and sonorous elements : a breath, to symbolize this new stage in the encounter, a guitar arpeggio, for the large scent families, and a discreet melody for the oyster shells.

The last stage is the mouth, where the music is stopped to create contrast with the previous stage, and restarted as the wine enters the mouth. The clean, powerful attack is symbolized by the addition of a deep, impacting kick. The crystalline mouthfeel is reinforced by a tambourine sound, and vocal waves for a seaside ambience.

The different characteristics of the wine are presented orally, synchronized with the music, and once the process is complete, we start again: the dress, the first nose, the second nose, the mouth, but this time without words, letting the guests experience the wine, and the music.

Watch the experience :