Who tastes better: women or men? Fodder for passionate debate at parties or birthday gatherings. In the world of wine the question is argued with equal fervour. “To taste well it is important to be able to remember and distinguish aromas and flavours. I do believe women are very good at that,” says Thèrese Boer of De Librije. She continues: “Women also have a sharper eye and nose for detail. That comes in very handy when tasting wine.”
Harold Hamersma is more emphatic. “Women should be able to smell and taste better than men, according to the information available to me. Among super-tasters - people who have been scientifically proven to possess an exceptionally developed sensitivity to aromas and flavours - women are represented at twice the rate of men. And it can hardly be a coincidence that the wine buyers at Albert Heijn, Plus, and HEMA are all female?”
Women perform better
Scientific research shows that women outperform men in terms of olfactory ability. By this we mean the performance of a small, bulb-shaped organ located in the brain just above the nose. It processes and interprets odour molecules so that you become conscious of a scent. Internationally this organ is known as the olfactory bulb. In plain Dutch it is called the reukkolf.
In addition, there is scientific evidence that women use their brains eight times more intensively than men when smelling and tasting food. It would take us too far afield to elaborate here on why that is. But it does lead to an obvious conclusion: women taste differently and perhaps even better. Women also taste more objectively; men are more ‘emotional’ when it comes to tasting.
Beer judging
From the beer world, no scientific research on who tastes better has yet been published. However, an interesting first-hand account is available. It comes from Arjanneke van den Berg, beer sommelier and co-owner of Gooische Bierbrouwerij. She describes her judging experiences at an amateur brewing competition. On that occasion the jury was divided into two panels: one composed of women, the other of men. The outcome of the experiment was that both panels had exactly the same beers in their top 5. But there was also a striking difference: the women were more critical. The men awarded higher scores to the beers they tasted.
Do you want twice as many fans for your beer as a brewer? That means you will also need to convince the female half of the audience. Admit it: there is real opportunity there. But it does mean you need to work even harder on quality. This part of the audience has its sensors set extra sensitively, after all. A trace of diacetyl, DMS, or acetaldehyde? The olfactory bulb of female beer drinkers is in many cases less forgiving.
Brewing faults can be prevented
You prevent brewing faults by knowing exactly what you are doing. Know your wort, get your brewing process under even better control. And keep it that way! That is easier when you measure. Measurements for quality control do not have to be complicated. And as a microbrewery you do not need to make enormous investments in professional equipment either. Because Beer-o-Meter makes laboratory-standard quality-analysis testing accessible to every ambitious brewery. Totaal Vergistbare Suiker, pH, EBC, IBU, Schijnbaar Extract, Plato: measuring to know precisely is no longer a monk’s task. The beer that will convince female fans too is brewed together with Beer-o-Meter.