The quick answer to all these questions is, yes, yes, and yes - though explaining why is obviously far more complicated. Wine professionals say the palate is a cultivated tool, an art form of perception and description, that one can spend a lifetime honing. As the palate develops, so too will one s perception of what makes for good or bad wine. And, one could argue, a sophisticated palate is more correct in its judgments than that of an untrained newbie. At the same time, old prejudices die hard even on the fanciest of palates.
Scientists agree that the palate is very adaptable.
At the same time, they re quick to point out that the palate is subject to certain genetic and biological predilections. There can certainly be a sensory explanation for individual differences in how something is described, says Marcia Pelchat, a sensory psychologist at the Monnell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia. Both may be correct within their own sensory world. Pelchat is one of many scientists studying the palate. It s a complicated subject to say the least.