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'Ah, waiter. I'll have the steak frites, a glass of cabernet sauvignon and some brown sugar. By that I mean slap Brown Sugar by The Rolling Stones on the sound system."

A far-fetched scenario? Perhaps, but a study released yesterday by researchers at Heriot Watt University in Scotland says that different types of music can greatly influence how we perceive the flavour of the wine we're drinking.

For instance, subjects in the study listening to heavy rock music rated a cabernet sauvignon as being 60 per cent more powerful and heavy than those who drank in silence.

The origins of the study go back to 1997, said Adrian North, the report's author, in a telephone interview from Edinburgh yesterday.

"About 10 years ago I did something looking at the effects of music on wine sales in a large supermarket. All we did was play French and German music there." French music led to French wine outselling German by five bottles to one, whereas German music led to German wine outselling French by two bottles to one.

Recently, Chilean wine producer Montes told Prof. North it was interested in researching how music can influence people's perceptions of wine. Its winemaker, Aurelio Montes, plays monastic chants to his maturing wines, convinced that the gentle vibrations improve their quality.

Prof. North had no trouble finding volunteers for the study. "It was one of the easiest pieces of recruiting for research we've ever done," he said.

The test subjects were assigned to a red-wine group (given cabernet sauvignon) or a white-wine group (which got chardonnay). They were then sent to one of five rooms. In each of four rooms, a different type of music was playing. One room had no music.

"One room played music that we thought was powerful and heavy, one room played subtle and refined music, one room played what we call zingy and refreshing music and one room played mellow and soft music," said Prof. North.

The test subjects were then asked to rate the wine - powerful, subtle, zingy or refreshing - on a scale of zero to 10. The study found the answers corresponded with the music.

"So, if you had our white wine in the context of powerful and heavy music you'd find that white wine really powerful and heavy," said Prof. North. "If you drank the red wine listening to zingy and refreshing music you'd find the red wine quite zingy and refreshing."

The effect, however, was greater with the red.

"I suspect it's because red wine is a much more complex thing to judge, so whenever people are making the decision they'll find whatever clues are available in their environment," said Prof. North.

Over all, the music shifted the perception of the wine in the direction of the music's mood by an average of 37.25 per cent. The average for white wine was 32.25 per cent and for red 42.25 per cent.

Listen while you sip

Suggestions from Chilean winemaker Aurelio Montes on what music to listen to as you drink.

CABERNET SAUVIGNON: All Along the Watchtower by Jimi Hendrix; Honky-Tonk Woman by The Rolling Stones; Live and Let Die by Paul McCartney; Won't Get Fooled Again by The Who.

CHARDONNAY: Atomic by Blondie; Rock DJ by Robbie Williams; What's Love Got to do With It by Tina Turner; Spinning Around by Kylie Minogue.

SHIRAZ: Puccini's Nessun Dorma as sung by Luciano Pavarotti; Orinoco Flow by Enya; Chariots of Fire by Vangelis; Canon by Johann Pachelbel.

MERLOT: Sitting On The Dock Of The Bay by Otis Redding; Easy by Lionel Ritchie; Over The Rainbow by Eva Cassidy; Heartbeats by Jose Gonzalez.