Nothing I like better than getting a recommendation for something I just bought. Happens all the time with Amazon Simple logic: IF bought recently, THEN omit from recommendations If the AMZN recommender had a double-digit IQ, it would recognize that I buy this hand lotion periodically and send me a link when it estimates I […]
Author Archive | Lewis Perdue
This is why people HATE recommendations and most always DON’T click on them (and yet …)
I bought this on June 21… Then they emailed me this recommendation on June 29! WTF? No wonder … And yet…
Why ratings and reviews fail (A beginning of understanding)
The promise (and pitfalls) of current recommendation engines (collaborative filtering) THE PROBLEM: Welcome to the Vino Casino WINE IS HARD TO LIKE Wine is hard to like Can I learn to like wine? Wine is too hard to like How Science Saved Me from Pretending to Love Wine PROFILING INCOMPATIBILITY: Profile Matching How sensory taste […]
Retronasal perception of odors is often overlooked as a key metric
. 2012 Nov 5;107(4):484-7. doi: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2012.03.001. Epub 2012 Mar 8. Retronasal Perception of Odors Viola Bojanowski 1 , Thomas Hummel Affiliations PMID: 22425641 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2012.03.001 Abstract We perceive odors orthonasally during sniffing; in contrast, we perceive odors retronasally during eating when they enter the nose through the pharynx. There are clear differences between orthonasal and retronasal […]
Genetic science shows why wine reviews, expert suggestions, and taste profiles miss the target for recommendations
Genetic science shows that wine descriptions and flavor profiling are way off base when it comes to helping people find wines that they will like. This is because the odds are very, very small for two people to experience flavors in exactly the same way. This is because every individual has a different set of […]
Scientific research reveals why wine ratings and recommendations fail so often
Everyone has a different sense of smell. Taste is mostly determined by smell. “Each of the individuals examined had a unique genotypic [odor receptor] pattern.” –Menashe et. al, Nature Genetics A description and a rating will be accurate only if you are genetically “calibrated” with the reviewer. No smell = no taste. 80% to 95% […]
66% of wine drinkers find wine descriptions unhelpful in choosing wine. Only 9% rely on critics
Data from the 2013 Laithwaites Wines Survey, of 1,000 wine drinkers by polling firm, One Poll. (Laithwaites customers were excluded from the survey.) Those taking part said they were relatively well-informed on wine terminology. All the terms used in the survey were taken from the bottles or websites of leading wine brands, or recent reviews […]
The promise (and pitfalls) of current recommendation engines
NOTE: You can right-click all images to view a larger version. Left-click to go to data source. Value As arbitrary as they often seem, “35 percent of what consumers purchase on Amazon come from recommendations” — McKinsey The big disconnect While people value good recommendations, most (7%) rarely click on one from a site because […]
Mouth bacteria: one more reason that individuals’ taste perception differs (especially from sip & spit experts)
Study shows some wine aromatics aren’t released until they meet the bacteria in our mouths “At least 700 bacterial species live in our saliva, on our teeth and on all the interior surfaces of our mouths. “For this study, sponsored by Spain’s Institute of Food Science Research in Madrid and published in the journal Food […]
How sensory taste profiling stops short of individual recommendation accuracy
I continually shop for new wines like an average consumer. I do this to get put of the “wine bubble” that keeps reality at an arm’s length for so many wine geeks, fans, enthusiasts, spectators, aficionados, and members of the trade. How by-the-glass doesn’t work and can trash a winery’s reputation When Rogue Wine Calibration […]