At 09:04 AM 3/3/2005, Lynn wrote:
>... remember, your nose can pick up even the smallest amounts of a
>volatile oil...
My apologies to our esteemed list-admins for adding to this OT thread.....
I agree that human nose is remarkable. I developed a huge appreciation for
its sensitivity several years ago when I was making and judging wine.
Everybody drinks wine, don't they? So, when someone wants to know if a
wine is good or bad, what do they do? They stick their nose in the glass
and smell it, right? This is because our ability to smell a defect is much
more acute than our ability to taste it. And most defects caused by
bacterial attack, poor storage, or undesirable chemical constituents result
in some very smelly odors.
What I didn't realize was that many of the things which cause these odors
exist at concentrations in the ppm range, that parts per million or
mg/liter. Think of it! 3.8 mg of a compound in a 55-gallon barrel
produces a concentration of 1 ppm. Do you know how small a milligram is
and how large 55 gallons is? Dump a pinch of salt in a garbage can filled
with water and you'll be in the neighborhood. And our nose can smell
that!!! Astounding! Consider potassium metabisulfite.... a chemical many
wine makers use to protect their wine from bacterial attack. It's
typically used at concentrations of 10-30 ppm free, just below the point
detectable by the olfactory senses of most people. However, if a wine
maker gets sloppy and adds just a touch too much, the wine will be
stinky... reminiscent of an angry skunk or rotten eggs. A commercial wine
judge can detect sulfite "in the nose" at concentrations as low as 30-40
ppm. In fact most people can, but many don't realize what they're smelling.
Yes indeed, the nose is a marvelous thing.
Jane
Received on Thu Mar 3 15:00:30 2005