IF ONE AUSTRIAN’S quirky idea catches on, wine tastings could soon sound like this: Is that some Mozart in my glass? A hint of Haydn, maybe?

Convinced that music is a key ingredient for a good bottle of red or white, Markus Bachmann has invented a special speaker that exposes fermenting grape juice to classical, jazz or electronic tunes. The sound waves, he claims, positively influence the maturing process and produce a better-tasting wine.

The eyebrow-raising technique is the latest in a slew of weird ways to make wine, some of which also have a melodic touch.

Take Portuguese winery Jose Maria da Fonseca, which plays classical music in its century-old Adega da Mata barrel hall where it ages its well-known Periquita label wines. Or French company Henri Maire that has sent thousands of bottles of red wine sailing around the world in ships to be jostled by waves. Then there’s Austrian Rainer Christ, who swears by full moon grape harvesting, saying it makes his wine more complex and gives it a longer shelf life.

Scientists have scoffed at such methods, however, calling them at best harmless – at worst cynical marketing ploys.

- AP