THE long-burning question of whether wine tastes better from a cork or screw cap bottle could finally be answered by Oxford University.

A live experiment conducted by the experimental psychology department could finally provide an end to the debate.

Wine lovers will be taking part in taster sessions using brain-scanning technology tomorrow and on Saturday in London.

The University’s Crossmodal Research Laboratory team has dreamt up the test, which will monitor how the sounds, aromas and sensations of opening a bottle of wine influence taste buds.

Head of experimental psychology at the laboratory, Professor Charles Spence, said: “Our brains have a powerful hold over our taste buds, and it will be interesting to see the differing effects the multi-sensory aspects of wine drinking have on our perception of taste.

“This is a debate that has been ongoing in the wine industry for many years, and we hope this trial will go some way to providing a definitive answer to this fascinating question.”

What do you think? 

Researchers will fit participants with brain-scanning headwear to monitor their pleasure sensors as they take part in a series of tests.

The public can still register to be part of the experiment - in London’s Soho, by going to Billetto.co.uk.

The results of the ground-breaking experiment will be published later this year.