Buying Wine? How To (Maybe) Outsmart Your Brain: Special Replay

Apr 22, 2026

This week, we’re revisiting the Wine Behind the Scenes Archives and bringing back one of our most popular episodes. In this episode of Wine Behind the Scenes, Laurel Simmons sits down with Dr. Antonia Mantonakis, also known as The Wine Psychologist, to explore how celebrity culture and subtle psychological triggers shape our wine choices, whether we realize it or not.

From wine-tasting experiments with Olympic athletes to the endowment effect (a real thing!) and why we’re more likely to buy something we’ve physically touched, Antonia shares her fascinating research into the subconscious forces behind buying and enjoying wine. This is a conversation that’s as playful as it is eye-opening, especially when the person on the label might be altering your taste buds.

Plus, Judith Lewis joins us at the end for a spirited take on the wonky wine term “firm finish.” What does that even mean, anyway?

What You’ll Learn:

• How celebrity endorsements change how wine tastes
• The psychology behind touching a bottle and wanting to buy it
• Why marketing matters more than most people think when it comes to wine
• How our expectations shape the way we smell and taste wine
• What the “endowment effect” is and how it shows up in tasting rooms

Dr. Antonia Mantonakis is a professor of marketing and consumer psychology at Brock University and a Fellow at the Cool Climate Oenology and Viticulture Institute. 

Known as The Wine Psychologist, she has been featured in media outlets like CNN, The New York Times, and The Globe and Mail for her work on the subconscious factors that influence how we choose and enjoy wine. 

Her research blends science, psychology, and wine culture in ways that challenge what we think we know about our preferences—and she’s here to break it all down for us.

 
Ever picked a wine just because of who was on the label? This episode might explain why.

Listen now at winebehindthescenes.com