Did Mr. Lee think women had superior palates? He didn't…although his wife did. "I think women notice more subtleties," she said. As an aside, Ms. Lee noted that her husband drank more expensive wines with his friends than she did with hers. (That's another cliché of men versus women in the wine world. As Dan Posner of Grapes Wine Co. in White Plains, N.Y., put it: "Women like the name Sancerre. Men like the name Montrachet.")
李先生是不是认为女人有更好的味觉呢？他不觉得……但是他妻子确有这种想法，她说，"我觉得女人能够觉察到更细腻的东西。"作为题外话，李太太说她丈夫跟他的朋友一起时喝的葡萄酒比她和她的朋友一起喝的要贵。（那是另一个老生常谈的话题，关于葡萄酒世界里的男人与女人的对比。正如纽约州白原市（White Plains）葡萄酒有限公司（Grapes Wine Co.）的丹・波斯纳（Dan Posner）所言，"女人喜欢桑塞尔（Sancerre）这样的名字，而男人则喜欢梦拉榭（Montrachet）这样的名字。"）
What about wine-drinking amateurs? What would they say? I decided to convene a group of six tasters, male and female, for some real-life insight. I pulled together an appropriately disparate group of wines, including some that had been identified as fit for women (Pink Moscato and Pinot Grigio) and some that were ostensibly "male"-i.e., Cabernets and Syrahs.
葡萄酒业余爱好者怎么看？他们会有什么样的说法？我决定召集六名品酒者，其中有男有女，来进行实地观察。我把一些各不相同的葡萄酒堆放在一起，包括一些适合女性喝的（粉红莫斯卡托葡萄酒和灰皮诺葡萄酒）以及表面上看更"男性"的葡萄酒──解百纳（Cabernet）和西拉葡萄酒。
Before we began tasting, there was a brief back and forth about actual palate preferences versus marketing techniques. "I feel there is a marketing perspective about what kind of wine a man would want," remarked Jeff, and Gary agreed: "Men like big, broad-shouldered wines," he said. "It affirms their masculinity. The Cabernet people really know what they're doing."
在我们开始品酒之前，大家就实际的味觉偏好与市场营销手段的话题你一言我一语地讨论了一番。杰夫（Jeff）说道，"我感觉在男人想要什么样的葡萄酒这个问题上市场营销人员有他们的观点。"加里（Gary）表示赞同，"男人喜欢用大而宽的瓶子包装的葡萄酒，那样才能肯定他们的男子气概。爱喝解百纳的人非常明白自己在做什么。"
And yet, Gary was the first one to express a dislike for the Cabernet Sauvignon that I'd chosen (2009 Sojourn Napa Valley Spring Mountain), finding it a bit one-dimensional. He was also one of the first to express a preference for the Pinot Grigio. "This is more interesting than most Pinot Grigios, especially the aromas," he said of the 2011 Ferrari-Carano Pinot Grigio, a bright, well-balanced white from the Russian River Valley of California. (The men were all quite keen on the Pinot Grigio.)
然而，加里是第一个表示不喜欢我选出来的解百纳（我选的是2009年的Sojourn Napa Valley Spring Mountain）的人，觉得这种酒有点乏味。他也是第一个说自己喜欢灰皮诺葡萄酒的人。"这比大多数灰皮诺都更让人感兴趣，尤其是它的香味，"他说的是2011年的Ferrari-Carano灰皮诺葡萄酒，一种产自加州俄罗斯河谷（Russian River Valley）的色泽鲜亮匀称的白葡萄酒。（几位男士全都很喜欢这款灰皮诺酒。）
The next wine, the 2010 Smith-Madrone Napa Valley Riesling, was a universal favorite. "It's a wine for men and women," said Peter, thanks to the wine's bright acidity and clean, minerally flavors. The 2011 Be Flirty Pink Moscato, on the other hand, was universally loathed. "This is a wine cooler," said Lauren. "It's a Chippendales wine," replied Gary, in a reference to the male-stripper club.
大家品尝的下一种酒是2010年的Smith-Madrone纳帕谷雷司令（Smith-Madrone Napa Valley Riesling），它成了所有人的最爱。彼得（Peter）说，"这酒男女皆宜，"因为这种酒有爽口的酸味和清新的矿物质味道。相反，2011年的Be Flirty粉红莫斯卡托则不受众人待见。劳伦（Lauren）说，"这酒好淡。"加里答道，"它是奇彭代尔舞团（Chippendales）那些人才喝的葡萄酒。"他说的奇彭代尔舞团就是那支著名的脱衣舞男表演队。
Positive commentary returned with the reds, save for the 2010 WillaKenzie Estate Pinot Noir Estate Cuvée, which everyone found light and a bit innocuous. The other reds pleased both sexes across the board, even the wines that were fairly tannic, including the highly regarded 2009 Domaine Courbis Champelrose Cornas, a "manly" red from the northern Rhone, and the 2008 Pintas, a broad-shouldered blend from the Duoro Valley that's one of Portugal's most sought-after reds. The panel was universally enthusiastic about the Pintas, praising its lush texture and ripe fruit, though it was a rather formidable wine.
当品尝到红葡萄酒时，大家再次给予了肯定的评价，只有2010年的巍峨酒庄（WillaKenzie Estate）黑皮诺葡萄酒例外，大家觉得它有点平淡乏味。其它的红葡萄酒受到了两种性别人士的普遍欢迎，哪怕有些酒里含有相当数量的单宁酸，包括被人高度认可的2009年的Domaine Courbis Champelrose Cornas，一种产自罗纳河谷（Rhone）北部的"适合男人的"红葡萄酒，还包括2008年的Pintas，一种产自多罗河谷（Duoro Valley）的宽肩瓶装的混合葡萄酒，是葡萄牙最受人追捧的红葡萄酒。品酒小组全体人员对Pintas都兴致浓厚，对它醇美的口感和成熟的果味赞不绝口，虽然它是相当厉害的一种葡萄酒。
In the end, none of the panel's preferred bottles conformed to the stereotypes of "male" and "female" wines-they just all happened to be very good. I was surprised by how much the panel had been in accord. Even their wine budgets were similar: Both men and women said they spent $15 and under for "weekday" bottles-and twice as much or a bit more on "weekend splurges."
最后，品酒小组中没有人对传统类型的"适合男性"或"适合女性"的酒有特别的偏好──这些酒其实都很不错。品酒小组成员意见的一致程度让我倍感意外，连他们买酒的预算都是一样的：无论男女，他们说"平时"买的酒都在15美元以下，"周末挥霍"时花的钱是平时的两倍，甚至两倍多一点。
Do women have better palates than men? Based on my tasting experiences over the years, I'd have to answer: It depends on the woman. And it depends on the man.
女人的味觉比男人好吗？根据我多年品酒的体会，我不得不这样回答：这要因女人而异，也要因男人而异。