[djmcmath]

I wonder if there's an Emperor's New Clothing connection here: "I just spent $400 on this bottle of wine, I had better be able to taste a difference, even if I have to subconsciously imagine it." Sometimes when I read reviews on expensive wines, where they're talking about "hint of blueberry" whether or not they're just making it all up. I wonder how much of the wine culture is just perception about the perceived classiness of being able to differentiate between a crap wine and a good wine?

I'm with you on that last paragraph, alf -- the idea that people would be better at solving puzzles if they thought they had spent more on the energy drink is ... surprising. I'm only a little surprised that people think an expensive wine tastes better than a cheap one. I'm shocked to find that people get a placebo effect from expensive energy drinks.