Maybe this is why we love wine so much.

According to a story on NPR’s The Salt, studies by Yale Neuroscientist Gordon Shepherd show the flavor of wine “engages more of our brain than any other human behavior.” That includes such challenging tasks as hitting a baseball or solving a complex math problem. The simple act of sipping wine involves a multifaceted interplay as molecules in wine stimulate thousands of taste and odor receptors, sending a flavor signal to the brain that triggers massive cognitive computation involving pattern recognition, memory, value judgment, emotion and of course, pleasure. I don’t know about you but that made me thirsty.

Taste + odor receptors + flavor signals + cognitive brain computation = Pleasure!