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If you want to trick your guests into thinking the cheap wine you're serving is a special vintage, simply lie to them about how expensive it it. 

Research has found that people rate wine better if they are told it is pricey.

And the experts said so-called 'price prejudice' can blind people to the actual taste of wine and even change their brain function.

Participants in the study were told they would consume five wines priced at £55, £28, £22, £6 and £3 ($90, $45, $35, $10, $5) while their brains were scanned. In reality, volunteers consumed only three different wines with two different prices. Stock image pictured

The research from the University of Bonn and INSEAD Business School studied the impact of 'marketing placebo effects' (MPE). 

This is when preconceived beliefs about a product create a placebo effect so strong that the actual chemistry of the brain changes.

'Studies have shown that people enjoy identical products such as wine or chocolate more if they have a higher price tag,' said study co-author Bernd Webber.

'However, almost no research has examined the neural and psychological processes required for such marketing placebo effects to occur.'

Participants in the study were told they would consume five wines priced at £55, £28, £22, £6 and £3 ($90, $45, $35, $10, $5) while their brains were scanned.

In reality, volunteers consumed only three different wines with two different prices.

A second experiment used labels to generate positive or negative expectations of the pleasantness of a milkshake. 

Some of the participants consumed identical milkshakes but thought they would be either organic or regular, while others consumed identical milkshakes but thought they would be either light or regular.

All study participants underwent MRI on a Tesla scanner.

Brain scans revealed changes in regions known as the striatum, the dmPFC, and the posterior insula, which is related to our perception of taste. 

In particular, there was an increase in the volume of grey matter (GMV) in regions involved in generating emotion and control when drinking 'expensive' wine. 

This revealed a significant price effect on taste prejudices, both in how the participants rated the taste as well as in their measurable brain activity.

The research studied the impact of 'marketing placebo effects' (MPE). A preconceived belief that creates a placebo effect so strong it changes the chemistry of the brain. Brain scans revealed changes in regions known as the striatum and and the posterior insula (pictured), which is related to perception of taste

In particular, there was an increase in the volume of grey matter (GMV) in regions involved in generating emotion and control for the more expensive bottles of wine. This revealed a significant price effect on taste prejudices, both in how the participants rated the taste as well as in their measurable brain activity (pictured)

It is widely known marketers can change how consumers perceive the consumption of their products and subsequent satisfaction, influencing not only purchasing decisions but also usage frequency and recommendation behaviour,' said the paper. 

'The existence of marketing placebo effects shows how fundamental the impact of marketing actions can be: Marketing actions change not only consumers' perceptions but also the biological processes underlying their consumption and purchasing decisions.

'In this paper, we have extended our understanding of the scope of the effects that marketing actions have in important ways.' 

The MRI readings related, in part, to specific areas of the brain that differ from person to person and these differences are also associated with known differences in personality traits. 

From this, the authors were also able to further determine that people who were strong reward-seekers or who were low in physical self-awareness were more easily swayed by the MPEs.

'Understanding the underlying mechanisms of this placebo effect provides marketers with powerful tools. Marketing actions can change the very biological processes underlying a purchasing decision, making the effect very powerful indeed,' the authors concluded.