(Decanter) - A new gadget which claims to 'age' wine in minutes, improving its taste and making it more mellow, could be on sale by the end of the year after tests in the US proved successful.

The Wine Wizard uses electro-magnetic and acoustic waves to increase the wine’s pH, reducing acidity and sulphite levels in a process that lasts 15 to 60 minutes, depending on the degree of ‘maturation’ required – light, medium or maximum.

Wine Wizard owner CleanPath Resources Corp said testing had been ‘successful in many ways’, showing that the gadget could ‘age’ the wine, reduce its acidity and ‘mellow’ its taste.

It uses Agronifier technology developed by Ferris Holding, through a process called ETM or Electromagnetic Treatment Matrix.

Ferris Holding said that, in over 150 blind taste tests, more than 97% of amateur wine drinkers said the device improved the flavour of red wine, with 90% agreeing that it improved aroma.

For white wines, 85% of testers agreed that flavour was improved, although tests focused mainly on red wines selling at US$6-12 a bottle.

The benefits of the technology are said to be ‘masked’ by high sugar levels or carbonation, making the gadget less effective with sparkling or dessert wines.