connoisseur
kon-uh-SURnounMeaning an expert judge of things that need fine taste, such as food, art or music
Memory hook CONE-a-SIR: the CONE expert, sir. Victor takes one lick of each ice cream cone and names the flavor and the farm it came from. He is a connoisseur.
A cheese connoisseur can tell where a cheese was made from a single bite.
In context Most visitors glanced at the paintings and moved on, but Felix was a connoisseur: he could name the painter, the year and even the kind of brush used.
Similar expert, judge, authority, aficionado
Opposite amateur, dilettante, beginner
From old French connoisseur, “one who knows,” from Latin cognoscere, “to come to know.”