I thought I'd share my own technique with you all - and I am *NOT* implying this is the best/only right/THE way - this is what I do, and it seems to work for me. I will also try and relate some experiences and observations made during the years. You may agree or not - and I know many whisky experts (and less so) who agree, others who do not agree...Well, this is fine, but some basic facts we MUST agree on, because they are due to physics and chemistry - not guessing or superstition. Bear with me
1. PREPARATIONS AND TIME TO TASTE
- When I am really trying to make a serious effort to dig deep into a whisky or rum, I usually do it Sunday mornings around 10 - 11AM, without a prior breakfast - just brushing teeth at least 1 hr earlier, and having water only before the tasting experience. For me personally, this seems to ensure that my taste buds are at their best (which may no longer at this age be so fabulous...).
-To really do a comparative taste test, I may also try to do a tasting in a normal "after work go to bar" setup - this means tasting the same spirit after eating something for lunch, having coffee, etc. I might even venture as far as trying the same spirit later after a beer or two - but at this point the idea is NOT to make tasting notes, the idea is to see how the spirit fairs up with a beer (of a chosen type), and how the combinations actually affect the palate and taste experience...And boy, they really do, more so than many realize.
- I'd seriously suggest avoiding any spicy or sweet food prior to tasting, because you won't bedoing any favours to the spirit - or its creators - by judging the spirit after a curry, garlic-chili kebab, a pizza or a mint-chocolate ice cream dish. Especially if you will publish your review, please - at least have the respect for the spirit and its creators to review it FAIRLY.
- Try to taste the drink in a clean, non-smelly environment (not in a tobacco shop, a barn or a varnish factory).
2. GLASS
- I think a standard copita tulip glass is a great choice. So is a Glencairn, but due to larger size you might want to pour in more of the spirit, because 3cl or less will simply look and feel too little in this. The tulip shape guides smells to your nose, and much of what we taste is actually due to what we smell - so there is a real importance here. I am not as fussy over the glass as some, but a tumbler will do no favours to the spirit - it was originally meant to be used for spirit and soda mixes, not just spirit alone. I do not like the "cognac" type of glass very much, but I would not condemn it either.
- Please make sure the glass is clean - not smelling of washing machine detergent, or chlorine.
3. NOSING
- Many techniques exist here: Some will tell you to nose from a fairly good distance, some tell you to stick your nose in the glass, some say NOT to stick your nose in the glass...well, I try a variety of techniques here, starting from nosing the spirit from a distance, then closer. If you have two spirits side by side, sometimes it is fun to nose them fast from one to the other, then put them away, and come back and repeat after some time, so as to allow your receptors to return to normal. The stronger the spirit, the more careful you might wish to be on how close you nose it from, due to the alcohol vapours. Same goes for heavily peated stuff for example.
- Nosing with added water (and I explain my adding methodology later) is important to me, this is how slowly one can really try and get all the various parts of the bouquet (fancy word for smell) out of a spirit.
- Nose a spirit in a ventilated and clean place..and if you intend to publish the notes, please respect the spirit and do NOT nose it if you happen to have the flu - your perception is not at its normal capability, and the review will not be fair to the spirit.
4. TASTING
- OK, the fun has started with the nosing, now taste the spirit please..
- I taste at first a tiny, tiny sip of the spirit at full strength - as long as the spirit is below 90%. Yup, a tiny tiny teeny small amount. Put the glass to your lips, bring the liquid to your mouth, then take in less than 0,5 cl into your mouth, and taste. Allow time afterwards before you do the same - typically 2 sips of even 60% and above rum or whisky is what I do. Allow time to pass, and then drink water. Allow time to pass. Taste, and think of what you tasted.
- After this initial contact of the 4th kind (the spirit invades your body..?), think - is this ok as is? How strong is it? If it is above 46%, I would 99% of the time put some drops of water into it, and taste again - real carefully. Then think about the taste, allow time to pass - and add a bit more water, taste again. In this way I usually gradually work the spirit down to a mixture where it is 50 -50 spirit and water. It takes time. Eventually the remaining spirit is well watered down, so much so that it is not necessarily even very pleasant any more - but I use this slow increase of water to get every taste out of it - and to also mentally mark the point at which the spirit is at its best.
- Tasting is a slow process, and during this I may write down notes. Comparative tasting at different times, environments, and situations is very rewarding, and educational - few things taste the same in a bar than at home at 10AM. Our mouth is a chemistry laboratory, and all the things we eat & drink, or do not eat or drink affect our capability to taste flavours. It can be a very humbling experience to taste the same spirit in this way, only to recognize the huge difference in the experience.
- If I am making tasting notes, I tend to use simple descriptives from the spice world usually for nose, taste, and finish.
5. WATER, ICE AND TEMPERATURE
- I would not add ice - and the reason is simple (and based on scientific evidence): Cold numbs the palate. Simple, yes? If you wish to taste all the flavours, do not cool the spirit either down below a certain degree (like 10- 15 Celsius degrees). So this is NOT about how you prefer to drink your spirits, it is about being fair to the spirit and its taste. Science.
- For added water, this should not be too cold either, and it should be as neutral water as possible, i.e. clean and not containing any tastes. In some countries tap water is ok, others - well, buy a high-quality bottled still water.
- As said, I taste at first "as is" with GREAT CARE not to gulp down too much! I have seen people chucking down 2 -4 cl's on one go...Jeez, it's not the spring break shot competition time! TINY amount....Carefully. Then I start adding water, increasing its presence slowly to a point where the drink is no longer really fun at all, but this way I can analyze the taste down to my best ability.
6. TIME
- Allow yourself time please for tasting a spirit. There should be no hurry, this is not a competition.
- The time of day (or night) when people taste spirits varies, but remember - typically our taste buds are at their best (and cleanest) in the morning, before noon, without previously consumed food or flavoured drinks.
7. VENTILATION AND TEMPERATURE
- A lot of people always tell me how they went to Scotland or Ireland) and at the distillery they tasted the local whiskies. They were fantastic, if not amazing. Better than ever before. So good in fact that they ended up buying a whole lot of them. At home the same whiskies did not taste as good any more. Why? The most common explanation I have seen has to do with the "feeling" - there they were, in the midst of Scottish Highlands, in the warehouse or better yet in the yard, looking at the majestic Ben Nevis - and ohh, they were swept with waves of great enthusiasm and emotion. Ergo the whiskies tasted fantastic, because of the surroundings.
Whilst I do understand the logic behind this easy way out of why something tasted different (heck, maybe they did not eat before they went to the distillery - or perhaps it was the leftover bits of breakfast haggis stuck to their teeth that caused the exhilarating flavours to appear!), I am a stickler for tangible, concrete physical and chemical reasons for such a difference. Well, two such affecting factors are ventilation and temperature - and I've done some investigation on this, believe me...
- In Scotland for example, the typical day temperature is around 15 - 18 Celsius, and the wind blows mightily. In a bonded warehouse or at the distillery shop with the window open, the ventilation is considerable. Similarly the whisky one gets in the copita is cooler - much cooler - than at home...say between 10 - 16 Celsius. Now a typical Finnish home for example has an inside temperature of 22 - 26 Celsius, and ventilation is at its minimum, since outside is so damn cold we have triple-glazing windows to keep the warm in and cold out. OK - believe it or not, this kind of a difference in the ventilation and temperature makes one HELL OF A DIFFERENCE to the experience your nose and mouth gets from a whisky or a rum! I kid you not. I have tested this, and wow - I would not have believed its possible how much it changes the taste.
- Mr. Murray suggests warming up the whisky at least (not sure on his feelings about rum) in your hands and at your bosom prior to tasting. "Let it steam in the glass", he said - and then nose & taste. Again, the experience is a very different one, but I am not sure if it is a very positive one, to be honest. The result reminded me of what we do with a Spanish brandy in the cool nights of Barcelona fall - the glass is preheated with hot water, and the brandy comes to you a bit warmed. In all honesty, I find this method not so useful for ultimate tasting - but that's just me.
8. OTHER OBSERVATIONS & EFFECT OF AGE ON MY PREFERENCES
- As I have gotten older, I notice that my palate and preference on whisky and rum is changing somewhat. I enjoy the heavier, sherried whiskies, with wood tannins and such much more than I used to. With rums also I look at the more robust range, whereas previously I enjoyed lighter styles. I have never been a fan of anything sweet, so sugar is a big turn-off to me, in all honesty - but nowadays even more so than before. I suspect we all go through some physiological changes and wear & tear of the palate as we age - some more than others.
- Colour of a whisky or rum does not tell us much, unless we know for sure that the product does not contain any added colouring. I think less of it now than before. Don't get fooled into making a premature impression of any spirit based on it's colour.
