4 ms·

Good article. I agree about the glass and water. But for smelling it, saying put your nose and sniff, he has it all wrong. Try this instead and I believe you w

by bugsy 16y ago

Good article. I agree about the glass and water. But for smelling it, saying put your nose and sniff, he has it all wrong. Try this instead and I believe you will be convinced it is the superior method. Place nose over edge of the sherry glass. Then breath in gently through mouth, which is not above glass at all. Mouth breathing always brings a little into the nose. Rather than suck the vapors into your lungs, they are pulled through suction action into your actual tasting parts in your nose. You will really be able to detect a lot more of the subtle parts of the whiskey there. I would be very surprised if anyone tries his method and mine and doesn't find this one superior.

desigooner 16y ago
The reason water is added is because it brings out the aroma in the spirit. Putting one's nose in to sniff can cause irritation if not done right. The following is a very comprehensive writeup as far as tasting whisky goes. http://www.whiskymag.com/nosing_course/ http://www.whiskymag.com/nosing_course/
- bugsy 16y ago
  There's every chance that article has been written by the world's greatest whiskey expert. He still gets it wrong. He says to sniff. Don't sniff. You don't breath through your nose. As I said before, place your nose above the glass and then gently breath in with your mouth. Your mouth will just breath in normal air, but it will create a draft through your nose that pulls in the vapours that are evaporating into your nose without creating eddies in the glass, and without quickly sucking the most delicate and lightest of the vapours past your nose's sensing cells and into your lungs, which misses the most interesting parts. Don't take my word for it, try it instead. Seriously, try the expert's "sniff with nose" method and compare to the two-orifice with nose close to the glass edge method I have described. You will detect much more of the bouquet with the two-orifice method. Perhaps I have invented it, I don't know, that seems unlikely, but for some reason the so-called experts don't know about this and aren't doing it right. Just try. You'll see, it will be really clear. You can use the direct sniff too if you like to get the heavier vapours.
  - kscaldef 16y ago
    It's odd that it's not mentioned explicitly in either article, but I have certainly had it stressed before that when smelling wine, or whisk(e)y, or coffee that you should have your mouth open. Also, the "sniff" is not as if you had the sniffles, but a gentle inhalation. So, even if they are not saying so in the articles, I suspect the experts are doing something rather similar to what you describe.
avinashv 16y ago
Maybe it's because I don't use a sherry glass, or maybe I'm just not used to picking out the aromas of whiskey, but this has never worked for me. I don't sniff--that sounds harsh and uninviting--but just gently breathe. With the right amount of water and few moments of airing, it's perfect.

by bugsy 16y ago

desigooner 16y ago

The reason water is added is because it brings out the aroma in the spirit. Putting one's nose in to sniff can cause irritation if not done right. The following is a very comprehensive writeup as far as tasting whisky goes. http://www.whiskymag.com/nosing_course/ http://www.whiskymag.com/nosing_course/

bugsy 16y ago
There's every chance that article has been written by the world's greatest whiskey expert. He still gets it wrong. He says to sniff. Don't sniff. You don't breath through your nose. As I said before, place your nose above the glass and then gently breath in with your mouth. Your mouth will just breath in normal air, but it will create a draft through your nose that pulls in the vapours that are evaporating into your nose without creating eddies in the glass, and without quickly sucking the most delicate and lightest of the vapours past your nose's sensing cells and into your lungs, which misses the most interesting parts. Don't take my word for it, try it instead. Seriously, try the expert's "sniff with nose" method and compare to the two-orifice with nose close to the glass edge method I have described. You will detect much more of the bouquet with the two-orifice method. Perhaps I have invented it, I don't know, that seems unlikely, but for some reason the so-called experts don't know about this and aren't doing it right. Just try. You'll see, it will be really clear. You can use the direct sniff too if you like to get the heavier vapours.
- kscaldef 16y ago
  It's odd that it's not mentioned explicitly in either article, but I have certainly had it stressed before that when smelling wine, or whisk(e)y, or coffee that you should have your mouth open. Also, the "sniff" is not as if you had the sniffles, but a gentle inhalation. So, even if they are not saying so in the articles, I suspect the experts are doing something rather similar to what you describe.

avinashv 16y ago

Maybe it's because I don't use a sherry glass, or maybe I'm just not used to picking out the aromas of whiskey, but this has never worked for me. I don't sniff--that sounds harsh and uninviting--but just gently breathe. With the right amount of water and few moments of airing, it's perfect.