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TASTING PROCEDURE |
| 1. |
Consider the colour and brightness of the whisky. |
| 2. |
Swirl the spirit in the glass and nose it neat. |
| 3. |
Add water, swirl and nose again. If you are being formal, work through a check list of aroma groups:
- FRUITY (ranging from ripe pears to dried figs);
- FLORAL, FRAGRANT (lavender to gorse);
- MALTY, CEREAL (malted milk to dried hops);
- PEATY, SMOKY (moss to kippers);
- OILY (milk chocolate to crude oil);
- WOODY (newspaper to pine resin).
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| 4. |
Taste the whisky - note its texture and viscosity, then its combination of primary tastes (sweet, sour, salty, bitter), then the flavour as you swallow. |
| 5. |
Aftertaste - how long is the finish? Are there any flavour echoes? |
| 6. |
Abandon analysis and, in the words of Oscar Wilde, "revitalise the soul with the senses, and the senses with the soul." | |
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