What Do You Smell?
Smell, our oldest sense, evolved in prehistoric times to understand the vast array of flora compounds that kept our ancestors away from poisonous plants.
Today, we make tons of everyday decisions based on what we smell, from making sure a certain food is safe to cook or eat, to buying flowers, a fragrance, entering a restaurant, moving from one train car to another ha! or calling the fire department for a gas leak... our sense of smell can basically save our lives!
About 80% to 95% of everything we taste comes from our olfactory sense. All that we taste is sent to our brain by our olfactory system and taste buds. Our sense of smell is linked to our memories and past experiences, allowing us to recall specific smells and flavors.
Training our nose is an essential component of learning how to taste and appreciate spirits better. Continuous training will help you create more olfactory memories and will build the ability to differentiate and pick up certain aromas much more easily and accurately.
How can we do this? Simply by being aware of your surroundings and smelling every flower, every spice, every blade of grass on a rainy day and on a sunny day...I think you get the idea, and of course the spirits!
When training your nose, explore different brands, styles, grains, ages and barrel types...add some room temperature spring water to help open up the spirit. Compare the neat to the watered. Ask your bartender to surprise you with a blind tasting. Bonus Tip: When you are hungry, your taste buds are relaxed and awake for a more effective tasting experience.
There are many resources and tools available to help you navigate this experience. For example, flavor wheels are easy to use and provide vocabulary to better describe what we may be smelling or tasting. Some are simple, while others are more complex. They all operate similarly, moving from the center to the outer edges. Below are some good examples.
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The Scotch Whisky Flavour Wheel, developed in 1979 by The Scotch Whisky Research Institute, is the industry standard for sensory analysis of Scotch whisky.
Other flavor wheels, such as The Whisky Magazine Whiskey Tasting Wheel, have been created over the years to facilitate the process of identifying and associating smells and flavors more accurately. You can find these types of wheels for different spirits as well!
And of course, don't forget to take notes of all the spirits you smell and taste. After a while, go back to that whiskey or particular spirit and retaste it. You will surely notice a great progress in your tasting skills.
Cheers!
Naturally, it's always better to taste with friends and fellow whiskey enthusiasts. That is why we are here to create the best experience for you and your loved ones. Book a tasting with us today for a fun learning experience!
