“Tasting whisky is personal”
Ahead of our 50 Under £50 series, Glen Scotia’s master distiller Iain McAlister explains how to decipher the delicacies of your delicious drams
According to Iain McAlister, time is the most important factor when it comes to savouring whisky.
“The first thing I do when I pour whisky is leave it in the glass to get to know its surroundings. I’ll give it a few minutes, and then agitate it a little, moving it around in the glass. It helps the alcohol lose some of its volatility, all the while getting back to the essentials of that core spirit.
“Whisky likes a little bit of warmth to find its balance, so if you’re in a cold room hold the glass in your hands. You’ll obviously look at what’s in your glass straight away but never judge a whisky just by its colour. If it’s heavily peated it could be quite light, whereas a sherry of a similar age will be darker – colour is interesting but certainly isn’t the be-all and end-all.
“Before you taste, smell. But don’t dive straight in with both nostrils. I’ll bring the glass up to my nose and just take a light breath at first because I’m not sure what’s in there. Take the glass away, give it a minute, then go back to it. My brain’s trying to make associations. What am I getting? Is it vanilla, sweetness, caramel, fudge? I’m trying to work out exactly what’s in the glass. Is it balanced? Is there a lot of cask influence? Is that too strong?
“I’ll nose it two, three, four times – with slightly longer pauses each time – and then I’ll start to know where I’m at. Then I give it a little try. I’ve nosed it but I won’t necessarily know what it will taste like. The magic is when there’s a synergy – a superb nose with a fantastic palette.
“I tend to take a small amount on my tongue rather than rolling it around my mouth. When I roll it about I seem to lose the flavour. I’ll leave it and taste it again to reaffirm what I’m thinking. Then I’ll add a little bit of water. That will open the whisky up, basically breaking down the chemical bonds and releasing the higher alcohols – the esters, aldehydes, butanols and whatever.
“For sure, with Glen Scotia that will mean you’ll get more fruit notes. But don’t add too much water; I tend to add five or so drops, but it really corresponds to the amount of whisky in your glass.
“Tasting whisky is a personal thing. You’re constantly educating your brain and building up a repertoire of flavours. Part of that is what you know about the distillery, what you know about the new make spirit, what you know about the wood that the whisky has been matured in. All that comes together to influence what you’re experiencing.
“So if you are tasting whisky at home from a distillery you’ve never visited – which is what most people do – deciphering tasting notes can be difficult.”
There’s no harm in trying though. Slàinte!
