Whisky Tasting Basics

Let’s face it, whisky drinking can sometimes appear a bit pretentious, and stuffy whisky fanatics will say you have to drink whisky a certain way. You can drink it any way that brings you enjoyment, whether that’s neat, on the rocks, with water, soda, or even in whisky based cocktails.

But if you’ve been invited to a whisky tasting, you’re trying to impress a boss or whisky loving friend, or you want to go down the rabbit hole and get more out of your whisky experience, there is a process to whisky tastings. So here’s a guide to the basics of a traditional whisky tasting.

What to expect at a Whisky Tasting

The point of the whisky tasting process is to focus on the whisky itself, so it will be served neat. No ice. No mixers.

It will also be served in a tasting glass. There are a lot of different whisky tasting glasses out there, the most common of which is the trusty Glencairn. What they all have in common though is a wider bowl to allow the whisky to open up, and a taper to the opening to bring the aromas to your nose.

There are four general stages to tasting a whisky, which are appearance, nose, palate and finish. In that order.

Appearance

You’re looking at the colour, clarity and viscosity.

Colour – the colour of a whisky will vary from light straw, to gold, amber, brown and even deep reds. The colour of the whisky comes from the ageing process. So a deeper colour will often indicate a longer time spent in casks.
Clarity – this is how clear or cloudy the whisky appears.
Viscosity – swirl the whisky in the glass and see how it falls back down the glass [close up of whisky glass]. The lines that form as the whisky drains back down to the bowl are called legs. Thicker legs that take longer to drain are an indicator that the whisky is non-chill filtered. This is a good thing. It means that the production method hasn’t removed some of the natural oils in the whisky that help carry the flavour. If the legs are very thin and drain quickly, it is probably chill-filtered and may have a softer, medium-bodied flavour.

Unfortunately, you still don’t get to drink the whisky yet.

Nose (or smelling)

Bring the glass up to your nose, keep your mouth open and breathe in through your nose and mouth at the same time. If you’re drinking whiskies with higher ABV, taking a big whiff straight through your nose tends to burn a little. As you smell the whisky, you’re trying to pick up the scents and flavours. Some of the scents you might find in a glass of whisky are:

Grainy – cereal and malt
Fruity – fresh, citrus, dried, cooked fruit
Floral – fragrant, solvent, grassy
Peaty – smoky, medicinal like iodine, or salty
Feinty – anything from toasted biscuits to tobacco, honey and leather
Sulphuric – cabbage, matches, rubbery or even sandy
Woody – vanilla, spicy, cinnamon
Winey – nutty, oily, chocolate

Now you can have a sip.

Palate

Take a sip and see what your first impression is. You can keep it in your mouth a bit to see how it feels and explore the flavours. Is it big and bold, or is it soft and subtle? As you sip a few times, you may start to pick out different flavours.

The flavour of the whisky can be categorised in the same way as the nose, but you can often find completely different flavours on the palate compared to the nose.

Grainy – cereal and malt
Fruity – fresh, citrus, dried, cooked fruit
Floral – fragrant, solvent, grassy
Peaty – smoky, medicinal like iodine, or salty
Feinty – anything from toasted biscuits to tobacco, honey and leather
Sulphuric – cabbage, matches, rubbery or even sandy
Woody – vanilla, spicy, cinnamon
Winey – nutty, oily, chocolate

Optional extra – adding water

If you’re interested in getting more out of the whisky, simply adding a drop or two of water can sometimes open other flavours. Using a dropper, add a drop or two of water to your glass, then go through the process again.

Appearance – adding water may make the whisky appear a little cloudy. This is another indicator that it is non chill filtered. [before and after image of my whisky with water]

Nose – you may pick up some of the more subtle notes that were hidden earlier, often more floral undertones.

Palate – the addition of the water breaks down some of that harshness at the back of the throat, allowing you to taste more of the flavours. As with the nose, you may pick up some other flavours that were previously masked. There are no specific flavours that are opened up with water, so you almost get to retaste the whisky as though you have a new glass.

Finish – does it change the way it lingers. What new after tastes are left behind.