Flavour
The flavour of whisky is created through a complex interplay of raw materials, distillation process and barrel ageing. Our sense of taste works closely with our sense of smell: When tasting, scent molecules are released in the nose, while the tongue recognises the five basic flavours of sweet, sour, salty, bitter and umami. The full sensory impression that we perceive as a whisky flavour only emerges in combination.
Depending on the origin and production method, whiskies can contain flavours of vanilla, caramel, tropical fruits, spices or oak. Peat, on the other hand, gives Scottish malts in particular - from Islay, for example - their distinctive smoky flavour: phenols from the peated malt are produced during drying over peat fires and characterise the smoky flavour profile. When people talk about "smoky whiskies", they mean precisely this characteristic combination of peat and distillate.
For a well-founded taste assessment, tasters use the whisky tasting wheel to systematically name flavours. An occasional off-flavour such as "cork taint" - musty notes caused by faulty natural cork - can be quickly identified with a little practice.
Where does the flavour come from?
Why does Whisky taste sweet or peaty?
Where does the smoky flavour of whisky come from? How do raw materials, distillation and cask ageing influence the flavours? Find out which production and maturation factors shape the character of your single malt.
Classification of the flavour
What flavours does Whisky have?
How is the flavour classification of single malt and blended whisky defined? Discover the categorisation of fruity, malty, spicy and peaty notes and learn which production and maturation factors shape the character.
Smoky Whisky
What makes Whisky smoky?
How is smoke intensity measured and what role does peat play? Find out all about smoky whiskies, their intensity levels and discover famous distilleries and smoky single malts with a strong character.
Cork taint
What is cork taint in Whisky?
How does damaged cork affect the flavour? Why can whisky cork? Find out the causes, ways of recognising and preventing cork defects for unadulterated whisky enjoyment.
