Greatest Influence to Your Enjoyment

[Ganga]

I was thinking about the texture of whisky this week. The question arose as to how important the texture of the whisky is. So what influences you appreciation of whisky the most: texture, color, nose, palate, finish?

[Ganga]

Anyone have any comments?

[dramtastic]

Anyone have any comments?

Yes. It's a reflection of the current state of the forum. 12 months ago you would have 20 replys by now.

[lockejn]

For me it's a tough call between finish and texture. I voted finish because that's what I usually savor, but texture can definitely be a deal maker/breaker for some whiskies.

[mikeymad]

Greatest Influence to Your Enjoyment? - wife/girlfriend

[Ganga]

Greatest Influence to Your Enjoyment? - wife/girlfriend

Or lack thereof.

Agreed Dram.

Still developing thoughts on this for myself.

[Ganga]

I've been considering the topic this week. I am of the opinion that each element contributes to the enjoyment or lack of enjoyment of the whiskey. Does this mean that they are of equal importance to the one with the dram? No. Nor does that mean that each individual will evaluate the whisky the same. I think the most important aspect of the whisky is the one that detracts the most from the whisky as this is what draws your attention away from the better aspects. For my personal tastes, I am far more easily distracted by objectionable things in the palate.

[lexvo]

For me palate with nose as close second. Some whiskies I also love for the color (Balvenie for example)

[pkt77242]

I voted Palate, and my order would be

Palate
Finish
Texture
Nose
Color

[The Third Dram]

Palate.

Why?

Texture: It may be light or heavy, waxy, oily, crisp, rounded or whatever other descriptive one may wish to ascribe to this aspect of the whisky. No matter. If it fits with the overall tenor of the spirit, then all's as it should be.

Finish: This CAN be a critical factor in a whisky's ultimate degree of satisfaction. But if said whisky can't even make it to the 'finish line' (i.e display an enticing opening salvo and follow through the middle), then what's the difference?

Colour: Close your eyes. If the aroma and flavour are working for you, who really cares about the hue? I've experienced all manner of whiskies from the lightest to the darkest, and their colours, while momentarily of note, rapidly fade behind any other aspects.

Nose: Only if you're a master blender. Otherwise, this particular facet of a whisky's demeanour ends up second-string in the greater scheme of things.

Palate: THE absolute No. 1 criterium, as far as I'm concerned. When one is tasting a whisky, one is not only utlizing one's taste buds. One is also, to a tremendous extent, utilizing one's olfactory glands through evaporation of alcoholic essences from the oral cavity up through the nasal passages. And then, there's that (hopefully) wonderful sensation as the flavours 'come back at you'.

So, palate it is.

[Ganga]

TDD, I like your response.

[dramtastic]

Ok just off the top of my head

Texture: I enjoy different textures I find in whisky and enjoy the mouth feel aspect of the tasting experience, but it's not a deal breaker as far as influence goes.

Colour: Is very important, no so much the hew but having colour itself. Pour a glass of whisky and look at it as it sits in the glass. The colour speaks of the promise of something special and whisky in the glass is a classy looking spirit. Of course great colour can be had by cask influence and without the need for E-150. Pour a glass of clear newmake and stand it next to a glass of 12YO, one says alcohol the other says refinement and pleasure.

Nose: I love a nose that I can sniff for half an hour and not even feel the need to sip it has so much complexity, but........like parmesan cheese, some things can smell bad and still taste bitching, so for that reason it's not the greatest influence on my enjoyment.

Finish: A long lingering finish is a beautiful thang, but I can manipulate the finish fairly easily by how I treat the whisky on the palate. Spend more time on the palate, swish the whisky around for 5-10 seconds and you can give length and bite to the finish(though of course some whiskys will have a dud finish no matter what you do).

Palate: Like Ganga this kind of works in reverse for me. It's the aspect of the whisky tasting experience that if bad, can ruin the overall experience more than the others. Therefore, it's the palate that has the greatest influence on my enjoyment.

[robbi@laurenson.com]

This is a tough one, but for me the finish can kill the dram. It can be a real deal-breaker which spoils the enjoyment of the other aspects for me. I suppose the base measure I have of whether I like a whisky or not is whether I like the finish.

[MoreDalmore]

Taste for me too ( as my nose is note the best in the business ).

And I agree that taste can work both ways; you either love a taste after the first sip ( for example the Glenmorangie Sonnalta PX for me ) or there is something in it that puts you off on a certain whisky ( for many it's the peat; for me I don't like the taste of Laphroaig so far )

And where does tasting stops and starts the enjoyment of the finish ( short or long ) ? That is sometimes hard for me too....

[newdad]

Of the factors listed, I must say finish. Everything else is just so fleeting in comparison. I like a pale, oily whisky that smells good with a great palate, but the only thing one really takes away from the experience is the finish.

Then again, I am a color blind, clown-nosed, burnt taste budded noob, so take it with a grain of salt.

[Muskrat Portage]

I'll have to take the 5th on this until I can surround myself with the collection and do some serious scientific taste ... er... testing. I'll get back to you.
Musky

[ClubSmed]

I voted for Palate, the way I arrived at this was to consider if only one of the attributes mention was Great and the rest were Poor would I still buy a bottle

Bottle 1: (Great)Texture (Poor)Palate (Poor)Finish (Poor)Color (Poor)Nose
Bottle 2: (Poor)Texture (Great)Palate (Poor)Finish (Poor)Color (Poor)Nose
Bottle 3: (Poor)Texture (Poor)Palate (Great)Finish (Poor)Color (Poor)Nose
Bottle 4: (Poor)Texture (Poor)Palate (Poor)Finish (Great)Color (Poor)Nose
Bottle 5: (Poor)Texture (Poor)Palate (Poor)Finish (Poor)Color (Great)Nose

I originally thought I would choose Nose as this is where I spend the most time When enjoying a whisky from the attributes given. However, given the list above I would realistically only buy bottle 2 because if it had a poor palate I would never pour it. So although I would enjoy a dram for the 1st time if it had a great nose, I would not return to it if it were not palatable.

[Ganga]

Thanks CS! I will have to mull that over when I next pour a dram. It is an interesting perspective considering that for the most part, you spend quite a bit more time with both the palate and the finish.

[Klondike]

Great question.

I find it extremely hard to choose between nose, palate, and finish. These are all very important to me. If forced to choose one, well it has to be......errhm......It is.......oh this is hard........well....hmmm.........can't choose

I think the nose and finish are the two I enjoy the most when I'm enjoying a good dram, more than the palate, but the palate can be the most off-putting when the dram is of poor quality. The burn of something vile is a big turn-off for me. Which is the most important then?

[Muskrat Portage]

I have considered this query for a while and decided on Finish. I enjoy the Palate and really appreciate when a SM bursts on my tastebuds, envelopes them and then the alcohol knocks them out! The finish, however, is what separates the blase from the spectacular for me. A bit of water after mellowing over the finish and back to the whisky once more.

Gosh but I enjoy SM.

Musky

[bjorn]

Palate, followed by Finish, next Texture, Nose, and lastly Color.

[steveblack]

I would vote for finish because the corollary to a great finish is almost always a great palate but they are almost equal in my opinion.

Anyway the palate is the moment and finish is the memory. If the moment is forgotten immediately, then it is not very special. Of course only memories of great moments count. I really like the way some whiskies lingers on and remind you of the great taste and feel of the whiskies. As I think about it, all my favorite whiskies have great finish and those memories are always pleasant

For me nose is but a part of the palate and finish, even though some nose flatter to deceive.

[danthepoetman]

Allow me to make a saucy comparison. The nose represents the preliminaries and, as everyone knows, if you entertain any intention of creating any kind of build-up, you need a well felt and extended moment of "turning around the pot" -if you forgive the expression. The palate is like the pleasure in itself. You can let it last pretty much as much as you want, you can modulate it at will, you can let the substance take any position around your mouth in the heat of the action. Now the final is like, well... the orgasm. It's the moment in which the sum total of all pleasure comes to an apotheosis in which you should lose yourself or start flying, metaphorically speaking. Some whiskies have heavenly bodies but not much talent for pleasure, others take you to the seventh sky whatever their body shape.


I must admit that with age, whisky have come at time to rival sex in the scale of my pleasures. If I have to make a choice here, it would be the drinking in itself, the whole process in appreciating every single moment with it's wonderful final.