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Undeleted > 1- Tasting & Evaluating Spirits > Flashcards

1- Tasting & Evaluating Spirits Flashcards

1
Q

Prepare for tasting

A
  • Good lighting, odor free, sufficient space, spittoons
  • Clean palate, well hydrated (nasal aroma receptors dry, lose saliva as you spit), water available
  • Glassware free of residue, rounded bowl, sides slope inward to conc aromas, have stem, ISO or Whisky nosing glass, always use same type
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2
Q

Tasting sample size

A

1.5 cL or 0.5 US fl. Oz.

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3
Q

Appearance

A
  • Can’t determine type, quality, maturity, distiller can manipulate colour & intensity
  • Note clarity, intensity & colour
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4
Q

Clarity

A

‘Clear’, ‘hazy’- can be fault or not chill-filtered, need nose & palate to determine if faulty

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5
Q

Aroma intensity

A

How much colour it has, look against white surface, 5-point scale :

  • ‘Water-white’ - vodka, some rums, agave
  • ‘Pale’- short-aged, no caramel colour, reposado Tequilas, Scotch Grain whiskies, bison grass vodka, can only see with sufficient volume
  • ‘Medium’ - wood-aged
  • ‘Deep’- bitters, rums, long wood-aging, maceration, caramel
  • ‘Opaque’- cream liqueurs, advocaat
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6
Q

Colour

A
  • Off still is ‘water-white’
  • Post-distillation operations- oak-aging, botanicals, caramel, artificial colourings, oak & caramel used together frequently, cannot determine maturity or quality
  • Oak maturation- ‘lemon’ (yellow), ‘gold’ (some orange or brown), ‘amber’ (orange, majority), ‘brown’ (orange & yellow faded)
  • Botanical or artificial colour- ‘pink’, ‘red’, ‘orange’, ‘yellow’, ‘green’, ‘blue’, ‘purple’, ‘brown’, ‘black’
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7
Q

Other appearance observations

A
  • ‘Louching’- when water added becomes hazy or opaque, some chemicals can only remain in solution if abv above a certain level
  • Some gins have high conc of citrus oils- become ‘slightly hazy’
  • Aniseed-flavored spirits- ‘cloudy & opaque’
  • solids- deliberate gold flakes in Goldschlager
  • Non intentional wood fragments from barrel
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8
Q

Nose

A

Quick, short sniffs (don’t overwhelm), no need to swirl (too much alcohol evaporates), dilute & assess again

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9
Q

2 reasons to dilute spirit

A

1- reducing abv- easier to taste many (palate fatigue)
2- helps open up aromas, reveal extra layers of complexity, easier to distinguish aromas, fruit spirits may become less clear
- 50:50 is highest level recommended, be consistent

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10
Q

Condition

A
  • Faults rare with widely distributed spirits, more common with small distilleries with less experience
  • Context- heads & tails removed in malt whisky in Scotland but Mezcal tolerates higher levels
  • 4 common faults- ‘Group 1 fractions’’, ‘Group 3 fractions’, cork taint, out of condition
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11
Q

High levels of Group 1 fractions

A

Conc in heads, ‘headsy’, solvent aroma, can have shooting sensation in nose, gritty, drying, powdery/chalky texture

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12
Q

High levels of Group 3 fractions

A

Conc in tails, ‘tailsy’, cheese & plastic aromas, rough or coarse texture, form residue in still at end of 2nd distillation, cleaned out with heads the next time

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13
Q

Cork taint

A

Musty, damp-cardboard aromas, from production or packaging, cork a common source, low risk with high quality corks, can get from wood pallets & barrels

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14
Q

Out of condition

A

Bottle open too long, smells & tastes less fresh & complex

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15
Q

Aroma intensity

A
  • ‘Neutral’- almost undetectable, main aroma is ethanol
  • ‘Light’- if after sniffing still faint & hard to detect
  • ‘Medium’
  • ‘Pronounced’- immediately apparent when you insert nose into glass, even without sniffing
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16
Q

Aroma characteristics

A
  • From raw materials, processing, oak &/or maturation, use groups to describe (prevents becoming overwhelmed, won’t overlook any)
  • Multiple sniffs, use wide vocabulary & be precise, purpose is to describe to someone who hasn’t tasted- don’t use personal terms
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17
Q

Raw materials

A
  • Raw material or combination
  • Herbaceous- rhum agricole, agave spirits, pomace spirits, may confuse
  • Compare samples to discern- grassy in rhum agricole, peppery, earthy in agave, woody in pomace spirits
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18
Q

Aromas from processing

A

3 groups- smoke, microbial, cuts

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19
Q

Smoke

A

Some Scotch whiskies, most Mezcal

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20
Q

Microbial

A
  • Yeast- fruity yeast made esters

- Bacteria- less widespread, most obvious in some baijiu with pungent compost-like aromas

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21
Q

Cuts

A

Group 1 or 3 fractions in high levels, some can be a characteristic feature

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22
Q

Oak & maturation

A
  • Contact with oak & prolonged oxidation
  • New oak- vanilla & sweet spice, Bourbon
  • Old oak- less obvious, Scotch, Calvados
  • Previously filled- Sherry butts- dried fruit & orange peel
  • Long oak maturation- wood polish, earthy, mushroom
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23
Q

Palate

A
  • Take > 1 sip to assess fully, one component may mask another (alcohol & fruity aromas add to perception of sweetness, sharp alcohol may offset sweetness)
  • 3 senses- taste, touch & smell
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24
Q

Taste

A

5: acid/sour, sweet, bitter, salt, umami, only sweetness & bitterness (added post-distillation) important
- Acidity- close to neutral
- Salt (sodium) & umami (amino acids) not present in spirits

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25
Q

Touch

A

Smooth or has roughness & sharpness

26
Q

Flavours on the palate

A

Detected in nose, volatile chemicals through nostrils, pass to the black of your mouth & into nasal cavity

27
Q

Sweetness

A
  • ‘Dry’- no newly distilled spirit has sugar, ethanol has slightly sweet taste, discern the sugar added after distillation
  • ‘Off-dry’- very small amount of sugar added, Cognacs, hint of texture (viscous)
  • ‘Medium’- has a sweet taste, not defining characteristic
  • ‘Sweet’- liqueurs, pastis, combinations like vanilla & fruity aromas give illusion of sweetness, some botanicals like liquorice taste sweet
28
Q

Texture

A
  • How it feels in the mouth, not just from effect of alcohol

- Harsher texture from fusel alcohols, fatty acids, esters

29
Q

Rough, harsh, sharp

A
  • High levels of alcohol induce ‘pain’ response, burning sensation, gritty or astringent
  • Bourbon, Armagnac, inexpensive vodkas
30
Q

Smooth, silky

A

Absence of roughness, mouthfilling sensation, often created by addition of some sugar

31
Q

Mouthfilling, full

A

Water does not linger, add sugar & opposite true, viscous, alcohols, oak congeners, additives add to mouthfeel

32
Q

Watery, thin

A

Rare due to high levels of alcohol, rarely positive

33
Q

Warming

A

Glow of warmth, positive, most noticeable on finish, assoc with alcohol, can have mix- some start mouthfilling d/t sugar but end watery & thin

34
Q

Flavour intensity & characteristics

A

Same flavors as aromas, warms in your mouth so some chars may appear more or less apparent

35
Q

Finish

A

How long positive flavours persist, simple or complex

36
Q

Length

A
  • ‘Short’- pleasant flavours disappear within a few seconds

- ‘Long’- for intense, complex spirits, flavours can last a minute or more

37
Q

Nature

A

Whether flavours persist & for how long

  • ‘Neutral’- Vodka
  • ‘Simple’-a single flavour dominates
  • ‘Some complexity’- variety of flavours but they quickly become generic, lose distinctiveness
  • ‘’Very complex’- flavours persist, fruits, florals, wood, rancio flavours remain distinct & identifiable for some time, outstanding XO Cognac
38
Q

Conclusions: Assessment of quality

A

4 key criteria: balance, length & intensity, complexity, expressiveness

39
Q

Balance

A
  • Aromas, tastes & textures work better when contrasting or complementing, each is well integrated into whole, no single element dominates, balance of aromas from raw materials, fermentation, oak & age
40
Q

Length & intensity

A
  • Balanced, pleasant, flavour lingers & evolves for many seconds, aromatic intensity on the nose & aromatic persistence on the palate appear together, some vodkas are intended to have short, neutral finish so consider their precision & purity
41
Q

Complexity

A

More is an indicator of a better quality spirit, some vodkas are clean, some fruit spirits are pure & more complexity is undesirable

42
Q

Expressiveness

A

Express something about their raw materials, how fermented, distilled or matured, looking for precision & clarity in flavours & textures

43
Q

Quality

A

Steps: decide what criteria to prioritize based on style, apply criteria, use assessments for each criterion to reach conclusion

  • ‘Poor’- comments mostly negative
  • ‘Acceptable’- lacking in some combination of balance, length/intensity, complexity or expressiveness
  • ‘Good’- balanced, positive & negative balanced
  • ‘Very good’- balanced, extra level of length, intensity, complexity or expressiveness, but something is lacking
  • ‘Outstanding’- left without any important negatives
44
Q

Identification

A

Identify aromas, tastes, textures & relate to previous tastings & knowledge, ex. American rum & whiskies can be confused d/t forward oak aromas but if sweet rule out whiskies because sugar is not added

45
Q

Aromas from raw material

A
  • Agave, sugar cane juice & pomace- all colourless, herbaceous, focus on differences & similarities
  • Bourbon, some rum- toffee & caramel aromas
46
Q

Aromas created during production

A
  • Smoke- rare, some whiskies & Mezcal, if it has aromas of cereal & oak don’t assume it is from peat, some craft distillers use wood-smoking techniques distinct from peat, smoke in Mezcal always in combination with earthy aromas of agave
  • Fermentation esters- American whiskies & rum have pronounced fruity aromas
47
Q

Aromas of oak & maturation

A
  • Narrow down spirits with lack of oak, some now use oak in previously unoaked categories (vodka, gin)
  • Determine what kind of oak aromas present, long or short aging?, previous contents? Sherry barrels give dried-fruit aromas, vibrant new oak with cereal aromas points away from Scotch & to American whisky, extended oak can change & diminish aromas so rum, whisky & Cognac can have more in common than when younger
48
Q

Sweetness & textures

A
  • Sweetness not added to all, sugar used in Cognac, Armagnac, some rums, aniseed-flavored spirits & liqueurs
  • Cognac & Armagnac- never more than off-dry
  • Sweetened rums- medium
  • Aniseed- flavoured & liqueurs- sweet
  • Sharp texture- Cognac, Armagnac, Bourbon
  • Smooth- Scotch whiskies
49
Q

Corn

A

Butterscotch, sweetcorn, corn bread, popcorn, caramel, burnt sugar, toffee, menthol

50
Q

Malted barley

A

Husk, porridge, barley, malt, flour, oatmeal

51
Q

Rye

A

Rye bread, gingerbread, peppercorn, allspice

52
Q

Grape

A

Grape, fig, prune, raisin, sultana, citrus, elderflower, orange blossom, rose, violet, perfume, lavender, lilac, dried flowers

53
Q

Agave

A

Agave, peppercorn, root vegetable, olive, capsicum, herbaceous

54
Q

Sugar cane

A

Grass, herbaceous, caramel, burnt sugar, toffee, treacle, molasses

55
Q

Fruits

A

Apple, pear, apricot, peach, plum, cherry, marzipan, strawberry, raspberry, blackberry, orange, lemon

56
Q

Botanicals

A

Juniper, citrus peel, root, earthy, cumin, peppercorn, aniseed, fennel, liquorice, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, nutmeg, cardamom, coriander, basil, rosemary, thyme, sage, lemon grass, mint

57
Q

Smoke

A

Peat, medicinal, smoked fish, smoky, seaweed, smoke, iodine, char, charred vegetables

58
Q

Esters

A

Banana, apple, pear, floral, pineapple, melon, mango, pear drops, nail varnish

59
Q

Heads

A

Pungent solvent (prickling sensation on nose), vinegar

60
Q

Tails

A

Plastic, cheese, feet, burnt rubber

61
Q

Oak

A

Vanilla, toasted bread, coffee, cedar, char, spice, sherry, sawdust, coconut, coffee, nuts

62
Q

Age/rancio

A

Fruit cake, candied fruits, leather, tobacco, wet leaves, mushroom, forest floor, meaty, gravy, yeast extract, wood polish

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