RianC started a discussion
6 years ago
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Blind Spots: Nosing and Tasting
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Hewie replied
@RianC ha ha I too printed off one of those flavour wheels, stuck it on the basement wall, and haven't looked at it since then. I'm not sure about a blind spot but I know what turns me off in a hurry. Maybe it's due to my chemistry background but I have a very low tolerance for chemical smells. I've had some whiskies that I just couldn't enjoy due to a acetone, or varnish type note. I seem a little more sensitised in that (feinty?) area of the flavour wheel. I enjoy some reasonably heavily peated malts but struggle with the strongly medicinal ones with overt TCP notes. So not really an answer to your question but some interesting observations.
6 years ago 1Who liked this?
RikS replied
It is a scientific fact that the olfactory sense is closest related to memories. The olfactory bulb has direct connections to the amygdala and hippocampus, which in turn are strongly related to memory and emotions. Visual, auditory, and tactile information do not pass these brain areas.
It is a historical fact that the Nordics (vikings) were so successful in conquering the British (Scottish) isles because the locals (Scotsmen) were too busy 'smelling flowers' as you say to mount a proper defence against the invasion.
From reading all these threads with great interest and gratitude for all the learning, and sometimes amusement, it appears to be a connosr fact that some people have a blindspot for sulphur :-)
As regards the tasting wheel I did once in my youth send a message to the almighty Connosr creator, father and master of ceremony whether it would be impossible to include a 'click' function in the review section for allocating a number, say 1-6, for the typical components in the whisky to be shown on a taste wheel / spider diagram. I don't know if that's technically possible, but I've seen several such 'comparative spider diagrams' for different whisky and - at least in the beginning - such a visual guide was very helpful to me to try get a better feeling for the nature of various expressions. Of course, I recognise its severe limitations in terms of the subtelties and nowadays I tend to find the innovative references very fascinating (in reference to your motor oil).
6 years ago 2Who liked this?
OdysseusUnbound replied
I also have a "blind spot" for several floral smells. When I review, if it isn't vanilla, I usually just use the generic "floral" descriptor. Of course, I'm not a big fan of subtlety in general, so I tend to stay away from subtle whiskies. Given the price of my spirit of choice in Ontario, I can't afford to keep "a bit of everything" on hand. And after next month's election, I may not be able to afford to drink at all, even though my desire to do so may increase exponentially.
6 years ago 2Who liked this?
RianC replied
@OdysseusUnbound - I hear that - hope it all goes well.
I think I'm done with the stage of trying lots of different things now. Without making any conscious effort I recently noticed that I have more Ardbegs and Springbanks (all 3 styles) in my stash than any other. Unless something really jumps at me, or gets very favourable reviews, my purchases from here on in are going to be from distilleries I trust, if that makes sense?, and bottlings I know I've really liked in the past. Bought too much filler last year and I regret it now.
6 years ago 2Who liked this?
Nozinan replied
@OdysseusUnbound Catch22
If our party wins the price of alcohol may rise, but everything else will be better.
6 years ago 1Who liked this?
OdysseusUnbound replied
@Nozinan True. In that case, I’ll be drinking less, but better booze. It’s a trade-off I’d gladly make. If the “folks” guy wins, my wife may lose her job and I could find myself on strike in just over a year...and it could be even worse for more people.
6 years ago 0
When I first started getting lots of enjoyment from nosing and tasting whiskys I used to use a tasting wheel to help identify different smells and flavours. It's not something I've done for a while but what I used to find was that the more floral sides of a whisky's profile were much harder for me to detect or pin down.
It's most likely true that our experiences with smell and taste, in all aspects of our life, help give our memories a data bank of sorts. In my youth I would have barely noticed flowers and found the smells a bit off putting. I got into meditation and mindfulness around my early twenties and one consequence of this was learning to take time to appreciate all that is around us - so as a result I am now much more likely to literally 'stop and smell the roses'!
Anyway, I still find that out of all the traditional smells associated with whisky the floral side is where I still find a blind spot. Sure, I can get general floral smells with maybe some more common flowers like rose or lavender but that's it. Conversely, being a keen amateur cook I grow herbs and use them a lot so my ability (if that's the right way of putting it?) to detect a range of herbs is much keener.
I'd be interested to know if you feel you have blind spots or areas that you feel you are more attuned to picking up notes from. I don't know, perhaps mechanics smell Springbanks and think "that's like Castrol GTX from the 80's" ;) Similarly, have you done anything to proactively train your sense of smell and taste? For example, I'm now forever smelling flowers (when my hay-fever isn't playing up that is) and asking my partner what the names of the flowers are to try and increase my nasal vocabulary as it were . . .