How to Actually Smell Your Whiskey

Most people sniff a glass of whiskey the same way they'd smell a candle, and it's not the most effective approach.

Smell does most of the work

Your tongue only picks up a handful of basic tastes: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami. Nearly everything else you associate with a whiskey's flavor, vanilla, caramel, oak, comes through your sense of smell instead.

Don't go in too aggressively

A deep, direct sniff right at the rim of the glass can overwhelm your nose with alcohol vapor, temporarily numbing your sense of smell for a few minutes. A gentler approach works better: hold the glass a little below your chin and let the aromas drift up to you.

Try breathing through your mouth

Once you've taken a sip, breathe in gently through your mouth, close your lips, and exhale slowly through your nose. This reaches your olfactory system from the inside without the harsh alcohol burn a direct sniff can cause, and it often reveals flavors a simple sip doesn't.

Give it more than one try

Your nose adjusts to smells quickly. The first pass on a freshly poured whiskey usually tells you more than the fifth pass in a row, since your sense of smell starts adapting to what it's already picked up.

Next time you're tasting through something new, spend a little more time nosing before you ever take a sip. Ask us if you'd like a quick demonstration next time you're in.