Are You a Serious Spirits Drinker?

It’s time to have a serious talk with those of you who are on a higher level of enjoying your spirit, whether it’s bourbon, scotch, tequila, rum, gin, Cognac or Armagnac. If you collect, appreciate, share and discuss spirits with a desire to learn and experience their subtle and finer characteristics, and you love to drink from tulip-shaped glasses, this is a must read.

For decades spirits lovers have been told by industry mavens, critics, authors, brand ambassadors and educators that the “proper” spirits glass is a small rim tulip shape, similar to the old Spanish sherry copita, a tiny stemmed glass. Smart marketing gurus in the scotch whisky industry were the first to pick a glass they could set up as an icon to identify all those who loved scotch whiskey. This little glass was designed for 20% ABV (alcohol by volume) fortified wine, but put a 40% ABV spirit in it and you have a nose numbing ethanol bomb which immediately begins to deteriorate your sense of smell. The marketers did a great job, as well over 90% of spirits drinkers are shoving ethanol up their noses daily with no idea of its effect on their senses, perception and enjoyment.

Ethanol is Anesthetic:  Repeated exposure and high concentration of over-abundant ethanol takes sensitive olfactory receptors out of action. Every whiff numbs more cells. Why would those who pay $100 and much more for a bottle of spirits ever want to shut down their sense of smell before they fully enjoy the flavors? Smell is 90% of flavor, and there are only five tastes; sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami. You don’t taste honey, caramel, florals, or fruity, you smell them. Taste signals inseparably accompany aroma signals to the brain where they may interpret the spirit as scotch. If your memory bank is well developed, you may recognize it as a Glenlivet 12yo (for example). You can’t smell the flavors when your sensors have been numbed by ethanol. Recovery time from ethanol anesthesia is three to five minutes. It’s truly that simple.

Ethanol Stealth: Olfactory receptor numbing sneaks up on you quickly. There is no pain, and no noticeable warning until suddenly you are guessing at aromas or worse, cannot smell anything. The proper terminology is ethanol anesthesia, which means that so many receptors have been numbed that specific aromas are indistinguishable. Sometimes called anosmia, olfactory fatigue, or nose blindness, the net result is you no longer detect aromas. Who knew? Very few recognize and acknowledge when it happens because a peculiar social adaptation kicks in.

Adaptation: You say, “I was smelling and tasting over 20 different scotches at the Whisky-Humdinger Taste-a-thon in Kentucky and I remember them all.”   The more correct answer is, you remember what you think you were tasting. By the time you were on your fourth or fifth sample, the ethanol was already taking its toll, and you were searching desperately for definitive aromas with a strong predilection of finding anything recognizable to characterize numb, barren sniffs. It helped that a few of your tasting buddies were talking about the things they noticed, and you desperately searched for and finally came up with exactly the same thing; you certainly aren’t going to tell your pal that he didn’t smell that, much less admit that you didn’t. As a serious spirits drinker, your memory bank stored thousands of aromas which can be called upon at any time to rescue you from being discovered as nose-dead by your drinking buddies. You can’t keep it from happening, your memory rushes to assist when needed, conjuring up imprints of spirits past tasted to create a shopping list from which you fill in the blanks, “Can I detect the butterscotch that I know is supposed be in this spirit?” 

In this case, it’s a good thing you read the tasting notes ahead of time so you would not be embarrassed by audibly searching for something that has never been detected in this spirit. No one wants to admit their sniffer has stopped working when they are in the middle of “enjoying” favorite or expensive libations and sharing opinions on the same. The fact is, if you search desperately enough for caramel, honey, floral, or whatever, you’ll find it, whether it’s there or not. If you are looking for that irrefutably recognizable characteristic of a particular distillery you will find it as your own power of suggestion lists your memory options for you.    

It’s very similar to retelling a story with few facts which you choose to embellish. Absence of information leaves enough room for your ingenious mind to relate a version of what you believe most likely happened. Social pressures can quickly become a roadblock to the truth and hinder accurate evaluation. Much of this stupidity is avoided with a glass that doesn’t shove ethanol up your nose.

The Fraternal Pitfall: Personal pride is at stake, and peer pressures run high when that special group of people who share a common interest meets.  Many spirits drinkers enjoy being part of the social drinking club and tastings scene, and many crave recognition for displaying some prowess at spirits evaluation. There is always that one guy who wants to be the first to mention notes of sun-dried Brazilian apricot, silver polish, or late-season pomegranate. People do funny things in social situations, and affectations strut rampant in whiskey clubs, professional tastings, seminars, and consumer events. The heightened sense of belonging and a natural urge to improve friendships and bonding play an important part in governing behavior.

Add to that the pre-event announcement and hype, “We will be tasting the Pappy, Elmer T, some Michter’s, and Wellers in the line-up this evening,” motivating many enthusiasts to do their homework reviewing basic tasting notes of those prized stars so they won’t appear to be a dumb-struck idiot. Unless the drinker is a masochist who craves punishing criticism, he will invariably use the approved tulip glass, and probably without knowing the tulip vessel’s shape and size is preventing him from an accurate understanding of the spirits he wants to enjoy. Peer pressure can be cruel and is on “full-ahead” at tastings and club meetings, especially regarding glassware, adding water, and tasting procedures.

Erroneous Assumptions Create Mythical Science: Years without the intervention of scientific reasoning has entrenched use of the sherry copita tulip-shaped vessel. Tulips can be a tough habit to break and beating the habit requires courage, knowledge, and commitment. Tulips are the shepherd’s crook of spirits clubs, ensconced as such by mythical science. Shaky validation of the tulip’s usefulness is rooted in two “axioms” unquestioned for decades; (1) ethanol odors can never be separated from character aromas so deal with it, and (2) if the rim is small enough, no aromas will escape detection by the nose. Both may seem logical, but neither is true.

Glass Manufacturers Missed Many Opportunities: Science has never been the strong point of any industry primarily focused on style and appearance as their major source of revenue. The ignored science is undeniably truthful, simple, basic physics: (1) divergent rims provide ethanol a place to move away from the nose, (2) short vessels get your nose closer to the aromas, (3) swirling and evaporation are what powers aromas to the nose, (3) Graham’s Law explains separation of ethanol from other character aromas, and (4) given sufficient rim plane areas, all available aromas are detectable and identifiable, and cannot hide behind nose-numbing ethanol. Instead, for well over 50 years, accepted spirits glassware has carried the same design characteristics of rim size, height, and inability to swirl, as every new style iteration mimics the non-functional basic dimensions of the tulip style copita. See Figure 1:

Figure 1: Major vessel dimensions affecting aroma and evaporation remain constant over decades, perhaps because glassware manufacturers unwittingly assumed spirits industry “science” was credible, and chose to execute only minor restyles. See spirits vessel design journal paper by this article’s author at https://www.mdpi.com/2306-5710/4/4/93

Absence of true science as it relates to glass design is not surprising, considering glass manufacturers misuse of the erroneous tongue map and recent appearance of the mysterious scientific design process of biomimicry which isn’t. There is much room for whomever wishes to create spin to imply or invent scientific application where there is none. Corporate marketers understand it well and take advantage quickly and often.

Where are the Ladies? Look around the event you are attending. What’s the predominant gender of the attendees? Certainly not 50% each, but closer to 80% male and 20% female, if that. Most spirits drinkers are male, and have no clue why there are so few ladies at the events. The most probable answer is simple but has been elusive: Women have a 43% more sensitive olfactory than males, and strong ethanol is painful. Using the tulip glass because it has been standardized by identity conscious industry leaders and marketers is a painful restriction for most women, and after the first sample most are done and fade away, never to return.

The reasons some ladies stay to play and use the tulip glass is important. Those we have interviewed possess a genuine interest and superior knowledge in spirits. They embody a strong “I-can-do-this” attitude which serves them well in any male dominated industry, company, organization, military service, athletic or social environment. Their comfortability levels are improved, acceptability into the fold is validated, and confidence is strengthened by adapting to accepted tulip shape vessels, because they practice a few simple basics to make it work for them, thereby bypassing male criticism for being wimpy and leveling the playing field a little more:

• Many women whisky aficionados poke their noses around the rim much further off, at a safer distance from the ethanol cloud than their male counterparts, and perform olfactory sampling retro-nasally, after the sip. In other words, they forego ethanol strong ortho-nasal sampling in favor of retro-nasal sampling. 
• Abandoning ortho-nasal prior to tasting is difficult and counter to the human experience of smelling first to detect harmful or distasteful substances prior to tasting. Relying upon superior olfactory sensitivity to discern and detect subtle aromas provides these ladies with an offset to foregoing the ortho-nasal stage of evaluation.
• Many more women faithfully employ those procedural devices. These are cruthces designed by veteran tasters to acclimate to ethanol such as wafting, slow repeated introductions to the spirit with successively closer sniffs, adding water to shut down evaporation, and breathing through mouth and nose simultaneously. These devices were designed to alleviate ethanol olfactory pain issues, and are proof positive of experts’ knowledge that tulip glasses concentrate ethanol and numb the senses.
• Many women also carefully consider recovery time, at least 3-5 minutes for the mucous layer to replace and refresh the olfactory, and space their samplings. Acclimation means “getting used to” and it may alleviate pain, but does nothing to keep receptors away from eventual numbing from ethanol. 

These smart ladies chose their game, and learned how to play it well through careful adaptation to using the tulip glass and flying below the radar of critical male peers while they contribute much to and earn a living in the world of spirits. They are even more effective with different glassware.

Spirits Industry Created the Problem it Now Ignores: Blenders have been diluting their samples by 50% for decades, because they understand the effects of strong ethanol on the nose, but insist on using a 20% ABV tulip shaped wine glass as their standard blending vessel. Science has proven that addition of water at those levels actually changes the aroma profile. To what aroma profile are they blending? Only they know, and it is not representative of what a straight spirits drinker is tasting and nosing. None have ever come forward with a suitable explanation, opting for silence on the issue.

The blending conundrum as well as all the devices previously mentioned (adding water, etc.) are a thinly-veiled acknowledgment by the spirits industry that strong, concentrated ethanol has a detrimental effect on nosing evaluation when using tulips. So why do industry executives, spokesmen and educators publicly endorse the tulip and continue to use encumbering methods to make a non-functional design work marginally better?  The spirits industry can go a lot further toward increasing market share and improving quality by embracing science, rather than standing behind their non-functional aroma-inhibiting wine glass icon. 

Reliability of Spirits Competitions: Over the past seven years, a large number of important spirits competitions have realized that the tiny rimmed tulip glass concentrates olfactory ethanol and causes early ethanol anesthesia among judges and evaluators, severely affecting rating accuracy and timely completion of evaluations. As a result, many competitions have now opted for glassware designed to reduce ethanol concentration and display all aromas. 

Why is this an important issue? With many more craft distiller products, the number of spirits available has more than quadrupled in 10 years. Observing liquor shoppers quickly proves that shopping is much different than it was only a few years ago. Consumers peruse the bottles, consult their smart phones, and begin a process of elimination to help them decide what to buy. Competition medals and ratings are important to the decision process, and there is not much else for the consumer to rely on. Certainly, an untrained facebook blogger with two years of tasting experience, and touting his own opinions should not be trusted with one’s potentially expensive personal taste decision.

Competitions are here to stay, and those who survive must depend on accuracy, consumer loyalty, and ability to provide the best information available to the end user. Taking ethanol anesthesia out of the picture with a better evaluation vessel makes a huge contribution to ratings accuracy, improves judging consensus, and gives competition entrants an equal opportunity for getting a rating or a medal.

What happened to the Old Guard who always use tulips? Researching and reading since 2002 to find a better way to nose spirits brought us in contact with many experienced noses who at one time were the leading edge of spirits evaluation, giving advice, writing special interest news columns, publishing tasting notes, writing spirits bibles, and educating consumers on how to taste and evaluate. These include critics, authors, competition judges, blenders, industry executives and brand ambassadors who have now retreated from the spotlight and who, through their experiences have developed a strong disdain for spirits competitions, medals, and rating systems. They highly value their credibility and reputations, yet decided to distance themselves from competitions, judging, and ratings as they came to understand the problems with ratings and individual spirits reviews and opinions due to uncontrolled ethanol anesthesia. 

The Old Guard has moved on to writing about the interesting history of distilling and the spirits industry and discussing controversial topics such as the validity of alternate aging processes. Many have given up writing spirits evaluations and ratings for the higher purpose of industry critique through controversial commentary. Some sit and ponder with their favorite expression poured in the nose-numbing tulip glass, unaware of its contribution to ethanol anesthesia and its probable role in their own personal career decisions. Some are trying new things, proof that old dogs learn new tricks if they want to. 

Conclusions: Attitudes need to change for the good of the industry and consumer, sooner is better.

• To distillers, blenders, and marketers: Consciously abandon support of tulip-shaped glassware, which performs no scientific function, and in fact provides a disservice to those who wish to enjoy spirits. Find a better glass.
• To educators in university hospitality curriculum, master class administrators, and brand ambassadors: Promote science to teach evaluation and enjoyment of distilled spirits for everyone, and abandon myths and procedural devices that surround tasting and nosing spirits. These devices are positive proof that the industry recognizes that their own chosen tulip-shaped vessels concentrate ethanol, and these devices are at best ineffective attempts to compensate for ethanol anesthesia.
• To competition administrators: Accuracy and truth in evaluation is dependent on eliminating ethanol anesthesia. Glassware which dissipates ethanol is a proven solution to the problem and improves rating accuracy, judging consensus, and correlation to the consumer. If you don’t already use open-rim glassware, now is the time to start. Balance judging panels to include more women, who have better noses and improve evaluation accuracy.
• To aficionados, collectors, and those searching for deeper knowledge: Your choice is whether to fit into your crowd of peers and continue playing their game while guessing what is in that expensive bourbon or scotch, or embracing science to help you recognize and identify quality and which spirits to buy.
• To all those who belong to spirits clubs: Don’t disdain, shame, or criticize those who choose a different glass than you do to enjoy your spirits. Experiment and welcome change; fraternal mindset has never made great contributions to learning. 
• To the Newbies: Be careful who you listen to and what you believe, choose mentors and references wisely, develop your sense of smell and opinions, read, and be critical and questioning. Don’t follow the crowd to discover if you like what they like, including your choice of a spirits tasting and nosing glass, and don’t fall into the fraternity game.

To those who are rooted in tradition: Tulip glasses are not about tradition. The scotch industry began using the tulip back in the 1960s as their icon and rallying flag to promote scotch. True tradition is the Scottish Quaich, the Oaxacan gourd cuppa, the rum tot tankard, the bourbon tumbler, the tastevin, and the Greek krater. Open-rim vessels allow the nose to get close to the spirit and pick up subtle aromas, while giving ethanol an escape path instead of shoving it up the nose. The ancients understood dissipating ethanol, something we seem to have forgotten in favor of our beloved tulip shaped membership badge.We would like to hear from serious spirits drinkers on the rationale behind placing the importance of an $8 glass designed for low ABV wines above enjoying and understanding a $100+ bottle of spirits. Put that tulip on the shelf, or better still, in the same place you put your old shot glasses, and move on. 

What are the alternatives? Literally hundreds, including tumblers and cocktail glasses can do a better job of preventing ethanol anesthesia. There are also vessels designed from the ground up with proven scientific function, the same ones many competitions now use. There are better answers available now, which will no doubt, soon give way to even better answers. You be the judge, but stay current or ride the leading edge.

Whether it’s a microwave, self-driving automobile, vaccinations, or an absurdly simple spirits tasting glass, reluctance to accept even the simplest science firmly roots many in the past until they consciously accept progress.  One thing is for sure, no one ever gives a damn about the science until they understand how it could actually affect them personally, and that is the purpose of this article.

Better glassware means better participation and gender equity for spirits events, improved perceptions and tasting notes, and more accurate spirits evaluations. Bigger picture, it can lead to better quality spirits, as many aromas of distilling come out from their hiding place in the anesthetic ethanol cloud. Ditching tulips can only be a positive for the industry and the serious spirits drinker. Get serious.

Conflicts of Interest:  Arsilica, Inc. is a majority woman owned corporation and the officers are owners and inventors of the NEAT glass. We take a solid position on gender equality because our products have the potential to encourage much-needed social change within the industry. Our research into nosing spirits began in 2002, long before the design for our NEAT glass was finalized in 2012. This paper is not about NEAT, but a presentation to the industry of our corporate research that makes a positive contribution for gender equity yet benefits both genders. We willingly share our research and knowledge. More is available in the research report at https://www.mdpi.com/2306-5710/4/4/93 . Additional information on the NEAT glass can be found at www.theneatglass.com . The author of this article, George F. Manska is CR&D (Chief of Research and Development) and co-founder of Arsilica, Inc.