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The choice of a single malt whisky glass is
more important than you may think. Whereas most drink glasses serve nothing
more than to prevent your liquid from puddling onto your tabletop, a malt whisky
glass is designed to maximize the senses of smell and taste of your malt.
A good malt glass will be reasonably wide at
the base to give the whisky a large surface area for the aroma to escape, and
the taper off at the top of the glass in order to concentrate the into your
nose. The 'nose' of the whisky is important even after you've started your
sip. The smell and taste work together to create the full experience. I should
also note that adding water, even just a few drops creates a chemical reaction
that will bring out the aromas, especially at cask strength. At 40%, your malt
will still be helped by a slight drop of distilled water. Never add ice,
however, because that hinders the whisky flavors (this could be a good thing in
the event of a skunky malt). Some glasses also have a lip that helps the malt
reach the tip of your tongue where the 'sweetness' receptors are located.
The proper glassware is as unique to the
individual as the choice of whisky, so consider this nothing more than a guide.
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'Classic' Nosing
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Nosing
Tasting
Durability
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Good
Average
Average
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Does a
decent job
The narrow top makes it difficult to
smell and drink at the same time
It will survive a few tips, until the last one
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Riedel |
Nosing
Tasting
Durability
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Average
Excellent
Terrible
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The shape doesn't do anything to concentrate the
vapors
The curved lip sends whisky to
the tip of your tongue
The glass is as tipsy as an
Irishman and the lip is the first thing to hit the countertop. The thin glass
will shatter on verbal command
UPDATE:
Not safe for toasting
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Celtic Malts p; |
Nosing
Tasting
Durability
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Good
Excellent
Good
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The aromas are concentrated at the
top, but some, hmm, manlier noses don't fit well when taking a sip
The lip hits the sweet spot like the Riedel glass
The heavy base makes it
surprisingly stable, and it's thick enough to taka a few hits.
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Glencairn
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Nosing
Tasting
Durability
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Good
Good
Excellent
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The shape pays a few respects to the
nose
Again, the simple shape works
Is tougher to drop
than an Olympic wrestler and will bounce back if tossed on the right floor.
UPDATE: This has
been confirmed multiple times and is winning the Darwinian fight in my cabinet.
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Whisky Tumbler
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Nosing
Tasting
Durability
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Terrible
Terrible
Excellent
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Big wide glass spreads the
vapors to your ears in case you grow smell-drums in there.
Let's face it, the
drammer that uses this is probably drinking a 3/4 mini-bottle of Dewar's found
in the parking lot of a Motley Crue concert. Who'd want to taste that anyway?
It's a big-honking
piece of Chinese glass
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