We learn how to taste whisky as part of Glasgow’s 850 Taste the Place campaign

National World - LocalTV

We visit Clydeside Distillery who are collaborating with Taste the Place to celebrate the city’s hospitality as part of Glasgow’s 850th anniversary celebrations.

Transcript

00:00Hi Cara, we're here at Clydeside Distillery this morning and we're going to do some whisky tasting.

00:06Could you tell us a wee bit about what we're going to be trying?

00:09Good morning, you'll be stumbling out of here.

00:11A nice mental journey as you're sat down with the River Clydes in front of you,

00:15can't get any better than that.

00:17As it is your first whisky, we always cheers to that, don't we?

00:20So we'll raise a glass together and say Sláinte Mhath, which is Gaelic for good health.

00:23Sláinte Mhath.

00:24Sláinte Mhath.

00:25You want to start by nosing the whisky,

00:27so you can give it a smell with both nostrils.

00:30You will find that you do have a more dominant nostril.

00:33I know, the body's wild.

00:34It does change throughout the day so you can test that out,

00:37see what one's your stronger nostril.

00:39You might get some more smells coming through.

00:42You can open your mouth as you smell that as well.

00:44Give it a little swirl as well, it's been sat there a few minutes.

00:47You'll be able to see the oils that come through as well.

00:50And once you're ready, you can give it just a little sip.

00:52Now, whisky is meant to be savoured and enjoyed.

00:55You don't want to neck this right back.

00:56Take your time with it.

00:58These are pretty young whiskies,

00:59so you want to hold it in your mouth for about three, four seconds.

01:03Let your cheeks get used to it, let your taste buds get used to it.

01:06I know it's a shock when you have that first sip,

01:08but you should be getting some senses through.

01:10So all of your senses are linked with your memories.

01:14So that means that there's no wrong, nothing wrong with what you're tasting.

01:18It's all linked with your memories.

01:20Who am I to say that your memories are wrong?

01:22So, if you want to maybe shout out if there's any smells or flavours

01:26or memories that come cropping back.

01:28Again, no wrong answer.

01:30It's all personal to you.

01:32I think probably granny.

01:34Probably my granny when I was younger and drank quite a lot of whisky.

01:37Did you get a wee dram as well then?

01:40Probably not, no, because I don't know what my reaction would have been at that age.

01:44Well, I'm born and raised in Glasgow.

01:46My granny would always rub it on my gums when I was crying

01:49and I turned out just fine.

01:52But I get those kind of memories coming through as well,

01:54like sat in an old man's pub with a fire roaring.

01:58I'm usually still sat in old man's pubs.

02:01Especially on a day like today.

02:02Oh my goodness, you want to wrap up cosy.

02:04So a dram will do that to you as well.

02:07So usually I feel like this one's quite sweet.

02:10So this one here is from an ex-bourbon barrel.

02:12So you will get the sweetness coming through

02:15from our new make spirit that we make just next door.

02:18About 30% of the flavour of your whisky at the end

02:20will come from that new make spirit that we make just here.

02:23And all the rest is going to come from the cask itself.

02:26So we use an ex-bourbon barrel, as I said.

02:30Let me just find a stave from that.

02:33So this is a stave from the bourbon barrels that we use.

02:35This is the outside and this is the inside.

02:37You can see that it is gorgeously charred,

02:39well black from the charring.

02:41That's all done from the bourbon industry themselves.

02:43So they'll char the inside just to keep that liquid water tight.

02:46But as they do so, it's releasing a liquid...

02:49Sorry, not a liquid, a compound called vanillins.

02:52Which is very similar to, funnily enough, vanilla.

02:56So if you're tasting anything or smelling anything coming through

02:58that's like kind of caramelised,

03:00like vanilla, toffee, butterscotch, fudge, anything like that.

03:05Yeah, that's all going to come from the bourbon barrels itself.

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