I am no whiskey expert. As mentioned a few days ago, the newly refurbished bar is stocked with some carefully selected items. There is always room for some "experimental" items. When I was at the liquor store last there was an item marked "one per customer." That got my attention. It turned out to be Old Weller Antique 107. I was hooked because the Weller bourbons are made by Buffalo Trace and have the same (reportedly) mash bill and proof as Pappy van Winkle, the unobtainable. It is a wheated bourbon with 76% corn, 16% wheat and 8% malted barley. Wheated bourbons are very good. So I snapped up my allotted one bottle. It was only $27 which was not going to break the bank.

When a new one arrives on the shelf the first thing I do is pour a wee dram then sit down and just enjoy it without too much analytical thought. Just savor the moment. Then several days later is it time for a serious sit down and tasting. This takes concentration. There are four things that are examined.

First, the smell of the opened bottle. I don't know if the pundits have a name for it. There are often faint aromas that are characteristic. Some Scotch whiskys have very beautiful fruit fragrances.

Second is what the tasting world calls the nose. Swish it around in the glass and smell it while breathing in with the nose and mouth. Keeping your mouth open seems to help separate the flavors. There is probably some physiological reason for that happening. If you know why, let me know.

Third is the taste or palate as the whisky tasting world calls it. This tends to be rather complex. It is generally accepted that you hold it in your mouth and move it around. That is called chewing. What you find is that the flavor changes during the time you are chewing it. Some essences come out right away and others bloom later. It seems to change from mouth full to mouth full as well.

Fourth is the finish or the burn as some pundits call it. When you swallow, there is a lingering flavor. Sometimes it dissipates quickly and sometimes it takes a while. There is always a warm feeling. During the finish the flavor evolves just like when you are chewing.

One last thing to do is put a few drops of distilled water into the whisky and repeat steps two, three and four. That is supposed to "open up" the flavor. In some cases the results are changed quite remarkably. In some cases the water only dilutes things. For the most part when I am enjoying a wee dram for pleasure I don't add water.

My adventures in distilled spirits started in earnest about ten years ago when the boys gave me a bottle of Johnny Walker Gold Label for my birthday. About five years ago I started trying to make my own whisky and realized that it was very important to be competent at tasting in order to evaluate my efforts. It is important to note that with whisky tasting as with almost anything, practice makes perfect.