 | for Aroma |
| | for Aroma |
Astonishingly, the aromatic (andflavour) elements in a bottle of whisky are found in a mere 0.2%of the bottle's contents. The rest is alcohol and water, andapart from the warming effect of the former, both of these havelittle or no smell.
Yet scientists have identified and named some three hundredconstituents in malt whisky, and they estimate that there arelikely to be as many again which have yet to be isolated anddescribed.
The reason we can pick out so many aromas from so small avolume is that wonderful organ stuck on the front of our faces,and its associated fleshy bits hidden from view and known tomedicine as the Olfactory Epithelium. Our noses funnel scents tothe receptor, which can identify smells reduced to one part permillion!
Incredible? Bear in mind that even the most powerful Islaymalt, redolent of smoke and tar, seaweed and iodine, is made frombarley peated to a mere 50 parts per million (Ardbeg). Laphroaig,the Islay one tends to think of as the wildest, specifies only 40parts per million.
Our sense of smell really is remarkable. All the colours wesee are constructed from only three primary colours. All theflavours we taste, from only four primary flavours (sweet, salt,sour, bitter). It is reckoned that there are twenty-three primearomas!
The huge majority of people have an excellent sense of smell -even smokers: although smoke anesthetises the epitheliumtemporarily, it returns to full working order in about half anhour. But, alas, like so much else, it deteriorates with age.
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