"Pro Tips"

[PaulO]

flan & tiramisu 

[fishnbowljoe]

When you go on a fishing trip and stay in a cabin, always wear shoes or flip flops. Never go barefoot or walk around in your socks.
 

 

Oooops. Wrong website…..

 

Biba! Joe

 

[PhantomLamb]

23 hours ago, fishnbowljoe said:

When you go on a fishing trip and stay in a cabin, always wear shoes or flip flops. Never go barefoot or walk around in your socks.
 

 

Oooops. Wrong website…..

 

Biba! Joe

 

I can vouge for the socks, I've spilled bourbon or cocktails that way...brought it back around!

[fishnbowljoe]

33 minutes ago, PhantomLamb said:

I can vouge for the socks, I've spilled bourbon or cocktails that way...brought it back around!

Well, uhh…….  To cut to the chase, even very small fish hooks hurt like hell when you step on ‘em without shoes on.

 

Biba! Joe

[PhantomLamb]

3 hours ago, fishnbowljoe said:

Well, uhh…….  To cut to the chase, even very small fish hooks hurt like hell when you step on ‘em without shoes on.

 

Biba! Joe

I’ve hooked myself plenty of times but thankfully never down to the barb .

 

Pro Tip while fishing: save the drinking for after, booze and hooks don’t mix lol.

[LvR Mike]

On 11/10/2017 at 8:03 PM, WhiskeyBlender said:

Wow, what a great topic, thanks for posting this! I'd like to post a few "pro tips" that are used by industry professionals, but can also be used by connoisseurs to enhance their enjoyment. 

 

1.) Use high quality glassware with a tulip shape, and preferably with a stem. For professional work, I either use a Glencairn sherry copita, a Riedel Cognac Hennessy Vinum glass, or a Stolzle tulip glass with a stem. The stem helps to keep the glass from warming from the hand, which can add unwanted volatility, and also keeps any aromas away from the glass, such as soap, that might still be on the hand. NEVER use a bulbous Cognac snifter for ANY kind of spirit. The French call this glass "the liar," since it does nothing more than force volatile and aggressive notes into the nose, without any sort of finesse or delicateness. 

 

2.) When nosing, put your nose towards the top of the glass, rather than from the middle or the bottom. Towards the bottom, there will be a lot more volatility, fusel oils, etc., but from the top, you'll get more gentle, pleasant aromatics. You'll also get a truer reading of aromatics of the bourbon. 

 

3.) Like is often the case with our eyes or ears, most people perceive aroma better out of one nostril than the other. With the eyes or ears and other body parts, this is known as contralateral sensory perception, meaning that, for example, the sight out of your right eye is connected to the left side of the brain. With the nose, you have ipsilateral sensory perception, so that the right side of your nostril is connected to the right side of your brain. To experiment with this, take a glass of bourbon (in some sort of tulip shape) and roll the glass from the right to the left side of your nostrils. You'll probably notice that one side is more dominant than the other. or that some aromas are more pronounced on one side than the other. A few people are "ambidextrous" with this. At any rate, experimenting with this can enhance your experience. 

 

4.) Whenever I analyze barrels or prepare to blend, etc., I don't brush my teeth until I'm finished. Morning time is usually best for analysis, when your senses are at their peak, although that obviously isn't a good time for most people to do so if you aren't in the industry. Even so, be careful about using scented aftershaves, deodorants, soaps, toothpaste, the scent of laundry soaps, etc. Also, be careful about eating spicy food, garlic, onions, etc., as this will affect how you are able to smell and taste. 

 

5.) Besides just looking for specific aromas, which is more of a descriptive analysis, which looks at particular aromas, think about things from the viewpoint of structural analysis, which looks at depth, length, structure, complexity, balance, finesse, and delicateness. 

 

6.) If you are doing some sort of descriptive analysis, then aromas can be broken down into 8 or so basic constituents, such as fruit, floral, herbal/vegetal, spice, smoke, sweet (i.e., vanillins, caramel, toffee, etc.), oak (i.e, tannins), and oily/nutty/fatty. Once you can find these, then you can develop your analysis to determine if fruit means orchard fruit, stone fruit, citrus, and from there, what kind of citrus, or fresh fruit vs. stewed or candied fruit, etc. This kind of analysis isn't necessarily that important on a professional level, but it certainly does enhance the experience as a connoisseur. 

 

Happy nosing and tasting! These are just a few thoughts, but there are so many more. I look forward to hearing nuggets of wisdom on this thread. 

 

Cheers,

Nancy

 

 

 

I just stumbled across this thread and this entry here should be and will be considered my whiskey bible moving forward.

 

Thank you for attending my Ted Talk.

[troyce]

This is a good thread.  I had not read it in some time, but last night I went  back to the  beginning and read all posts.  Noted several on the mistake of setting bottles sideways on shelves or storage:   Booker's and other boxed issues.  This brought to mind  one of my most notable personal "Pro Tips" .  Never, ever buy whiskey when you are sideways on the floor in a liquor store.   Seriously. 

[smokinjoe]

I mentioned in another thread about dusty hunting and my stupidity in pulling in to some pretty skech liquor stores in really bad parts of town.  I had a “plan” for these which could be considered a “pro tip”, because I was never bothered, nor did I catch a bullet in the ass.  . Probably mostly luck, I think.  Well here’s my pro tip I relayed here back on 2007:

 

 

 

 

[Kepler]

Just discovered that a couple of Halloween "candy corn" pieces before sipping can enhance the sweet notes of the bourbon. 

 

Disclaimer that I'm not normally a sugary candy fan, but this is pretty good.

 

 

 

Edited October 23, 2022 by Kepler

[Harry in WashDC]

COPIED FROM "Brain Faht" thread which I started late on a recent night.  THANKS to several of you, this post found its proper home.

 

[Quoting] 

 

*  *  *  *  *

 

Subject?  CORKS AND STOPPERS!  Those aluminum screw-top wines are driving me crazy - damn cheap CHEAP!! aluminum caps do NOT keep wine from leaking out when stored on their sides even if plastic wrap (uh, Saran Wrap, etc.) are used to tighten the top - aluminum just bends.  Commercial wine stoppers don't work on many screw-top bottles are the inside diameter is "off".  SO!!  I pulled my Blanton's bag of saved bourbon corks and tops off the shelf (while looking for a replacement for the EWW) and found that an EW cork fits PERFECTLY in the neck of a Hugl Gruner Veltliner.

 

Um . . . did I post this helpful hint on that thread before?????  Sure sounds familiar now that I read through this post.

 

[End quote]

 

EDIT - Georgia sure handing it to TCU.  Fortunately, we watching "Perry Mason" on FeTV while THE GAME is on my laptop with the sound off.

Edited January 10, 2023 by Harry in WashDC

[smokinjoe]

I was reminded of this one last night while sitting out front with a bourbon.  If you are in an area where conditions may promote the proliferation of slugs (humid and moist like Georgia, mulch, plant debris, etc) do not put your beer or bourbon on the ground.  Slugs are extremely attracted to both, and last night was the latest time that I found one crawling up the side of my glass that I had set on the bricks.  Caught it early enough, but I’ve come close to making contact in the past.   Keep a table close to get your drink off of the ground…like a damn civilized person…  

[PaulO]

Here's something just as gross.  Many insects zero in on the smell of alcohol.  My sister in law used to bartend at some high end catered events in L.A.  At the end of the night she could take home anything that had been opened.  She showed me some top shelf Tequila.  There were a bunch of fruit flies as sediment.  The bartenders had used those pourer spout tops, and the bugs got in that way.  She asked what I thought.  I said dump it.    Too bad.

[mbroo5880i]

3 hours ago, PaulO said:

Here's something just as gross.  Many insects zero in on the smell of alcohol.  My sister in law used to bartend at some high end catered events in L.A.  At the end of the night she could take home anything that had been opened.  She showed me some top shelf Tequila.  There were a bunch of fruit flies as sediment.  The bartenders had used those pourer spout tops, and the bugs got in that way.  She asked what I thought.  I said dump it.    Too bad.

 

I thought good tequila had a worm in the bottom of the bottle.    Occasionally, an unidentifiable bug will meet its demise in my glass of bourbon.  I just pick it out and drink away.  Although, I will admit I occasionally drank one down by accident.  It made my pour more chewy than normal..

 

I can't begin to tell how many bugs I ate officiating early evening/dusk soccer matches.  

[PaulO]

It's Mezcal, sometimes has "the worm" - really the larvae (caterpillar) of a moth that is found on the agave plant.

 

BBC once did an article about people around the world who eat insects as part of their diet (not like an accident).  They said, the best tasting bugs of all are termites.

I think I'll pass.

[Richnimrod]

8 hours ago, PaulO said:

It's Mezcal, sometimes has "the worm" - really the larvae (caterpillar) of a moth that is found on the agave plant.

 

BBC once did an article about people around the world who eat insects as part of their diet (not like an accident).  They said, the best tasting bugs of all are termites.

I think I'll pass.

 

Wellllll... Termites eat wood, right?  If they were selectively fed used Bourbon barrels... Hmmmmm.  

[Special Reserve]

12 hours ago, mbroo5880i said:

 

I thought good tequila had a worm in the bottom of the bottle.    Occasionally, an unidentifiable bug will meet its demise in my glass of bourbon.  I just pick it out and drink away.  Although, I will admit I occasionally drank one down by accident.  It made my pour more chewy than normal..

 

I can't begin to tell how many bugs I ate officiating early evening/dusk soccer matches.  

I'm not into eating bugs, but if/when a small bug is in a pour, i'd just pick it out and keep on drinking my drink.  If I was at a bar, and it was served this way, I'd ask for a new pour.

[Richnimrod]

2 hours ago, Special Reserve said:

I'm not into eating bugs, but if/when a small bug is in a pour, i'd just pick it out and keep on drinking my drink.  If I was at a bar, and it was served this way, I'd ask for a new pour.

Me too!   (After drinking at least half of it. Ha!)

[Jazzhead]

I was sitting my deck with a pour this weekend and was bothered by gnats buzzing around.  I set out a wide tumbler of very sweet Hochsteter rock and rye and within an hour close a hundred or so gnats were floating dead in the glass.

[Remocap]

This might be the replacement for a drain pour. At least not a total waste!

[Harry in WashDC]

18 hours ago, Remocap said:

This might be the replacement for a drain pour. At least not a total waste!

THX for this.  Is grilling season, and the gnats and mosquitos will sneak in when I go in and out the sliding door.  I have a couple potential drain pours and a spare night light which I'll set out FAR AWAY from the bedroom. 

[mbroo5880i]

Bugs are food in many countries.  I can't believe a bug or several hundred in a glass of bourbon is an issue. 

[Harry in WashDC]

On 6/13/2023 at 3:54 PM, Harry in WashDC said:

THX for this.  Is grilling season, and the gnats and mosquitos will sneak in when I go in and out the sliding door.  I have a couple potential drain pours and a spare night light which I'll set out FAR AWAY from the bedroom. 

THIS WORKS!  Plugged in the light near the door and put a 1/4 inch of the bad bourbon in a short plastic storage container on the floor under it.  We had a couple fruit flies, and they jumped in also.  PLUS, the cats didn't try to drink it or wade in it.

[StarSurfer55]

I thought the comments about slugs and snails was interesting.  Just make sure the  you don't eat one.  Slugs and snails are commonly the intermediate host for  a lot of parasites.

[markandrex]

[Richnimrod]

57 minutes ago, markandrex said:

I imagine the dude pictured would be deeeelighted to find a bug . . . or better yet; BUGS floating in his Bourbon!