I just watched that video in Jack's Blog where the guy noses and tastes the Bowmore Gold.

How do whiskeys get those tropical fruit flavours? I mean Guava!..

I almost expect him to continue on with a list of flavours...pineapple, lychee, rambutan, mangosteen

Do those flavours actually stand out like that (cos I think guava is quite distinct) and how do they get into a whiskey?

I almost expected the list to go on get hints of mozzarella, prioscuito, mushroom, bolognaise, salami etc etc... : )

Well, first you need a guava tree...

Seriously though, yes, these flavors do stand out once you get your palate calibrated. I went through BJCP sensory training (Beer Judge Certification Program) but alas, I didn't get to take the test due to work commitments. One of the things we learned was how to calibrate your palate to pick out a whole host of different flavors.

Flavors are generally created by phenols and esters. Phenols are the smoke, peat, medicinal etc flavors while esters are the more fruity flavors (that's a MAJOR generalization, though).

Esters and phenols are created by the yeast as a byproduct when it's fermenting the wash (basically first you make beer, then you distill it to whisky). These byproducts depend on the yeast strain, the condition of their food (the sugars in the wash), the temp that they are fermented at, etc.

And yes, they can absolutely leap out at you once your palate gets calibrated.

-- Gary F.

There are no guava trees in Scotland. I am not certain how people come up with these comparisons. To me the true test of a good SM is in the pairing with a fine cigar. In my books, nothing comes close to a good Islay and a fine cigar.