What blind whisky tasting reveals about your preferences
Blind whisky tasting means assessing a whisky without knowing some or all of its identifying information. The bottle might be concealed, the samples coded, and details such as distillery, age and price withheld until afterwards.
Its most useful purpose is not catching people out. It creates an opportunity to discover what attracts your attention when a familiar name or impressive specification cannot lead the conversation.
Decide what you are trying to learn
A blind tasting can answer different questions. Which sample do you enjoy most? Which characteristics distinguish them? Can you recognise a particular style? These are related exercises, but they should not be confused.
If the aim is preference, asking everyone to guess distilleries can distract from the task. Someone may accurately identify a style they dislike, or love a whisky whose identity they cannot place.
Start with a clear question such as 'Which of these three would I choose to drink again?' Record the answer before revealing the bottles.
What blind tasting removes, and what remains
Concealing labels reduces access to some expectations. It does not remove every influence. Colour, strength, glassware, serving order and comments from other people can still shape the experience.
Even the selection provides clues. Knowing that all the samples are heavily peated single malts is different from approaching an unrestricted group of whiskies.
For an informal preference exercise, identical glasses and anonymous codes are a useful start. If colour is central to the question, opaque glassware can conceal it. Be clear about what is hidden rather than calling every exercise completely blind.
A simple blind tasting to try
Ask someone to prepare small samples from three bottles and keep a private record linking each code to its identity. They should avoid giving hints through prices, bottle shapes or introductory stories.
Make a short individual note for each sample: its main aroma family, its texture, the character of the finish and whether you would choose it again. Only then discuss the glasses with other tasters.
Before the reveal, separate your preference from your guess. 'Sample B is my favourite' and 'I think B is the oldest' are different claims. Keeping them separate prevents an identification error from becoming a judgement about your palate.
What the reveal can teach you
You may prefer a less expensive bottle, a younger whisky or a category you normally overlook. That is useful information about that comparison. It does not establish that inexpensive or young whisky always suits you better.
Look for the sensory reason behind the result. Perhaps you enjoyed a lighter texture, brighter fruit or less drying oak. Those observations can guide future choices more effectively than the surprise alone.
If you change your opinion after seeing the label, notice that too. Context is part of ordinary enjoyment. Blind tasting simply helps distinguish your response to the liquid from your response to its story.
Repeat before making sweeping conclusions
One tasting is a snapshot. A different order, different company or a different day may produce a different ranking. Revisit important comparisons, ideally with the order changed and without announcing the previous winner.
You do not need to identify a distillery, age or price to be a good taster. The valuable skill is paying attention, describing what you notice and recognising the limits of the conclusion.
Explore Milroy's whisky tasting experiences, or enquire about a private tasting and discuss the questions you would like to explore.
(https://milroysofsoho.com/pages/tastings-experiences)
(https://milroysofsoho.com/pages/private-tastings)