Which glass?

@CanadianNinja It sure sounds like there's a lot of science in that design - does it work for you? I use the glencairn glass or a cognac glass which is essentially a bowl, and yes there is an alcohol issue but you if you give your whisky some time, it's manageable. But hey. let's not forget alcohol is part of a whisky (hehehe). Anyway, I would try a NEAT glass for sure.

@FMichael Or provide for the specimens? Hahahaha prepare a list!!!

What a great thread! I went through the whisky glass dilemma a while back :)

@NVGeo I really enjoyed the science you brought to this conversation!

I have both the Glencairn and Canadian Gelncairn, but prefer the Canadian on most occasions. I also have some thin Brandy snifters which work well.

When I am comparing whiskies one on one, I like to use the same glasses (which ever they may be), because I find the shape and size of the glass changes the tasting experience ever so slightly!

@bourbondrinker Again, as I've stated in previous posts during this discussion, I don't actually have an official NEAT glass. The glass I use however is almost identical in shape. As well, I've never actually used an official Glencairn glass but I have used other similar shaped glasses. However, yes the glass that I'm using at the moment which is shaped like the NEAT is quite nice. I have had better nosing and tasting experiences with this glass than any others I have tried.

I find what NVGeo has said during this discussion, which seems to refute a lot of the scientific claims made my the NEAT company, to be very interesting and worth considering. I think Victor's suggestion about an in depth study between the various glasses is an absolutely wonderful idea and I would be very curious as to what results such a study would show.

One thing I would say is, personally, I feel this is an issue that can and should be addressed through evidence based findings. So much of whisky drinking is subjective, no doubt. What aromas, tastes, images and impressions one person gets from any given whisky on any given day is completely subjective. However, I suspect that the question of which glassware allows for the optimal nosing and tasting experience is one that could be objectively answered.

A buddy compared the glencairn and the NEAT. His results are here: scotchblog.ca/scotch_blog/2012/…

@bourbondrinker lol - absolutely..."Honey - I'll be gone for a few weeks...Will be conducting a study funded by the Federal Gov't"...

@cpstecroix I think the article has answered all my questions...I'll stick to my Glencairn! The winning point being the low practicality of the NEAT. Slainte!

@nvgeo, you excite my electrons and take them to the next level! Thanks for the info. Btw, that was a pick up line that I tried back in HS which didn't work for some reason . :/ I have nothing interesting to say but I've thoroughly enjoyed all of your comments and learning from all of you. :)

@cpstecroix That's an interesting write up comparing the two glasses. I am intrigued by his observation that the NEAT glass was very good in some respects. I was pretty critical of their write up, and I stand by those criticisms, but if the glass works well to bring out different aromas maybe it is for other reasons.

I have been trying to find a list of the chemicals that make up whisky but have not been able to find one. I saw mention that there are about 700 chemicals found in whiskies, but a list would be great because I could then look at molecular weights and see where ethanol falls in the spread. If it is way down on the light end then perhaps it is diffusing away effectively. However, I don't see why it wouldn't do that just as well from any opening of the same size. Diffusion really would be the only thing going on there that I can think of.

As for the design of the glass, having to tip my head way back doesn't sound that great to me. I'd give the NEAT glass a try, but not on my own dime. So for now I'll stick with my Glencairn. However I'll probably experiment with some other glasses I have around here, and maybe report back about those. I just bought a bottle of Glenmorangie Quinta Ruban that came with two glasses. I haven't tried those yet. I also have some antique crystal glasses I can dust off as well. Any excuse to get the whisky out!

@cpstecroix Thanks a lot for the link! It was worth reading and I found his findings to be quite interesting. It definitely reinforced my own desire to get those two glasses together for a head-to-head tasting...

@cpstecroix @CanadianNinja @ NVGeo - here is a link to another review of the NEAT vs the Glencairn: scotchnoob.com/2012/04/… I find his conclusion that while the NEAT does allow him to isolate certain aspects of the nose, he doesn't get the same sense experience that he associates with a particular whisky.

@NVGeo hahahaha, I want one of those nosing masks you describe. But I think it would just be easier using a plastic bag to get the same result. Put the whisky in a plastic bag, blow it up, shake furiously, and wait for equilibrium, put your nose in and suck. Did that all the time with glue in school (that was a joke, for those who dont know me).

Or you could put a bottle of whisky in a room and then suck out ALL gasses and create perfect vacuum. Then you could go in wearing a space suit and open the bottle, and the whisky would instantly boil and you would be in a room with pure whisky gas. Ok, I'm still working on how to actually smell it without contaminating the pure whisky gas when your face explodes when you open you visor.

@NilsG Yeah, the visor issue is a big problem! Seriously though, putting plastic bags over your head is dangerous, even if you die with a smile.

You sure you didn't do glue? It messes with memory, I'm told.

This has been a very informative, enlightening, and entertaining thread everybody! Keep up the great work, but no experimentation with plastic bags or vacuum environments. I like having our Connosr group remain healthy, and exploding heads might get in the way of that. :)

@NVGeo & Pudge72. No the plastic bag shouldn't go over you head (although that probably works for glue), just over you nose. There would be air mixed with the whisky, but that would be the highest concentration of whisky fumes you could nose in room temperature and normal normal atmospheric pressure.

Well, I have no memory of loosing my memory, but that doesn't really say anything. I'll hear with people I know, maybe someone else remember me loosing memory on glue.

I've also compared the two glasses (NEAT and Glencairn) side-by-side with half a dozen different whiskies, I was surprised that Glencairn won every single round. While I was certainly intrigued by the explanations offered on the NEAT website, when it came to flavor it just wasn't very flattering to the selections I made.

@UisgeJon Richard has seen the glass, and we will get feedback from him at this years Nth, Universal lWhisky Experience in Las Vegas. Many notables love it, but like any other tool, you have to use it properly

@cpstecroix We felt that Matt's review was a fair evaluation. One of the things we found in all our research was that about 85% of whisky lovers and collectors, do not enjoy the strong alcohol effect on the nose, but have adjusted their usage of glassware to get around it, such as Richard Pattersons three tiered approach to "aclimate" one's nose to the spirit. 15% fully expect and are ok with the pungency of the alcohol. We also found that when pairing with food or fine tobacco, NEAT spirits do not interfere with the delicate flavors.

@MaltyMike You are definitely correct. We went through over 50 different shapes to develop NEAT, until we had what our panels agreed was the best all around.

@YakLord We also feel that Scotch Noob has portrayed the glass accurately. When people spend a lot of money on great whisky, they generally want to enjoy it in the best experience possible. Many people are switching to NEAT, and it does require some adjustment, but it is well worth the transition.

@NVGeo We downloaded the molecular weight chemical calculations which are easily available, and we can also calculate them by hand using the periodic table. Ethanol definitely is in the light end, at about 46. Heavier than air, but lighter than phenols, etc. Actually if you google "compounds available in whisky, you can get a good start on the most common. The reason NEAT works differently than other tulip or chimney shaped glassware is that the flare constricts the vapors being shoved through the neck, which makes lighter vapors move faster, so they disappear quicker when the rim flares. See the "dry ice experiment on the website and you can get a visual idea of what happens to the alcohol. CO2 moleculare weight is 44, close enough to ethanol at 46 to exhibit some of the same properties. Many will argue that sublimation creates a higher vapor pressure than evaporation, but the experiment is still directionally correct. The second purpose for the rim is that it positions the nose over the sweet spot in the center, where the heavier molecules are collecting. With tulips, the opening is just too small to get that effect, and there is no locator to place your nose in the correct spot with a tulip. All the alcohol is streaming over the edge just under your nose.

Unfortunately it requires adjustments to the way you drink, but most people are ok with that once they have tried it. After all, the foot on the Glencairn presented problems at first, which the user had to adapt to. We are definitely designing a stem, to come out much later this year, which should answer most of the tactile issues, and most people actually prefer a stem anyway. Until that happens, the glass fits nicely gripped by the neck between thumb and forefinger with optional pinky underneath.

Hello everyone i use several different glasses for my whiskies. I like the johnsons tot by Botega del vino, design by mr. johnson but hand made -mouth blown in Italy. It's a nice Quality crystal glass! Check it out. I also have the Glencairn but it gets very little use, sad. My top reference stems if you will are amazing for nosing/tasteing and i love them Dearly. the riedel sommeliers vintage port and the cognac xo. Simply amazing! They Allow you to focus on the spirit and not the glass, they are a tool simply put. The other one Is Ravenscroft vintage port! pure clean crystal. I nose and taste way more with this than Glencairn. Excuse errors using smart phone.

@JJBoud @Victor @UisgeJon @FMichael @BlissInABarrel @NVGeo,

NVGeo: You are absolutely correct. In our attempt to simplify explanation for the non-engineer, non-physicist, non-chemist, we have tried to get by on some basics to try to give a “working” understanding of a few basic principles without writing a doctoral thesis. Unfortunately the deeper it goes, the more likely it is to become thesis material, and we are thrilled that someone out there gets it.

No question we are trying to sell glasses, and no question, there are some huge benefits to the NEAT glass, mostly for the reasons we have noted. The dilemma I was faced with is similar to explaining how an engine works. Nobody really wants me to go any further than to say that “gasoline and air can be exploded with a spark to force a piston downward which is translated to rotary motion by a crankshaft. Although that statement is basically correct, we don’t discuss valve and spark timing, volumetric efficiency, torque, horsepower, flame front travel, or compression ratio, and all the steps in between. I have tried to maintain that same degree of simplicity when describing how the glass works, and perhaps it deserves a more precise answer.

Many of the molecules which evaporate are not volatile, and many more are weakly polar, and the higher your nose from the surface of the liquid, fewer of these are detectable. Where do they go? They fall back in or circulate around in a lower world closer to the liquid surface. For all that, I did not address the more volatile molecules, polarity, charge, the hydroxide radical, and covalent bonding, in the interest of simplification. Some behavioral characteristics become apparent just by looking at the order and magnitude of GCMS spikes (many of which can be found on line). Within the range between the most and least volatile molecules there are many different characteristics which most certainly affect how they behave in evaporation. I picked what I considered the simplified, general ends of the behavioral spectrum to illustrate the contrast.

I can assure you our creed is to state it correctly and not deal in lies and half-truths (see our mission statement on the website), so maybe a little more complication to the story will serve it better and hit the mark. I will work on it, and put it in the NEAT science page on the website, where it belongs. Our intent was never to deceive, but to simplify, so I will definitely take another crack at the explanation so everyone can see that our intent to present the truth is pure.

Again, thank you for your astute and knowledgeable comments, it is a pleasure to have this conversation with a fellow engineer and whisky lover.

THE NEAT CHALLENGE: To the first eight of you who send an email to christine@arsilica.com, we will send a pair of NEAT glasses, no charge, and we will pay shipping. Enclose your email address, and a copy of any blog you wrote regarding NEAT on CONNOSR before February 2nd, and promise us that you will post an honest evaluation of NEAT after having used it in a few fair comparisons with whatever your favorite nosing glass is, you choose the spirit, of course. We ask that you use the enclosed instruction page for NEAT, and use whatever technique you use with your favorite glass. Every glass will deliver a different expression, we want to know your opinion of the NEAT expression, and give you a chance to actually use the glass and evaluate its merits and demerits.

@Arsilicat Hold on... to apply for the NEAT challenge one must mail before the 2nd, and that was posted on the 5th.... now THAT'S a challenge! I would have excepted it, but my flux capacitator has broken.

But seriously, if there would still be an offer, I would love to compare the NEAT with a Glencairn, and write parallel reviews here on connosr. The whiskies I would compare in particular are Ardbeg Corryvreckan, Glenfiddich 15yo and Elijah Craig 12yo.

By the way, is there any way to get hold of NEAT in/from Japan?

@NilsG, I sent a mail a couple of days ago?... yesterday...? But I haven't received a reply! I asked them to send it to my Canadian address. I would be very surprised if they ship to Japan. If anyone from NEAT reads this... When can I expect a reply??

@CanadianNinja @NilsG We are waiting to give everyone a chance to fill the 8 spots, Give us a day or two and I will post again this weekend. Also, NilsG, the BLOG has to be written Feb 2 or before. You still have a chance to get on board, if you are not already. I think we are at 6. Be patient, we are just as much interested in your input as you are to get your glasses, There is no way we we exclude someone in a challenge with a cheap date trick. ;>D.

@CanadianNinja It had to be sent in by the 2nd, lol.

@NilsG And of course, we need your reviews by the 3rd. Haven't seen them yet. ;>D

@Arsilicat Sorry, I'm missing something (it is Feb 6 today right?). Don't you want us to write about the glass AFTER we used it? I mean, I must have the NEAT before I can use it in any review. Either way, I don't have a blog, just reviewing here on connosr.

@NVGeo You make a solid and persuasive case. I cannot claim to have the same depth of knowledge but I tend to agree with you. I am sure the NEAT glass is good but I think it's going to come back to personal choice/taste in most cases. The Glencairn is so well established they have to tear it down to build their own product up.

Personally, I use a non stemmed snifter as I love the feel and weight. It can hold more and is easy to drink from which certainly don't go against it as a glass of choice.