Today we were gathered for the latest Sip Session Flavour Camp, hosted by the city’s favourite Whiskey Muse: Reece Sims. These are the classes I have been dutifully attending since I discovered such a workshop existed.
I have always been a fan of spirits, drinking them indiscriminately. Whatever ever was in my glass I would shoot it down; disregarding taste, fragrance, or bouquet. After all, I figured it was all about the buzz and I was chasing a feeling.
Since those days and that narrow thinking, I have learned to enjoy my spirits much like I would wine or beer. To take the time to enjoy what was on the nose and the mouthfeel that followed; irregardless of the percentage. And the more I did this, the more I was able to make out flavours and the essence of a particular spirit. But this self-educated sip and swallow has only taken me so far.
As I am ready to become more astute with my spirit palate, I have enlisted Reece and her Flavour Camps to help fill in gaps and further my knowledge in this field. I no longer what to simply order the cheapest shot, and instead want to know why one is pricier than the others. I want to read a cocktail menu and know what I am getting based on the brand of liquor used. And Flavour Camp helps.
Flavour Camp is a palatable way to digest tasting notes for beginners, novices, and experts alike. Each spirit can be separated into a “camp” of flavour. In the case of tequila it is between herbal, citrus, fruity, floral, toasty, spicy, earthy, and funky. From there each “camp” can be broken down to descriptors like perfumed and delicate for “floral”. And lactic, yeasty, and pungent for “funk. And then from there the latter can be further dissected into specifics like baker’s yeast, sourdough, and bready under “funky” and “yeasty”.
Not to mention you can also describe each sip by its sensation boiling it down to intensity, texture, mouthfeel, and finish. Given all of the above, I admittedly am still struggling with just identifying the Camps. But that is why Flavour Camp exists and this shows how far it can take you.
But I digress, regarding the actual class… As always, there is an introduction to the spirit. This I find most interesting as I take away most from it.
First we learned what is tequila. And did you know, it can only be called tequila if it is made in one of five different states of Mexico. And even then it must contain specifically 51% blue Weber agave. Today all the tequilas we would try were at 100% blue Weber agave.
Agave is a type of succulent plant. There are 166 different species of agave. 125 found in Mexico alone, but tequila can only be made with the one type. For example mezcal is like a smokey tequila made from various agave. But given that not all of it is blue Weber agave it is not tequila. All tequilas are mezcal, but not all mezcal are tequilas.
If it is essentially tequila, but not made in Mexico, the bottle advertises it with a tequila-esque name. For example tequilana. Much like it cannot be called champagne unless it’s from the champagne region in France.
Another qualification for tequila is to have the distillery listed, and its ID number on the bottle to verify it as such.
The succulent portion of agave is the base. If left unattended a large asparagus-like appendage grows out of it. Tequila farmers do not what the agave to flower as the stem of the plant sucks up the sugars. So it is immediately chopped off, so that the sugar concentrates and stays on the base leaves, which will inevitably be used to make the tequila.
There is six mains stages to tequila production. The growth stage is first with blue Weber agave taking 5-8 years to mature. Given its slower yield, there is actually a shortage of tequila, as distillers did not expect the spirit to be so popular. And part of its cost is in consideration that the crop is sparse, and there is just not enough tequila for the world.
When matured the leaves are cut off and the pinas of the plant are harvested by jimadors. They are then steamed/cooked in a horno/autoclave where the starches of the plant turn into sugars. Yeast is added to help ferment the sugar, and this when the alcohol starts to form. And unlike other spirits there is no aging required. But tequila is categorized based on any aging.
Blanco is aged 0-2 months, resulting in a lighter style with more citrus and crisp vegetal notes. The two examples of these today were the Ghost Tequila and Volcan de mi Tierra.
Reposado tequila is aged in oak barrels for more flavour. This lends notes of caramel, vanilla, and wood to the tequila. Everything else we were trying today fell into this category.
Other tequila categories include Anejo which is aged 1-3 years in oak barrels for a darker colour and a richer bouquet.
And Extra Anejo is a newer catagory that was created in 2006. It has more complexity and flavour coming from an even longer cask aging.
Joven means “young” in Spanish and it a used to classify younger tequilas. The cheap stuff we all drank at clubs and bars, synonymous with our collage hangover days.
And Cristalino is an unofficial category, used specifically for tequila that is filtered through charcoal to remove colour and evoke richer flavours.
How the flavour of tequila is developed Aldo’s depends on the following. Where the agave comes from. How is the agave harvested. and how much green is left on the plant. Then how long the pinas are cooked plays apart in its taste. Next what kind of yeast is used and how long it is fermented for must be taken into consideration. Followed by how many stills are used, how tight the cuts are and how many times it is distilled. And finally what kind of wood and how long it is aged for. So as you can see there is a lot of variation and possibilities to play with.
The tasting portion of the class includes the sampling of tequila you might not otherwise know to try, would have heard of, or want to spent money on. For example, if I was to purchase a bottle of tequila it would not be Patron, as I am cheap. Nor did I know that George Clooney and Van Halen has their own brands of tequila.
The session allots 40 minutes to try all eight 1oz samples. We don’t know the order in which they are staged, so the goal is to taste blind and see what you like based on flavour alone. Then guess what it is what based on what you have learned.
As for what we were tasting today, the Tromba Resposado was inspired by the life-giving rainstorms of Mexico. it is made with highland agave from Los Altos, which has a cooler climate and a red clay and mineral rich soil. The higher altitude helps to produce larger agave and rope in more fruity and floral notes from it. The result, a silky tequila with sweet and nutty notes of chocolate, caramel, and dried red fruit. This fell into the toasty, herbal, and fruity Flavour Camp.
Casamigos Reposado is the brand of tequila created by George Clooney and two of his friends. It came about with them drinking a lot of tequilla together, and wanting to create their own. Their goal was to make the best tasting and smoothest tequila and mezcal. The result is an ultra premium brand that I would not otherwise get to try, outside of Flavour Camp. It is small batch made with hand harvested agave that is aged seven months in premium American white oak barrels.
The Patron was oaky and woody with fresh agave. We got notes of citrus and honey followed by light floral and vanilla.
Cabo Wabo is another celebrity-made tequila. Originally created by the lead singer from Van Halen, who was fond of travelling to Cabo and wanted to make a tequila that was a homage to it. Created for westerners who want the Cabo experience in a shot. Whereas Clooney’s was smooth and easier going, this one was thick cut and intense. The kind of drink you have in hand while watching Nascar. It has a dominant scent of citrus, plus a bit of fruit and spicy pepper that lingers after each sip.
Herradura’s brand and label came from the distillery’s founder finding a horseshoe. The position of the shoe on the bottle is intentional. It is upside down, because when you pour it, it is the right side up and you are pouring luck into your glass. Herradura was the first to produce a Reposado tequila, which inevitably helped to build the laws surrounding what classifies as a Reposado. This one was smooth with sweet notes of cooked agave, vanilla, butter, and dried fruit.
From the same house of spirits as Moët, Belvedere, and Glenmorangie comes Volcan. This tequila pays homage to and was named after a real volcano, and even has a volcano at the bottom of the bottle as a nod to this. This is the only tequila in their portfolio, which they believe is of the best quality, that well represents the terroir. It is well finished and balanced with hints of grapefruit and a touch of pepper spice.
Ghost tequila is brand new to the market and is available in BC liquor stores as of June 17th, 2023. And Reece was able to get it in to this session last minute. It is a quality base for cocktails and an easy way to add spice. Created for bars and restaurants in mind, for the likes of margaritas and Caesars. Its finish is long with a sharp lingering pepperiness. This one is not aged and has the ghost pepper extract added to it.
And once again, if tequila isn’t made in Mexico, it is a tequilana. This is NODO tequilana. It is not certified as tequila as it is made on the boarder of tequila country. It has a slight smokey undertone and a black pepper spice to finish, thanks to its 2-12 months aging in ex-bourbon. Its funky notes definitely set it apart. This is currently only available at private liquor stores.
This is definitely the most I’ve learned about tequila, even after visiting a Tequila museum and distillery in Mexico, long ago. To date this was my favourite class and the most informative. I can proudly say I am more confident in my tequila tasting and ordering.
But our day was not done, we had the international whiskey Flavour Camp after. But first we would break for snack. Having our lesson from last time, we came prepared and ordered food to arrive when class broke out. A few of us also brought chips, candy, sodas, and more spirits to share. And here, our group of self appointed “mini muses” ate, drank, and were merry.
International Whiskey
Our international whiskey Flavour Camp functioned the same as above. We were given a run down of what is whiskey and what classified as international whiskey.
From there we were introduced to the whiskey Flavour Camp and tasked with tasting and identifying what we liked and what was what blind. The goal was to rank and review, adding tasting notes. Said notes would be used to help fine tune future classes. And Reece definitely reads and utilizes everything submitted. This is my third or fourth international whiskey class/session I’ve taken with her now, and each one feels brand new. New bottles and tastes, and new notes to take away.
And like with tequila Flavour Camp, and all the others the months before, completion of the class was signified by adding a sticker to a collector card. One that attendees could eventually submit to be entered to win a grand prize.
This international whiskey session featured some of the most diverse whiskeys from rice to peated.
Whiskey is made by fermenting grains with yeast and water. It is distilled and matured in wood. Then bottled at no less than 40% ABV. Each country and category of whiskey will have more specific requirements beyond the above.
International whiskeys are fascinating, because there are different climates, crops, distilling processes to consider. Therefore, you could just as well divide them by country: Japan, Ireland, England, etc. Scotch is any whiskey made in Scotland and has five different sub catagories. Single malt, Blended malt, Blended, Single grain, and Blended grain.
The Flavour Camps here were spicy, earthy, herbal, fruit, sweet, toasty, earthy, and peaty.
We were also even given a crash course on how to properly taste our whiskey. First you want to nose it, keeping your mouth open to help aerate. Next you want to taste, a small sip to swish around. You do want to refrain from shooting it, so that you can take note of its finish. Is it balanced? Does is it linger?
And in between sips you want to reset your nose and palate. Much like coffee beans to perfume, you want to smell your elbow pit. You are familiar with your own sent, and this neutralizes everything else.
And now for the whiskeys. Sunday Whiskey from Japan is distinct thanks its hot summers, cool winter, and weather swings. It is aged in ex-bourbon barrels and finished in ex-Sherry and Port barrels, giving it a very layered flavour profile. Sugar snap pea, digestive cookies, and yuzu zest on the nose. Chocolate chip ice cream, fresh mint, and waffle on the palate. And finally coconut, pink peppercorn, and cinnamon bark to finish.
In truth, try as I might I did not get any of the above. but once again, that is why I need to attend Flavour Camp.
Glendalough is from Ireland. The name means “two lakes” and it pays tribute to one of the most beautiful and heavily visited valleys in Ireland. Featuring multiple grains from a single distillery. It is described as being sweet and smooth with butterscotch, honey, and peppercorn. You get notes of dried fruit, maraschino cherries, brown sugar, ginger, spices and and touch of almond earthiness.
Kujira Ryukyu Whisky Inari is named after the God of Rice cultivation in Japanese culture. This is from one of the oldest and largest distillery in Okinawa, Japan. This whiskey has delicate oak, figs, nuts, butterscotch and fermented/vegetal notes.
NIKKA is a single grain Japanese whisky with apple, pears, tropical fruit, and hints of spices sake on the nose. And has a sweet and long finish with toasty fruity notes.
Penderyn is fresh and lively on the nose with mixed citrus fruits mingling with tropical fruits. It starts predominantly, sweet then moves over to allow for a more refreshing bitterness to emerge. Despite this, I still found it easy drinking.
Two Stacks Smoke and Mirrors peated stout comes about from the very best of contemporary Irish flavours matched with real distilling heritage. They are on the forefront of the Ireland whiskey revival. The whiskey itself is soft with rice and sweet notes of smoked chocolate and honey. On the palate you get espresso and and hint of sea salt.
Silkie is a blended Irish whisky from folklore. It is aged in a cherry cask for soft breaths of apple, pipe tobacco, and salted caramel sweetness. It eventually develops into dark chocolate and liquorice on the palate with a smokey finish.
Paul John is aged on tropical shores of Goa, India; and as such it has no age statement. It is a younger, 100% malted barely whiskey, which the climate has aging quicker. The result is a strong whiskey with a high 55.5% ABV. This one was heavy with a dry spiced peat.
In closing to expand your drinking horizon and learn something new, consider attending the next Flavour Camp, this Saturday, June 17, 2023. Click on the link for tickets and see you there! I have never missed one yet!
