In high spirits

‘Don’t just  knock back the Dalmore whisky,’ says Richard Paterson. ‘Why pay all that money to say goodbye so quickly?’

Richard Paterson talks to whisky. And the whisky talks back to him. 

For the past 45 years, Richard has been the master distiller of Dalmore  — one of the most revered single malt whiskies in the world — a job that he has held since he was 26 years old (which is pretty amazing in itself, until you find out that he’s been in the “business” since he was eight years old).

Paterson has the mutant ability to “nose” whisky — he can literally nose hundred of samples of The Dalmore over the course of a day, with the expertise to distinguish between each to maintain particular layers of flavor, aroma and depth. In fact, it is only when a whisky secures approval from the tag team of his nose and his pink part (the tongue) that it can be released to whisky connoisseurs around the globe.

During a brief visit to the Philippines as part of his Asian tour, the Philippine STAR sat down with Paterson (X-Men codename: “The Nose”) where he waxed historical on the proud history of Scotch whisky, talked about how to drink it with “reverence” (i.e., not having to lie down on the floor right afterward) and finally, showed me how to “nose” a whisky. Don’t worry, that’s not a euphemism for anything (but that won’t stop a D.O.M. from turning it into one).

RJ LEDESMA: Tell me a bedtime story. No, no, not the ones about how Scots enjoy eating haggis (stuffed sheep’s stomach) or love playing with bagpipes or about being al fresco underneath your kilts — how did whisky come to Scotland? 

RICHARD PATERSON: Have you been to Scotland?

No, but I’ve watched Braveheart. Does that count?

(In the 13th century) Christian monks who left their monasteries in England brought with them the art of distillation to Scotland.

I would have loved to join these monks for a round of “meditation.”

We started to perfect it (in Scotland) and produced our usquebaugh (That’s Scottish for “water of life” or what we know as whisky. Please don’t attempt to pronounce usquebaugh without the assistance of a native Scot, or else you may give yourself an aneurysm). These whiskies are produced by the pot still method of distillation (wherein heat is directly applied to the pot containing the whisky). So when you think of cognac, rum or single malt whiskies like Dalmore, they are produced in these large copper pot stills. At present, there are about 115 operating distilleries in Scotland.

That accounts for a lot of happy Scots. And how much whisky do you have to consume until you become a whisky expert?

(Laughs) My father and grandfather were whisky blenders who loved the smell of whisky. When I was eight years old, my father took me to his warehouse. He handed me a glass and said, “Why don’t you tell me something about the whisky?” I picked up the glass awkwardly and said, “I don’t know what you mean.” My dad put the glass down, took ahold of me, and slapped me at the back of my head. I asked him, “What did you do that for?” He said what he wanted me to do was to pick up the glass, swirl it around, bring it up (to my nose) and say “Hello” (to the whiskey).

Your dad might have had a wee bit too much whisky at work.

Then, when I smelled it, he wanted to know, “Does it smell as sweet as a chocolate bar? As dry as the dust on the floor?” Obviously, I didn’t taste all that at the time, but it introduced me to whisky and to the art of whisky blending. At that point, something connected. I wanted to develop that skill; and that’s what I’ve been doing ever since.  

Your liver must love you. Speaking of love, exactly how much love goes into your single malts? 

When we talk about a real luxury spirit, you have to handcraft it. Great whiskies depend on many things: the barley, the water, the pot stills, but it depends on the casks more than anything else. The life of Dalmore begins in the pot still from where we get a white spirit. Then that goes into an American white oak bourbon cask where it is nurtured and draws from the goodness of the cask. The oak gives it elegance, refinement and a certain degree of finesse. A real sensuality.

(DOM representative: Sensual, eh? Do you have any pin-ups of that cask?)

The whisky will remain in that cask depending on the style. For example, the 12-year single malt remains in the oak cask for 12 years then is transferred to a Spanish Matusalem Oloroso sherry wood cask. It remains in the sherry cask for three or four years depending on the style that we want to create. So it’s a matter of manipulation. 

(DOM representative: I enjoy something that’s been well-manipulated.)

I hear you are rather — cough, cough —“prolific” when it comes to your love affair with Dalmore?

Dalmore is a unique kind of whisky. We’ve produced distinct single malts aged 12, 15, 18 and 25 years that are all different in their own particular way. But if you sampled all the whiskies, you would “see” the DNA of Dalmore  — that “chocolate-orange” flavor — still comes through at the end of the day.

(No Girlfriend Since Birth representative: Do you have any whiskies that come in Green Tea or Wasabi flavor?)

(DOM representative: Among your whiskies, which one do women like to drink? So I know which one to order the next time I visit the KTV?)

Women appear to enjoy the 15-year-old because there’s three different styles of sherry, so it’s more elegant, more warm and more sensual. And if you like cigars, then you’ll enjoy our Cigar Malt Reserve which was crafted to be the perfect accompaniment to a cigar. That malt was finessed in premier cru cabernet sauvigon wine barriques.

I don’t know what that means, but it sounds pretty impressive to me.

(DOM representative: Which whisky should I buy that will impress my fellow DOMs?)

That would be the Constellation Collection. This is the only single malt in the world with six different assembalges (caskets). What I did was to take a portion from each assemblage before I finally put them together in the bottle. The Constellation collection costs P2.5 million per bottle.

My goodness, for the price of that bottle, I could buy 50 Madonna VIP tickets. How exactly should you enjoy these premium whiskies? Aside from displaying it on our family altar?  

This is a British spirit that is something quite different from the rest. It needs reverence.

Should I prostrate myself before imbibing the whisky?

And the reverence begins with literally looking at the whiskey.

There’s no need to pay if I just take a look, right?

Look at it in a very slow manner. Then I want you to say “Hello, how are you?” (He said this as he brought the copita glass — a special tulip-shaped glass used by master blenders to nose “mature” whiskies — to his, er, nose.) And as you take in the smell, you say, “Thank you very much.”

It must be a great whisky if it engages you in small talk.

Then you start to “see” all these nuances in the flavors that have taken years to develop. I want you to take that whiskey and put it in the middle of your tongue, underneath you tongue, and back in the middle, like this. (He takes a sip of whisky.) Mmmmm, mmmmm, mmmmm, mmmmm, mmmmm, mmmmm… (This “mmmmm”-ing went on for about 30 seconds as the whisky made its way around this tongue. Ronda Rousey could have won a fight by the time the whiskey had finished sloshing in Paterson’s mouth.)

I see your tongue and the whisky have gone beyond a platonic relationship.

I want you to really “look” at the whiskey because what you smell is what you are going to taste. And when you “see” it, you’ll see a lot of flavors coming through like the chocolate-orange, which is the DNA of Dalmore. But underneath, you’re going to taste the orange peel; the marzipan; a hint of licorice; a little bit of plum. Everything is in there, but you’ve got to give it time. Don’t just  knock it back. Why pay all that money to say goodbye to (the whisky) so quickly?

Before we say “hello” to the whisky, do you recommend we get it acquainted first with a few cubes of ice?

Drink it straight. If anything, put in a little still (not sparkling) water to allow it to open up. You can have it slightly chilled because room temperature (in the Philippines) is still pretty warm. If you give it ice, it will give it a fright. And sometimes, the whiskey might be too strong for you. What you need to do is reduce it to what suits your particular palate. Remember, drinking whiskey is very personal. It’s how you like it. 

And how do you know you’ve liked the whisky a wee bit too much?

Everything has to be done moderately. As soon as you drink too much, you lose the sense and reverence of the craftsmanship of the drink. It’s taken me years to create this (Dalmore whisky collection)! So sip, savor and take your time.

Especially if that drink cost you a house and lot.

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For comments and suggestions or mmmm-mmmm-mmmm, email Ledesma.rj@gmail.com or visit www.rjledesma.com. Follow @rjled on Twitter and @rjled610 on Instagram.