Identifying Rums While Blindfolded

I posted this on my blog a few weeks ago. If you read it there, go down to the bottom of this post for some updated information. If you haven't read it before, then read on...

Yesterday I was subjected to a blindfolded test of rum identification as part of... Well, let's just say it was a test. My friend Bargoyle officiated and picked 10 rums out of the 30 that were available. I have to admit that I knew the 30 - some of them were mine that I brought for the occasion - and had tasted all but one. But I didn't know which rums Bargoyle would pick, nor the order in which I would sample them. While I was blindfolded, he picked 5 rums and prepared small shots, between 1/4 and 1/2 ounce each. I was given all the time I wanted to sniff and taste and even request more if necessary. By the end, I had sampled 10 rums and did my best to identify each one.

Let me tell you, this ain't easy.

I did manage to nail the first one - Cruzan White. (Yeah, I'm proud of that success.) The next 4 I bombed on, not even identifying the Mount Gay Special Reserve with its distinct odor of bananas, nor the Ron Matusalem Platino, the only Cuban-style rum in the house. I also failed to identify the Gosling's Gold, which doesn't bother me as much as the first two. And for some reason I can't remember the last one, though I think it was Appleton White.

After this round was over we paused to relax my mouth and nose, and I sniffed a couple of the bottles. I was assaulted by the banana smell in the Mount Gay. When I sniffed it I even shouted "THERE it is!" - surprised at how I could possibly have missed that distinctive odor during the test.

I did much better on the next 5 rums Bargoyle picked, as they were more distinctive premium rums. The first was Appleton Extra, which I incorrectly identified as the Appleton 21-year-old. Hey, this wasn't too bad, especially considering that there were 5 Appleton rums in the house. The next one was Lemon Hart demerara, which I incorrectly identified as the El Dorado. Kinda close, though demeraras are quite distinctive so it should have been a 50/50 chance anyway. The next rum blasted me sideways, and I grimaced and correctly identified it as St. James Hors D'Age.

The 4th rum in this premium series also blew me away, and I had no guess. It was delicious and delightful, and I asked for another taste even though I had no hopes of identifying it. It was just so damned good that I wanted more. The rum was the Barbancourt 5-Star, the 8-year-old. Wow. This rum is definitely going on my shelf, and soon. Delicious.

The last rum was kinda easy to identify, but I lingered with it since it too is a fantastic rum. It was the El Dorado 15-year-old, and this rum is simply magnificent in its smoothness, tastes, and complexity. As this was the tenth and final rum I removed my blindfold and sniffed the glass again. A few minutes later I sniffed it again, and new smells came out that were even better than the original ones. Magnificent, simply magnificent.

So, out of 10 rums, I identified 3 cleanly, and got 2 half points (the Appleton and the Lemon Hart). But it really, really bothered me that I had missed a couple others, mostly the Mount Gay Special Reserve and the Ron Matusalem Platino.

It ate at me a bit, and I obsessed about missing the Mount Gay for a good portion of the ride home. I kicked myself for missing it.

And then it hit me... Suddenly I knew why I had missed it.

When Bargoyle had set up that first round he poured all 5 at once and we fussed for a few minutes before starting. I then spent several minutes on each rum, going down the line. By the time I hit the Mount Gay it had been sitting in a glass for 10 minutes or more. This relatively simple rum had spent too much time exposed to the air and had gone flat, nearly tasteless. No wonder I couldn't smell those bananas!

I was so happy with figuring out why I had failed that it took me most of an hour to remember one small detail - I had asked for more of that rum, and Bargoyle had poured me another dram to taste a second time.

My glee was smashed, left for dead along the roadside, bleeding out somewhere on the Mass Pike.

I had, most certainly, failed to identify that distinctive banana smell of the Mount Gay Special Reserve.

After a short period of moping the real reasons for my failure came to me:

1. This ain't easy.

2. I suck at this.

OK, so maybe I don't completely suck at identifying rums, but please believe me when I say that I'm no expert on rums. Sure, I most likely know more about rum than the average person, and maybe I know more about rum than many mixologists. But I also know that there are a heck of a lot of real experts out there, too. I stand in awe of people like Ed Hamilton and Jeff Berry and Stephen Remsberg, and respect many of the guys over on Tiki Central and The Ministry Of Rum forums. All I do is taste rums and blog about it, mainly because I don't think enough people talk about this fine spirit. But I'm no expert. I'm working on it, so come back in a few years (if I'm lucky and stay persistent at this).

Just the same, the next time I get subjected to a blind testing I will make sure the rums are poured fresh, and I will be sure to sniff the bottle to get the full blast.

Until then, well, I'll keep studying.

The updated info:
Bargoyle video-recorded the entire proceeding and then edited it for time and content and added titles and all that hoopla. He did a fantastic job, and his edits are quite hysterical.

You can view the proceeding, 2 videos edited to about 8 minutes each, on YouTube:
Episode 1: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z7UkV8YwXmU
Episode 2: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gOwo2IL4o9k

Nice.

Mind if I throw a link to those vids on my site?

Go for it Blair.

On 2007-10-05 13:58, Scottes wrote:

1. This ain't easy.

2. I suck at this.

Nice project. I'll check out the vids later.

Practice until it is easy and you don't suck at it, then we'll see about getting you on Letterman.

You should try a blind taste test once a month. Maybe you find the zone and start hitting the 80-90% success rate.

M'kay. I suffered with you through the test. You need a coach for competitive rum drinking. I've got some ideas. I think you can score high on your next appearance on The Rum is Right.

I have some training tips on how to prepare and some ideas on tasting techniques. I think you might surprise everyone on your next appearance.

After consuming a dozen shots or so, you did end the contest with a correct identification. Nice work.

Yes, it was a bit of suffering. But I didn't do so bad by the end.

Yep, coaching is required, but Bargoyle beat you to that position. He took pity on me after that miserable showing....

On 2007-10-08 12:14, Scottes wrote:
Yes, it was a bit of suffering. But I didn't do so bad by the end.

Yep, coaching is required, but Bargoyle beat you to that position. He took pity on me after that miserable showing....

Don't be too hard on yourself. You got the first one right and the last one right. That's something you have in common with someone who gets a perfect score. :)

Let me know if you're interested in my training tips. BTW, what are the actual contest rules?

Rules? I'm not sure there were any, really. :)

I brought a dozen rums over to Bargoyle's, who had about 15-20. So I knew which rums were available. Other than that I think the only rule was to keep the blindfold on.

I did realize some ideas about how I could have scored better. Like fresh pours, not shots left out for 10-15 minutes. And I tried to identify each rum - what I should have done was described it like I do in my tasting notes. Then I could have simply matched descriptions in my head. Identifying is much, much harder than describing.

Some of what I'm thinking relates to wine tasting technique. While I was in college full time I also worked full time running the stock room of a liquor store. The principal wine men there were very knowledgeable. Many Washington luminaries would shop there. There were people who would travel from all over the mid-Atlantic every few months just to pick their brains and leave town with tons of the best wines. I learned some things from those guys and from the people at Robert Mondavi Vineyards when I took their wine tasting tour some years back.

Besides that, I have some... er...um...practice exercises that are designed to hone your skills.

I enjoyed your videos very much.