On the Importance of Phenol Derivatives for the Peaty Aroma Attribute of Scotch Whiskies from Islay

Whisky-making has a long tradition in the Scottish territories. Whiskies from the Isle of Islay are known to have a unique smoky and phenolic character, referred to as peatiness. The traditional malt kilning process with peat smoke brings the smoky aroma to the malt and, ultimately, to the whisky itself. After applying the concept of sensomics to two peaty whiskies, the phenol and methoxyphenol derivatives eliciting a smoky or phenolic aroma character were found to be abundant. In an attempt to correlate the concentrations of these smoky aroma compounds with the intensity of the peaty aroma, 10 whiskies from various Islay distilleries were ranked according to their peatiness, and their identified phenol derivatives were quantitated. A combination of sensory and quantitative data showed that although phenolic compounds were responsible for the peaty aroma of the whiskies, their concentrations and odor activity values were not well correlated with the perceived intensity of the smoky, phenolic aroma attribute.