Nosing and tasting spirits isn’t easy. It’s fun, but it isn’t easy. And according to NEAT creators George Manska and Christine Crnek, typical tasting glasses make it even more difficult. Most tasting glasses are tulip-shaped and direct all of a spirit’s aromas directly upward to the nose. This results in strong alcoholic top notes, which can hinder one’s assessment of the spirit.
Enter NEAT (Naturally Engineered Aroma Technology), a newly-designed glass based on scientific principles of evaporation and aroma technology. In describing the glass, engineer George Manska explains —
The widely flared lip and its proximity to the surface of the liquid allows ethanol to escape before nosing and positions the nose directly over the concentrated vapors. Size and proportional relationships are everything in the design.
Does it work? UNLV thinks so. Studies prove that the glass dissipates the ethanol, and only the flavorful esters and aromas remain. This allows the drinker to smell the spirit underneath its alcohol, which means more detectable and definitive characteristics and a more accurate assessment of the spirit.
Sounds good to us. If you’re interested in trying them for yourself, a NEAT two-glass package costs $40.
