Glenrothes to hold whisky and music experiment

Single malt Scotch brand The Glenrothes will aim to measure the impact of music on the way people taste whisky in a series of experiments next month.

The Glenrothes will aim to test the affect of music on whisky tasting

Held throughout July at East London jazz bar Kansas Smitty’s, the experiments will see participants taste three Glenrothes vintage whiskies alongside a variety of music selected by Giacomo Smith, one of Kansas Smitty’s eight founding members.

The research is inspired by a series of articles in Biomed Central, which explored the effect of music on wine tasting and found a “cross modal” connection between the two.

“Pitch, tempo and melody were all shown to have a notable effect on the way participants in the studies tasted wine,” said Amanda Baxter, spirits activation manager at The Glenrothes owner Berry Bros & Rudd

“Nobody, to our knowledge, has tested these hypotheses in relation to spirits and we have the added bonus of Giacomo’s musical expertise.”

Bjorn Thorleifsson, who is currently studying a MA in Consumer Behaviour at Goldsmiths University, will assist with the research, focusing on how music and sound affect consumption.

Once the series of experiments are complete, the results will be studied for correlation.

The tastings will take place on 6, 13, 20 and 27 July from 6.30-8pm. Tickets are available from Kansas Smitty’s.

Last year, Glenfiddich conducted a “revolutionary” experiment to explore how live music affects single malt, creating visible sound waves. Also in 2015, New Zealand distiller Rogue Society created what it called the “world’s first music infused gin”.