Norlan Whisky Glass
I have been intrigued by the Norlan Whisky Glass since it was announced as a Kickstarter project. The glass was developed using 3D printers and continuous feedback from industry experts. Let’s look at a few different aspects and see how it compares to other glasses.
One of the aims was to combine the looks of a whisky tumbler with the performance of a tulip glass. I must say it is beautiful. This may not be the most important thing about a glass, but it’s nice to hold, it feels solid and somehow less breakable than a Bugatti kelch for instance. It’s also easy to clean.
To swirl or not to swirl
Opinions on swirling tend to differ. The other day someone from Diageo told me it works for wine but it’s useless to swirl whisky as whisky compounds don’t oxidize that rapidly. However from my own experience I would say it does seem to aid evaporation, perhaps by breaking up aroma molecules or making them dissolve more rapidly?
That is also what the Norlan glass is trying to promote: it has a central knob and four knobs at its base, which cause the liquid to clash against them if you swirl. I don’t have scientific evidence but it seems to work.
Aromatic performance
On to the aromatics then. I tried the glass for several weeks with different whiskies: unpeated, peated, heavily sherried, more delicate old stuff, bourbon, etc. Some of them I specifically poured into the Norlan whisky glass and my favourite glass so far, the Bugatti kelch. Of course there are differences.
I’d say the Norlan doesn’t amplify as much. It is fairly wide (about 1,5x the diameter of a Bugatti) and therefore it has a lower concentration effect. That’s welcome for overly sweet or overly peated whiskies, I guess, but it’s not ideal for lower strength / older whisky (which happens to be my kinda whisky). In the end, I wouldn’t say one is better than the other, it depends on your preferences and I’m already very pleased to say it’s already up there with the best glasses… but doesn’t outperform my favourites.
Downside of the Norlan glass
The biggest downside must be the wide, thick brim. Of course it is a consequence of the double walled glass design, but it feels like drinking whisky from a Starbucks mug. It makes taking small sips more difficult than it should be – I actually spilled some whisky by not paying attention to it. A double wall is a good thing for hot drinks, but for whisky it think it’s unnecessary. I have this small stem-less Glencairn glass and I’ve never complained about my hands warming up the whisky.
Conclusion
I really like the shape of the inner tulip, it works well and I enjoyed the whiskies that I tried. I also think the knobs inside are nice, which means performance is very good. On the other hand I was less impressed with the tactile feel on the lips. I would have gone for a single walled design in order to have a normal brim and a better mouthfeel.
The Norlan glass is worth checking out if you’re looking for a well performing whisky glass with modern aesthetics, but keep in mind that the thick brim is quite hard to get used to. That’s why I stick to the Bugatti whisky glass.
The Norlan Whisky Glass costs $ 48 (around € 45) for two, available from the official website.
You may want to read my previous article on the best whisky glasses