Why a few drops of water make whisky taste better

Ignore the snobs, because most experts agree: a few drops of water enhance the taste of whiskies, from well-rounded blends to peat bombs redolent of smoke, tobacco and leather.The smoky flavour typical of whiskies made on the Scottish island of Islay, for example, can be traced to a group of flavour-packed molecules known as phenols, and to one in particular called guaiacol.Laboratory simulations revealed that adding a splash of H2O makes guaiacol rise to "the air-liquid interface," Bjorn Karlss