Phenols and esters are two volatile molecular compounds that cause many of the flavors in alcoholic drinks, Scotch included. There is actually a considerable body of scientific research into these compounds and exactly how they are created, destroyed, and generally interact.
If you ever had a glass of Scotch and wondered where that rubber tire aroma came from, or lavender soap, or that *exact* aroma of charred pineapples ... these articles will help explain.
Peated Scotch is very often called "phenolic," and, in fact, the level of peat in whisky is measured in "phenol parts per million." Many of the strange, funky flavors that people come across - from gauze to metal to iodine to bacon to tobacco to solvents - can be traced to specific phenol compounds.
Meanwhile, esters generally cause pleasant, fragrant aromas of fruit, flowers, spices, etc. Below is a small selection of articles I found useful when considering the effects of esters and phenols when drinking alcohol:
- Here is Wikipedia's list of ester odorants.
- Here is a list of phenols and esters and their effect on beer brewing.
- Here is a fairly exhaustive list of phenolic compounds and their associated flavors.
- Here is an article about phenols and how they react to common ingredients in alcohol.
- And here is an article about phenols and Scotch distillation, specifically.
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