Flaviar Whiskey and Spirits Tasting Club Review

It’s not secret that whiskey is my favourite drink, but with a seemingly endless supply of whiskey, scotch, and bourbon out there I find myself going back to tried and true brands to avoid spending on a bottle I don’t enjoy. That’s why I was so interested in trying out and writing a review for the Flaviar whiskey tasting kit; you get small samples that are tailored to your existing preferences.

Whiskey tasting isn’t new, but it’s certainly getting more popular now. As trends like “beer flights” and “wine tastings” become more popular, it’s only natural for spirits to follow suit. And like wine and beer, no two whiskies have the same flavour… Which makes it perfect as a choice for “tasting”!

What is the Flaviar Tasting Club?

Flaviar is a company that offers curated tasting boxes to let you sample a variety of spirits. Although it’s primarily whiskey focused they offer some other spirits too.

Flaviar operates on a subscription model, which means once you become a member you get a selection of spirits to sample at pre-determined intervals. This depends on which subscription you choose, with options ranging from monthly deliveries to choosing your own delivery dates.

For example, with a quarterly membership you can claim one experience every three months. They don’t just send you a random assortment and expect you to like it, though.

Based On Your Preferences

When you first sign up Flaviar has a questionnaire to fill out that helps with product recommendations. You can share your existing favourites from a selection of whiskeys and other spirits. The website also guides you into trying new things, so don’t worry if you haven’t sampled much as of yet. We’ll get there!

You also get choice when it comes to what’s in your order. Order what they recommend or pick your own options based on the product description. It’s up to you!

What Spirits Are There?

Apart from all types of whiskies (and scotch, Irish, bourbon, rye, etc), Flaviar also offers other spirits like tequila, mezcal, rum, cognac, brandy, gin, and even vodka. Definitely options out there for lovers of every spirit!

While I think Flaviar shines best for whiskey tasting, especially scotch, I also think tequila and gin tasting would be great too. Of course, that’s just me – you can choose whatever you prefer.

Order Without a Subscription

You don’t need to have an active membership to purchase spirits from their website, which is great if you just want to pick something up from the comfort of your home. The Flaviar shop has a huge selection of mid and top shelf spirits that you may not be able to find at your local stores.

They also sometimes have tasting boxes (like their advent calendar) available to purchase for non-members too.

Note: It does seem that some store items are only for members, though.

Are There Gift Options?

Yes! It’s actually really easy to gift a Flaviar subscription or gift card. What I love about this product as a gift is that they still have the option to choose their own delivery items – meaning you give them exactly what they want. Would be great for long distance gifting or as a wedding gift!

Disclosure: Our tasting box subscription was gifted to us by Flaviar to help us write a hands on review. All opinions in this post are our own. This post is not sponsored by Flaviar.

Flaviar Whiskey Tasting Kit: Hands On Review

If you live in one of their delivery areas (most of the US and the UK) your Flaviar whiskey kit ships right to your door. Pretty easy, right?

To get it here the ordering process was also super simple. After setting up my account I was able to immediately choose the options for my first order. It didn’t take much effort, and any time consuming aspect was me carefully reading all the options before making my choice. In short, it’s very easy to make your selection.

I liked that the welcome pack included a tasting selection and a bottle.

Delivery times were quick enough and there were no issues there. Everything arrived safely which is important when shipping glass bottles!

The Ordering Process

Although I had a bunch of options to choose from I opted for the Flaviar Welcome Box as my initial tasting. It seemed like a fitting place to start my whiskey tasting journey. I wanted my Flaviar review to be as close to the typical experience as possible.

This box contained three whiskies: a Burbon, Rye, and Scotch. Brokenridge bourbon, FEW rye, and Bruichladdich scotch, to be exact.

None of these are super expensive by whiskey standards, but they weren’t cheap either ($42-$57, USD). The scotch as you might expect, was the priciest of the trio. That being said, I’m Canadian – and only one of these brands, the Bruichladdich, is even for sale where I live – which retails for $95 CAD a bottle.

Note: I shipped my box to a US depot and collected it cross-border. Flaviar does not have a standard delivery option for Canadians at this time, but they may have shipping options if you reach out to them.

First Impressions: The Packaging

I’ve reviewed a number of subscription boxes over the years and most of them work really hard to make sure the experience starts from the moment you open the box. Unfortunately my Flaviar delivery didn’t do this: the unboxing was lacklustre.

While this is worth noting because we are doing a review of Flaviar’s tasting boxes, I personally didn’t mind.

Most importantly, everything arrived safe and sound. There was no damage to the bottle (that was carefully wrapped) and the tasting kit arrived in perfect condition.

Once you open the smaller box that contains the tasting kit, though, you’re greeted with a cylinder package that is clearly meant to be an experience. We’ll look at that next.

Tasting Kit Unboxing

This is really where it’s at for Flaviar. After all, their tasting kits are what you’re looking forward to when you subscribe.

I thought this feature was really cool: the tasting kit lid and base are held together with a small string that needs to be pulled to separate them. This both adds to the unboxing experience and helps keep the product safe. I also appreciated that I didn’t have to pick away at some tape or other adhesive to get it open.

A Review of the Flaviar Tasting Experience

Once you get your kit open you’ll find three vials, each labelled A, B, and C. They correspond to the information in your paper coasters, which are part of the Flaviar whiskey tasting experience.

The kit encourages you to hold a tasting in a way that works for you: you can do a blind tasting, read their flavour profile while you sip, or do a guided tasting with one of their online videos.

What I really liked about this is that I could do an initial tasting, then come back and sample again at another time. This made me feel like it was a more robust experience, not just a one-and-done type novelty.

My Personal Tastes

I am not a dedicated whiskey or scotch reviewer so I’ll leave the hardcore reviews to the experts, but on a personally level I found the selection choices to be decent. I’m more into scotch than bourbon and rye, but kept an open mind with this tasting kit.

Breckenridge Bourbon

The Breckenridge was alright flavour wise, although I didn’t find it very smooth for sipping. Personally, I like smooth drinks if I’m going to sip and enjoy them neat, so this was an issue for me.

It would probably make a great whiskey sour, but at the price point I’d be better off getting something like Buffalo Trace that’s, in my opinion, better and half the price.

FEW Rye

I’m not normally a big rye drinker (probably because I don’t like Jim Bean and wrote off all ryes for years) so this one surprised me. It was pretty smooth with a surprisingly rich and sweet taste, with just enough spice to balance things out.

What’s interesting is this one has the lowest review on Flaviar out of the three, and after looking at the comments a lot of high scores are folks who normally don’t drink rye. So I guess it’s not the best choice for rye fans, but maybe worth trying if you’re not into rye!

Bruichladdich Scotch

This is the option I was most interested in trying and was not disappointed. I’m a scotch drinker and have yet to come across one I don’t enjoy – at least in a cocktail. (Ballantine’s and Diet Pepsi is one of my favs and the Kirkland 12 year blend makes a mean scotch sour… Don’t hate me.)

Anyway, back to the Bruichladdich. It was smoky and robust, perfect if you like a strong flavour in your scotch. It was also quite smooth: perfect for sipping. I’d love to pair it with a steak or something from the smoker.

I likely will buy a bottle of this now that I’ve tried it.

Hercules Mulligan

It’s also worth mentioning I had a choice of 750ml bottles to include with my first delivery. I couldn’t decide so I went with Hercules Mulligan: it’s a blend of rum and rye inspired by the historical figure of the same name.

It’s also award winning and highly reviewed so I wanted to get in on the hype.

What Makes Flaviar Unique

It’s a great product, but that may not be enough to choose it over another company offering a similar service. Here’s a review of some stand out features I liked about Flaviar that made the tasting a lot more of an experience for me.

Flavor Spiral (TM)

This is something that I find super interesting about Flaviar: their trademarked Flavor Spiral feature. Each spirit has its own unique graphic created based on conventional tasting notes and Flaviar’s own input.

I’m by no means an expert, but I’d also be a bit cautious reading too much into these flavour profiles. Instead, compare a new option with brands you already like and read reviews to check the flavour before ordering.

Although I am not 100% sold on this feature, I do think it has a place in helping you determine the rough flavours of the spirit you’re ordering.

Also, it should be noted that the vodkas have a different profile. I find this makes Flaviar more credible, since vodka doesn’t really have a taste, but it does have a variety of other factors (like mouth feel) that affect your enjoyment.

Home Bar

You can access your home bar through your account and use it to record spirits you have on hand and keep track of tasting. I like that it’s an easy way to log what you’ve tried. The website will even populate it with spirits you order automatically so there’s minimal upkeep.

If you want to add your existing spirits, though, that’s where it gets a little bit dicey. Not everything is available to add to your home bar, though. That means my extremely economical 12 year Kirkland scotch whiskey and my regular Jack Daniels bottles aren’t on the list.

I also don’t see a way to add notes to the tastings, either. This means I can’t make comments like “only liked it room temperature” or “kinda meh”. You know, the tasting notes that I appreciate.

Something tells me this is a feature they’re still expanding on, but if you want to use it to replace another home bar app it don’t think it’s robust enough at this time.

Conclusion: Is a Flaviar Subscription Worth It?

Before we get into the value, here’s a reminder of what we covered in this Flaviar review:

If you’re interested in sampling new spirits, especially whiskies, the subscription is worth it. Besides the tasting boxes, there are other exclusive member benefits like being able to purchase exclusive spirits, online lessons, and free shipping on qualifying orders. I also appreciate that you get curated samplings, which saves time and effort trying to figure out what to taste next.

Since not everything is available in small bottles the only way to sample a lot of the spirits on Flaviar is by ordering them in a restaurant – which is significantly more expensive than the tasting kits cost.

As a member I can also order a variety of curated tasting boxes before my subscription reloads.

As a gift idea or for folks who enjoy spirits this is a great value for money and way to expand your flavour horizons. For that reason, I would recommend Flaviar to a friend.

Hopefully you enjoyed this review of Flaviar’s whiskey (and spirits) club. Cheers!