I thought it was beginner's luck - but I'm a whisky supertaster

Megan Brown started to notice she could pick up more flavours in whisky than men

When Megan Brown first started going to whisky tastings, she noticed she was picking up a lot more flavours and notes than her more experienced male counterparts.

The 29-year-old initially thought it must have been beginner's luck - but it kept happening.

Little did she know that she may have a biological advantage.

Research over the last few decades has suggested that women have more taste buds and are more likely than men to be "supertasters".

Megan, who is now a director of independent bottler and whisky blending company Woodrow's of Edinburgh, said she was at a whisky tasting three years ago when she first noticed she was tasting more than her male colleagues.

'I doubted myself at first'

"I was sitting at a table full of men and I noticed that even though they were longer into their whisky journey and were therefore what I considered to be more knowledgeable than me," she said.

"I was able to pick out things that they couldn't and I was able to come out with very specific notes that they weren't coming up with.

"I doubted myself at first that I was maybe not picking up these things because I was not, at that point, knowledgeable about whisky.

"But then over time I thought no, I am picking up these things. Sometimes now if I say a note they will suddenly start agreeing with me."

The former neuroscientist added: "I think I heard about this in my scientist days but it didn't cross my mind that that was what was happening to me.

"It now makes a lot of sense."

Dr Frances Jack said women had more smelling receptors

Dr Frances Jack is the senior sensory scientist who leads flavour research at the Scotch Whisky Research Institute.

She told BBC Scotland: "Research has found generally women have more taste buds than men.

"The overall perception of a whisky is actually smell. Women have more smelling receptors."

Dr Jack said women evolved to be "supertasters" so they could check the safety of food for their offspring.

Rachel Dixon, owner of independent bottler Fragrant Drops in Edinburgh, said she had always thought she had a good palate and could smell really well.

Rachel Dixon said she always thought she had a good palate and sense of smell

"Sadly when I go to whisky tastings the majority of attendees are men," she said.

"When I'm with my friends, who are female, whisky tasting they generally come up with a lot more interesting notes than the men.

"I hope it does lead to more women wanting to get into the production of whisky and the blending of whisky - because who doesn't want a better tasting whisky?"

Woody Tan is also a director at Woodrow's of Edinburgh, alongside Megan Brown.

He said: "We do a lot of tastings together and Megan seems to be better at identifying different aromas and flavours than me.

"Even though there are a lot more male whisky drinkers than female whisky drinkers it seems like women are better at picking up flavours.

"The industry would definitely benefit from having more females on board in terms of whisky production, such as blenders or distillers."

Woody Tan said Megan Brown was better at identifying different aromas and flavours

Megan said: "Whisky has traditionally been a man's world and sometimes women aren't taken so seriously.

"The number of times I've been asked 'Do you even drink whisky' or 'Do you even like whisky?'.

"The funny thing is we can actually taste it more than they can and can enjoy it on a level they can't. I think it's a shame most men don't know this."

Julie Roberts, brand innovation manager at the Scotch Malt Whisky Society, said the research was a good way to challenge perceptions that whisky was an old man's club.

She said the differences between men and women opened up "a really interesting conversation".

"It is really enlightening if you are sitting beside a man at a whisky tasting and you get something totally different from the man beside you.

"That is where the real magic is with whisky because it is really all about flavour."