Compass Box Great King St Artist's Blend

Nose: Fresh crisp apples, apple cider, vanilla, sugary sweetness Palate: Same apple from the nose, white pepper Finish: Long and warming, the sweet apple fades into only pepper

Straw coloured. Green apples, lemon and a little oak on the nose. Gentle and creamy on the palete, vanilla, honey, cinnamon and a little lemon. A rather short finish of lemon and honey. Amazing bang for your buck.

Nose: Oak, some caramel, high alcohol intensity Palate: Oak, smooth texture, medicinal, vanilla Finish: More bitter than expected from the relatively sweet aroma and palate, not so pleasant

So I should point out that this is a barrel pick from Total Wine married only in French oak casks. When I mentioned this particular pick to the local Compass Box rep at a tasting he mentioned it was his second favorite Compass Box product ever and his favorite barrel pick. Nose: Wow! Heavy apricot up front but super sweet almost like canned apricot in syrup. Musty wood notes in the background, with a kind of funky finish that smells like a hint of mint and red wine. Flavor: Not at all like the smell. Kind of thick and coating but unpleasantly medicinal right up front with a pretty strong harsh bitter wood flavor. Very sweet with citrus and dried pears on the background. Finish: Medium length with quite an ethanol punch towards the finish. A bit spicy with toasted wood notes but still bitter and medicinal. This was super hyped and I really wanted to love it. The nose was fantastic but I just couldn't get past the weird bitter medicinal cough-syrupy notes in the flavor and finish. It tastes like I'd imagine Robitussin aged in oak barrels would taste.