Tasted in a Glencairn spirits nosing glass. Aroma - Neat - Immediately hit with ripe banana, banana bread, pink bubble gum, bittered honey and mint leaf - Adding a teaspoon of water . . . This has brought the aroma down, im only able to detect vanilla and a very distant rye bread note. Taste - Neat - vanilla, strong cordial cherry. Not too terrible complex but quite tasty as it is. Adding a teaspoon of water . . . A mistake. This whiskey becomes quite flat, thin and one dimensional once water is added. I’m only able to detect sweet vanilla with the addition of water. Final thoughts : A quite tasty and decently interesting bourbon when drank neat. This one does not need any water. I was expecting something a bit more deep / developed for being aged 12 years, but, I digress, it is quite good. I WILL say that the hype, price tag and scarcity surrounding it DEFINITELY doesn’t equate to what you’re getting in the bottle, however. 3.75 / 5.00 from me. Worth trying if you aren’t getting scalped on the price!