N: First impression: this goes deep. Rich, ripe stone fruit soaking in caramel and sweet coffee (with milk even?). Peach and plum stand out. Vanilla cream mixing with caramel and chocolate. Hard swirl brings out tons more chocolate - milk chocolate, hot chocolate (again, with milk?). Then it goes back to the fruit, sour this time. Then a creamy hard candy note that's both vanilla (more) and fruity (less). Tiny bit of earth and maybe petrichor. Feels like there's some generic wood, but it's not totally distinguishable. It keeps going: chocolate covered orange; flashes of honey, almond, and cherry; maybe a hint of smoke, but it's hidden behind the chocolate; chocolate covered flowers (that's a thing, right?). Like I said, deep. P: Peach, pear, cherry. Hot early, but not in an unpleasant way - cinnamon, toasted oak, bit of mint. Ethanol, I suppose - really just enough to remind you it's there. Vanilla, chocolate, light roast coffee, toffee, caramel. Earthy, woody, even a dash of pine. Over time, the fruit at the front end begins to feel stewed, heavy, sugary (although not terribly sweet). The cinnamon, oak, and mint from early on continue long into the finish. The mint develops and becomes more noticeable. There's also dark chocolate, less hot baking spices, different shadings of wood (pine, little bit of sawdust, some funk and moss, etc.), more coffee - getting darker now - and very mild and subtle bbq smoke note. Some tannic bitterness starts to develop about halfway through a second pour, and it merges with the fruit to land at a bitter fruit note that reminds (a little) of a hoppy beer (although far more subtle). The heat of the spice never gets crazy, but also never goes away - one of the longest finishes I've experienced. This is fantastic. It's rich, strong, well-developed, has no obvious weaknesses, and never quits - there's something new in it every time you take a sip. At a subjective level, this is not my personal favorite flavor profile - I've had other drams I "liked" more - but it's easily the best execution of a classic blended Scotch I've ever had, and maybe the best on the market.* VFM is fine, although I wish a full bottle was available. If I could get a 750 of this at $80, I would probably never not have it. The half bottle format is cute for a one-time purchase, but annoying if you really just want to have this dram around. Anyway, minor complaint. This is a phenomenal dram, worthy of its awards and reputation. * Example: I think some of the Compass Box blends are a little more interesting, but also more experimental (i.e. not "classic") and so not quite an apples-to-apples comparison.