Very pleasant on the nose! The Islay smoke is there, but is accompanied by a strong, sweet, bready aroma, almost reminiscent of a sherry-casked Ardbeg Uigeadail. Although Bowmore's reputation of being one of the least-smoky Islay's, I just keep wondering how perfect this whisky would be on the nose if there was just a bit more smoke. On the tongue, the first description that comes to mind is "sweet smoke". A lot of the first few seconds around the mouth is eerily similar to the nose, with a slight malt and mesquite BBQ undertones showing up here and there. Relatively low on the heat, true to its 40% ABV, and very minimum spice except on the roof of the mouth. Light-to-medium body, with a relatively lingering spice on the roof of the mouth, and ever so slight licorice on the tongue. This bottle shines through its straightforward simplicity. I cannot help but imagine how much of beast this would be at a higher proof