Neat. Bar pour. On the nose, the oak was dominating but very inviting. It subsided a bit after a few minutes. A rich vanilla sweet cream syrup emerges underneath along side some dark cherries. Hint of white pepper. Butter scotch and light peanut, reminding me of a chocolate turtle a bit. For the most part it is the oak and vanilla syrup doing a dance. On the taste, mouthfeel is light but oily. Almost like it’s not even on the tongue until you move it around and oils swish about. Initial flavors on the front of the palate are odd and surprising. Upfront it almost has a mouthwash quality to it, like the flavor is so bright it mutes itself off the scale. It’s just very sweet again with that vanilla syrup. The oak and cherry come punching through on mid-palate. Finish is all barrel and pepper. Very drying, long finish. Barrel and tobacco. That mouthwash sensation keeps occurring. Going to wash out and reset before going back in. Washing out and resetting dispelled that mouthwash sensation. An orange note starts poking through. All in all, not sure why people spend so much on this. I guess just to complete the vertical. I open everything that enters my house but if I get my hand on this, I would not open it. Glad I get to try it in this setting!