I've heard people describe vanilla and birthday cake flavors in whiskey before and never really had any whiskeys that had those notes. This one hits you in the face with both of those flavors big time, which turns it into a bit of a love or hate it affair. I personally like the vanilla flavor they have going on and it's really impressive that they didn't use any additives to achieve it. It's a great dessert whiskey, but if you are searching for typical bourbon flavors you may be pretty disappointed.