Rating: 9/23 N: Surprisingly floral on the nose with some citrus (orange and lime) and a sugary syrup. Honestly, I could believe that this was the nose of a tropical cocktail made with orange juice, lime juice, and Rose's grenadine. I can believe that there's Irish whiskey in this, but it certainly isn't the most prominent smell. P: Kind of weak at first, then sugary and a bit burning. After that, some dry, slightly burnt grass comes out in the midst of intense floral fruitiness. I'm getting a lot of that grenadine and some of the lime bitterness, with sort of a nectary orange layer tying them together. I don't hate it, but it sure is weird. Some malty sweetness as well, but it's restrained in the usual Irish fashion. I am definitely getting a bit of a rough alcohol flavor here. I'm getting some very surprising Metaxa Grande Fine vibes here. F: Toasty, dry grass with malt, rose petals, and restrained orange zest and lime. This is sort of a more zingy and refreshing version of the palate. - Conclusion - This is an odd one. I really didn't expect this profile. I suppose it would be fun in a tropical cocktail, but outside of one it's a bit challenging. Still, it is kind of fun neat. In limited quantity. Knappogue Castle 12 (15/23) is richer, smoother, and more coherent, though it has a less interesting profile. This definitely burns more and shows more alcohol. This isn't bad, but a 14 would be a stretch for it. I'm thinking a 12 or 13, though I'm concerned that that biting alcohol may be too harsh and present for such a high rating. Metaxa Grande Fine (6/23) is much more sweet and floral and weird and just off. That said, it doesn't taste as bad in comparison as I'd expected. Maybe I underrated the Mextaca - or maybe this just isn't bery good. This is closer to the Mextaca than to the Knappogue Castle, which would suggest that this is a 10 at best. Switching back to this, I again find it challenging and burning, though I do find its profile to be kind of fun. I'm pretty convinced at this point that this won't be beating a 10, though I don't see it being as low as a 6 and a 7 also seems a bit harsh. I was worried that this might only be a little bit better than all of those cheap Irish drams that I rated at 9, but I think that is actually manages to be worse. I wasn't sure, but coming back to this I'm smelling and tasting some gasoline. I'm down to a 7 or 8. Ugh, this could even be a 6 or lower. That plastic gasoline element is way too strong. It's like poison. My question now is: why does seeming like poison not make this the absolute worst thing I've ever tried? Trying this again, I'm getting hints of that gasoline, but not nearly as much as before. I still get plenty of alcohol bite and youthful vibes with various citrus and a watery nectar flavor, as well as a bit of toasty grain with light oil. This isn't nearly as bad as before, but it's certainly still not good. This still has nothing on Knappogue Castle 12. It's also clearly behind Breuckelen Distilling 77 American Single Malt Aged 7 Years Bourbon Cask Finished. I think that the 7-8 I was thinking of previously is too harsh. It'd be really tough to give this more than a 12 though. I'm thinking that it's most likely a 9 or 10. It's tough with all that harshness and bit of gasoline, but I do really like that tropical element. Overall, considering how much this burns at a mere 40% ABV, I think that an 8 might actually be back in the picture. I'm going with a 9.