Smells and tastes similar to the Blue Spot (vanilla frosted pineapple upside-down cake), but with berry compote notes followed with a hint of Bordeaux on the finish before the pot still spices take over. The vanilla notes are not thick vanilla like the Blue Spot. It's balanced by the berry compote flavor and surprisingly the pot still spices are more pronounced on this offering compared to the Blue Spot. The only negative aspect about the Gold Spot is I wish that the finish was a little longer. Honestly at the moment I'd say it's a short to medium finish and that brings the score down just a bit. Overall a definite buy and has definitely climbed up my whiskey charts. Top 10 for sure..top 5 is very likely after I revisit my current line up..top 3 ehh I just wish the finish was longer.