Admission up front: I saw a number of what seemed like middling reviews before trying, so was expecting to be at least a little underwhelmed. Also, I'm not the biggest Irish whiskey fan. Outside of Redbreast Cask Strength, I haven't been that impressed. But I also think I'm beginning to appreciate the subtle nuances of Irish whiskey, so there's some hope. The nose starts strong like many Irish whiskies do (the palate is usually where the let-down is for me). There's an unexpected big dose of dark caramel - the bourbon barrels seem to be playing an outsized role initially. Let it sit for a few minutes. Then comes tropical fruit, then red fruit. Pineapple, green banana, toasted coconut, assorted berries, covered in vanilla whipped cream. Shortbread cookie. Some clove, maybe nutmeg. Solid nose, but let's see about the palate. The palate actually does not disappoint. I suspect the higher proof helps here. All the flavors on the nose seem to deliver on the palate. There's some nice depth, and the flavors are well balanced. One can pick out a lot here and not be overwhelmed with one or two notes. For quality control, I did a small lineup with a couple other Irish whiskies from the cabinet. This was easily better than Knappogue 12 Marchesi finish. Compared to Redbreast Cask Strength, I thought the nose on this was better. The palate of the RB did have a bigger punch of flavor - owing I'm sure to the higher proof, but this had more depth and interest. Is this as good as Redbreast Cask Strength? I don't know, maybe. Seemed to hold up in the mini-tasting I did. But I was also half-expecting this to be ho-hum, so maybe it was helped by low expectations. The value is a little dubious, considering this seems to retail around $130 in the states, if you can even find it. The last bottle of RBCS I bought for $65, but I think those days are over, as it seems to be $90+ anywhere I see it now. I picked this up for $110, so the value difference isn't quite as big, and ultimately I'm pleased at that price. 4.25 - 4.5 range.