Nose: Surprisingly sweet with hints of pepper and ethanol. As it opens up, The sweetness expands to strong notes of fruits (cherries), vanilla, and almost freshly baked sweet rolls (akin to what I experienced with Bernheim). For a rye I am shocked I am getting this much sweetness. Palate: Exacrly like the nose. Sweet and spicy - cherries and fruits take the front stage but are pushed back by some rye spice. The sweetness creeps back in with vanilla and that sweet roll note and fights with the rye spice on a surprisingly long finish. As a pour - this is phenomenal - especially at its price point of 29.99. With that said, as a rye it falls very flat for me. It needs more spice to live up to the eyes of legend - like Heaven Hill’s Pikesville. All in all this is a bottle I will always have on my shelf and for good reason.