I'm not sure if my bottle opened up, but this was a crowd-pleaser, and you definitely taste the floral, 'cherry-blossom' finish, and it's light and refreshing. This is unlike any bottle I've ever tried (rice whiskey) and is a pretty good price if you found it for MSRP, perhaps even on sale for being on the shelves too long (what happens to a lot of Japanese whiskeys in America).