On the nose is dark fruit, dried fruit, smoky barrel char, fresh oranges, cocoa powder, sweet vanilla, gentle spice, a hint of tobacco and whisper of rye mint. With time, the dried fruit aromas take over and dominate. - To the palate it is viscous, coating the tongue with buttery caramel, sweet sponge toffee, cinnamon, black pepper and a zing of citrus with hints of cocoa on oak. Given time, I start picking out espresso coffee, cigar tobacco, dry cedar, more chai spices, roasted nuts, with hints of herbal mint and anise from the rye. - The finish is warming with lingering dried fruit and oak. — With a drop of water, everything becomes very subdued. Some sour wood notes appear on the nose and in the finish. I don’t recommend adding water. —//— Bourbon Mark: 87 —//— This is actually a pretty interesting bourbon. Maybe I should have bought the full sized bottle! I think that dominant fruity character from the special yeast, which you can smell from when you first pull the cork, really makes this one stand out from the others! I may be persuaded to examine some others from this distillery in the future.