Neat. Prav Saraff pick Hot Box. Tons of oak and baking spices upfront like a slightly burnt pie crust. Waves of vanilla and cinnamon. Hint of apples. Very nice, cozy nose on this. Nice and thick on the tongue, that apple, sugar hit your tongue first. The sour of the apple transitions to ethanol and burn on the tongue. Finish is the apple, vanilla and cinnamon. The sourness of the apple lingers on the tongue. Definitely some unique qualities to this barrel with that apple note. I don’t get apple from the Smoke Wagon Desert Jewel at all. There is a harshness I wouldn’t expect from a 12 year. It hits the tongue and then you get it again on the finish. If a few months on the shelf sands off the rough edges, I could bump this up a .5 or so. I’d put a lot of MGP ahead of this particular barrel.