Let it sit for 15-20 minutes to let all the flavors come out. I get a lot of flavors from this - maraschino cherries, brown sugar, a spicy rye bite, a hint of mint, some vanilla, cookie dough. This whiskey has a long woody, char, rye finish. This is a great whiskey- it's almost worth the price. I enjoy it quite a bit, but I'm not sure that I'd buy another bottle at the ~$200 price tag unless I had a sudden windfall.