Nose: Oak. Lots of big, earthy oloroso saturated oak. This makes the nose a little one-note to start with but over time it gains complexity as toffee, orange zest, walnuts, tobacco and heavy-roast coffee grounds emerge. Some dark dried fruit aromas lurk on the sidelines and with more time red berries and a good helping of cinnamon stewed in maple syrup comes to the front. After considerable time an almost disconcerting aroma of bay rum aftershave is noticed! [The dry-glass aroma is all dark, sweaty sherry and oak with a tiny tinge of char.] Palate: A dry, astringently tannic arrival that hides deep sweet-and-sour cherry and dark chocolate notes. Walnut skins, rancio, dried fruit, wood resin, malt extract, orange peel. In its foundation the palate is sweet and fruity, but time and the particular casks chosen for maturation contribute considerable balancing dryness. The texture is creamy, but not outstanding. Finish: Long. Medium/dry sherry, warm spices (maybe even peppery?), heaps of malt extract and a little molasses. The only letdown is a tinge of flinty hardness in the aftertaste from the immense tannins. Don't judge this one quickly or on the basis of a pour from a newly-opened bottle. Give it time to open - at least 20 minutes. This is a great example of fine oloroso cask maturation paired with considerable benign sulphur in the new-make. It starts off brash but also shy and reserved, like an awkward teenager, and only gains the confidence to strike up a friendship as it relaxes. At times the palate can seem like sucking on an old barrel stave, but it's just a flash of tannins and is soon displaced by mature sweet notes. There's a touch of over-stewed old armagnac to it. It's a good whisky - actually it's a very good whisky - but personally I prefer the 15 year expression (either the old or the new one) or the fresh exuberance of the 12 year old. I have to confess that I'm not a fan of this style of whisky, so it's hard to be objective, and I will not bother trying to replace this bottle (which was from a 2017 batch). This expression gained a lot of attention as a "darling" malt a few years ago. Enthusiasts realised that because the distillery was silent for 6 years from 1996-2002 that batches produced from 2015-2019 certainly must have contained whisky of more than 18 years in age. Although true this was way over-hyped. "Very Good" : 86/100 (4 stars)