The nose has a lot of malt and pear. The pear notes follow through on the palate- tastes like pear skin and pear flesh right under the skin. It's got kinda of a bitter herb flavor in the finish with a sharp, woodiness that isn't my favorite. As far as entry level single malts go among the great "Glens" in this price range, I think my preference Glenmorangie 10 followed by Glenlivet 12 followed by Glenfiddich 12. It's not a bad drink, but the aftertaste is not my favorite. Granted, I'd take a Laphroaig or Highland Park any day of the week over these, but unfortunately you can't buy Laphroaig or Highland Park in 1.75L, so it's nice to have a decent, "bulk" single malt.