This was the first peated single malt I've had, so I dove right into the deep end from Johnnie Walker Black to classic Islay. The first thing that took me by surprise was how light and delicate the color appears in the glass. It's something I've begun to appreciate about Islay and Island scotches, they usually don't add artificial color. This is pure campfire, or your buddy on a charcoal grill that doesn't know how to maintain heat and flame levels. It is all ash/smoke and is delightful. What I don't get that I've seen in reviews and I've gotten with Laphroaig is a medicinal quality. This is a haphazard mixture of logs you find within 200 feet of your campsite while Laphroaig tastes more like a fire with lingering notes of accelerants like kerosene or plastic. (I hike and backpack a lot.) I also get hints of sea salt and citrus. It is surprisingly light when it hits the tongue, but then it gets meaty and rich with smoke and brine. The ethanol and oak spice hits the back of the tongue on the finish, it is oily and long. Chewy is the best way to describe it. I don't think I have the nose or palate to detect a lot of the fruit/sweet notes, but I don't care. I'm now a gigantic fan of peated malts because of this, and I've savored this bottle for almost 9 months. The consistency over that time period is outstanding.