My prhase "there is not a bad japanese whisky" almost found it's exception on this one. The nose is so unappealing (at least for me it is) that made me think it would also be bad on the palate, lucky for me, it wasn't. Bottled at 45%abv, pale gold. On the nose the alcohol note was very powerful. Peppery and spicy on the nose.Oily, Prunes Lemon and cheap chocolate notes. Awful on the nose at first. You need to let it sit for a while. Very spicy like chilli on the nose. On the palate it improves a lot, Oak, Citrus note, Lemon candy, Peppery Pleasant and an Ashy note. Finish full of ginger and pepper, long. The worst japanese whisky i have ever had, still is a decent dram: 83 over 100.