A good friend of mine was gifted three bottles of whisky for his birthday. This Akashi Select Reserve, a Bulleit Bourbon and a Tomation Single Malt. As he wanted to share a few drams, we decided to keep a small tasting. I suggested to keep the order I listed them above, as I suspected them to build up in taste that way. We started with this Japanese whisky without huge expectations. With a rather faint nose, the palate was fine, but nothing impressive. We found a bit of oak, some herbs but the aftertaste was short and slightly oily. We both agreed that this was a nice starter, but nothing more.