Nose: a lot of cereal notes. Much like a scotch. Not as fruit forward as Yamazaki or hakushu 12 years, but there is slight pear. Palate: a lot of pear and cereal up front with a tiny tiny smokiness coming through the middle to end. Finish: smoky with the pear fading out. Overall: fairly impressed. I wouldn’t sip this daily or need a back up but I do like this and it holds its own against the hakushu 12 & Yamazaki 12.