Nose- Corn bread; maple syrup; honey; cinnamon sugar; toasted oak; bananas Palate- maple syrup; caramel; cherries; honey; sweetened black tea; rye spice Finish- Long, chewy and drying finish; caramel; black pepper spice; honey This is the first birthday bourbon that I can feel the heat. Still, it’s delicious. The nose has a remarkable corn bread and honey note. The palate is sweet and tasty, although the rye spice dominates at some point. The finish is long, drying and chewy at the same time, with a dab of honey, caramel, and black pepper. It’s enjoyable, but not my favorite birthday bourbon of all time. I would still order it at the bar or by the bottle for MSRP any day. EDIT: Tasted again in 2020. This stuff is amazing. Upping to 5 star rating from 4.5. Wow. So many tropical fruits on the nose, and the palate is to die for. An absolute joy to drink.