Aggressive nose of burnt peaches, sandalwood, walnut, old leather, prune, raisin, and if I can be honest, rubber cement. Ethanol is there in force but considering that this is near Hazmat status I would say it’s actually less than expected. On the palate, man this sucker is hot. “Duh it’s barrel proof!” Yeah, which I know and love but it is hard to get much out of this on a standard sip besides rocket fuel, a note which carries right through to the finish. Taking a teenie baby sip, you can actually taste the flavors which feature loads of burnt sugars, raisin, date, fig, dried apricot, ash, and bitter woods. Finish is long with cinnamon, chili pepper, mint, and dusty old oak. I’m going to add some water. Ok, that helped a lot, bringing out some caramel, vanilla bean and cinnamon bears candy. Guess I added the right amount this time, but I feel that every pour getting the right water level has been an inexact science. While this was better with water, it still required quite a bit to be enjoyable. While I don’t mind adding a couple of drops or a capful, I don’t want to have to be a chemist to get my bourbon to taste great. I love ECBP, but this one is a bit of a misfire, especially compared to the last one I bought, the (IMO) superb B519 batch. I may be roasted here considering the high rating most give this, but it was just an inferior batch to me and this bottle has been a bit of struggle. Air did not help. Not a rebuy, but certainly won’t stop me from buying every ECBP batch that comes down the pike as there have been and surely will be some real gems.