Open 2 months Nose - Dense caramel and toffee, strong ethanol and oak, snickerdoodle and gingerbread cookies, candied dates and raisins. Palate - Caramel drizzled over cheap dry pie crust, more shortbread than cookie, cinnamon and nutmeg, light caramel. The finish is super oily, it coats the mouth immediately. The tannic oak and ethanol completely dominate the palate, it is hot even with small sips. You need a minute to recover your sense of taste before taking another sip because it is hot, oily, and dry. Any hint of sugar or fruit vanishes quickly from the mid-palate. I was excited to pick this up in August because I thought I missed it. The new ABC store in Durham stockpiled hundreds of ECBP B519, A120, and B520. (They still have cases of these after being open more than 2 months.) However, I think this batch is clearly inferior to A119 and B520. It has all of those notes you want in ECBP, but the ethanol dominates the palate. This is the highest proof whiskey I've had, but I've had multiple above 130 proof that I prefer. So, I do not think the ethanol % is the issue. The flavors just don't mesh as well together compared to two previous ECBP batches I've purchased. After being open 2 months and splitting the bottle with a friend, I thought it would mellow out a bit, but it hasn't. People clearly like this more than I do, but for me the A119 was better and the B520 was in a different league altogether.