I venture again into another of the big Irish labels. Produced by Middleton, this is the basic offering in the "original" packaged tall bottle with gold medalion/shield around it's neck. Light honey in color. N - light alcohol, earthy "hogo-like" funk that caught me by surprise, light spice and burned sugar. Almost like making caramel on the stove top. P - Warmed honey, lemony citrus, spice. Only slightly leggy with light oily mouth feel. F - Warm slightly sweet, lemony spice, no trace of the earthy funk in flavor or finish. I took my original notes on the neck pour. I have now killed about 1/3 of the bottle. I have found a great deal of favor in this bottle. I like all of the flavors and the balance. I have spent time exploring Irish bottles since the lockdown began. I used to think Irish was a one or two note chord and kind of boring. Either sweet and fruit, (Bushmiills) or Dry and biscuit-ty (Jameson). I have now discovered some flavor and diminsion in my travels. Powers Gold is very good. The funky aroma in the nose startled me at first, but after the neck pour it faded away. There is a lot to like here. I am leaning towards 3.75 stars now that the funk is out of the nose. If I could nose and taste Redbreast 12 with a Powers Gold finish, that would be Irish bliss! Cheers!