Initial nose impressions of sparklers and struck matches gave way to scented sticks, manuka honey on buttered toast, flambéed bananas, parma violets, beurre noisette and shrimps cooked over peat on a sandy beach. The taste could best be described as fierce but pleasant – ash, smoke, burnt toffee, toffee apples, echoes of bonfire night; dry clove and mustard heat to finish. The reduced nose suggested wellies, rock-pools and funfairs (diesel generators, candy floss, donuts, fireworks, muddy fields). The palate was now sweet (sticky dates, cinder toffee) with earthy undertones and an ashy after-taste. The distillery was once visited by the Queen.