The color is richer and darker than I expected. The nose has some heat and bitter baker's chocolate notes. The taste is rich with white pepper on the tongue and some oak but not the heavily toasted notes the color suggested. Stringent, drying and a little bitter, without being unpleasant, in the finish. Not overly complex. Softens and sweetens nicely with water to reveal more dark chocolate and a more silky mouth feel, but the pepper still comes through as does a hint of sweet vanilla crème. The water helps a lot and the strong notes of pepper and oak would stand up well to ice or even cola.
