elijah craig twelve year old burbon

[philly]

Bought my brotheren law a bottle this past sunday for his fiftyth birthday talked to him the other day says he loves it and he is siping it slow-philly

[Pieface]

That's great philly. EC12 is one of the mosty controversial labels around these parts. I'll pencil your Bro-in-Law as one of the good guys

http://www.straightbourbon.com/forums/showthread.php?t=13547

http://www.straightbourbon.com/forums/showthread.php?t=5091

There is a bit of reading if you want to find out what the board thinks of this label

Good to see you posting.

[B-Zero]

Might as well give my two cents..

I enjoyed the 12yo immensely and will be going back, however on the back of enjoying the 12 i decided to give the 18yo a go and boy was I disappointed. Far too woody and over aged. It was like this dry wood taint which never left the palette, i can still taste it and its not good.

The extra aging spoils the great sweet flavors abound in the 12yo.

[smokinjoe]

Great call on the EC12, Philly. I, for one, have never...ever...been disappointed in any EC12 I've had. Terrific whiskey, at a terrific price.

:toast:

[G.H.Adams]

EC 12 is the only bottle of bourbon that I could not drink. It was nasty straight, on the rocks, or with ginger ale. I poured the bottle down the drain so the sewer rats could get a buzz on.

It may have been a bad bottle but I have never bought it again and I don't intend to.

[Roadsaw]

Ive had a bottle of the EC 12 and enjoyed it.

[HP12]

I've not tried it. Would it be fair to say EC12 is a high rye? I'm considering a purchase of EC12 or EC18.

[JB64]

EC12 is one of the best bourbons in in that price range and one of my favorites. I have been wanting to try the 18 year old but have heard many people tell tale of an over-aged whiskey.

[White Dog]

I've not tried it. Would it be fair to say EC12 is a high rye? I'm considering a purchase of EC12 or EC18.

[MacGuffin]

While it's not my absolute favorite that I've had, it is certainly more than palatable to me.

Regards.

[jeanraulmitchell]

I bought a bottle of EC12 recently after revisiting EC12 at a bar and really thought it was great(it was in snifter). However, the bottle I bought had a weird taste to me in both a glencairn and a reidel port glass(maybe I should get a snifter just for EC12, I'm joking here).

After pinning down this 'metallic' sensation, I read back through BOTM when EC12 was featured and found a lot of people talking about a 'metallic' taste in some bottles and other bottles were great. I contacted HH and they gave me the info to send it in for testing and offerered to send me a check for shipping and the cost of the purchase. Yet before I did that, I wanted to taste it against another bottle a friend had. Sure enough, both have the same 'metallic' taste. I should send it to HH but I want to go back in this bar to taste that bottle again. Maybe my palette was off or maybe EC12 is only good in specific conditions or it varies from bottle to bottle...dunno. I'd love to have the bar bottle at home. It could be my everyday pour.

As for EC18, I order it at another bar every time I go and I think it's great every time too. I go there a lot too and they've emptied one bottle and opened a new one. Absolutely little to no variation that I could taste. It's a little low in proof but I think it's a great bourbon. The oak is it's best quality for me. I'm also happy the mashbill is not too high in rye because I'm a lover of the wheater. I've not purchased any for my bar but I might.

[cigarnv]

I really enjoy the EC 18 and like the EC12...... but a great deal depends on the specific bottling. IMO both vary quite a bit going from fair to outstanding. If you find a specific bottle you like grab more for the bunker....

[MarkEdwards]

I've liked both EC 12 and EC 18 every time I've had them. The 18 never seemed over-aged to me, and neither one tasted metallic.

[PaulO]

It seemed to me that the first and second bottles of EC 12 (bought sometime about ten years ago) were excellent. I also noticed sort of a similarity to Old Forester. Some really good bourbons can have a taste that can remind me of peach cobler. The later bottles of EC 12 I tried were OK, but not as good as the earlier ones. I never found any I considered bad. Sooner or later, when I see a good sale, I'll try it again.

[Josh]

People may say that it's "high rye" in profile, but it is definitely not "high rye" in mashbill. It's the standard HH rye-recipe mashbill, which is high corn/low rye. 75%Corn and 13%Rye according to Josh's Whiskey Tree.

BTW, why isn't Josh's Whiskey Tree a sticky?????:skep: :skep:

Thanks, I appreciate the love!

I like EC 12 but I will agree with Reid that it has been all over the place in recent years. I suspect that may have been due to HH's reliance on contract distillers for their supply of aged bourbon. Once everything is coming from the same place, I hope things will settle down. The bottle I have open is very, very good.

[B-Zero]

As for the EC18.. although I never experienced a metallic taste i certainly found an overpowering taste of wood. In saying this i know there can be variances in specialty bottlings especially in HH. I do believe i obtained a bad bottling of the EC18 expression and even though i wont be going back, congrats to those who found and can enjoy such a bottle. Living in AUS its hard enough to find enthusiast bourbon let alone specialty offerings! Sip Well!!

[B-Zero]

Please click one of the Quick Reply icons in the posts above to activate Quick Reply.

[mosugoji64]

I had the opportunity to sample EC18 recently and expected not to care for it based on what I had read here. I'm not a fan of overly woody whiskeys. To my surprise, it was good. While the oak was there, it wasn't overpowering at all. I don't have much experience with EC12, but this was more like what I expected the 12-year to taste like. I guess this only goes to reinforce the variability experienced with these bottlings.

[timd]

Never been stiffed on EC12 - always been good whether in a 750 or 1.75. I've tried many bottles and find it to be one of the best-in-class pours out there... I always keep a bottle on hand.

I'm really surprised at how bad some folks have found it - I've had many bottles (my own and other people's) and never been unhappy. It was one of the big motivators in my moving to Bourbon away from Scotch!

As for EC18... I've had it numerous times and it doesn't stink - but I honestly prefer the EC12. The 18 lacks a punch/vibrancy that I get with the 12, and also has a "too heavy" wood finish (for me - and I typically enjoy older Bourbons, even Vintage 17, for example, that others have found too woody).

Glad you enjoy it - it's a nice pour for the price, and a real favorite of mine (and I typically don't love HH expressions that much - more of a WT & BT fan).

[Josh]

I was never too hot on EC 18 either, until I had one of Binny's selections. Wow, that was great whiskey. For those who haven't had good luck with EC 18, try to find a retailer bottling. You won't be disappointed.

[sutton]

I was never too hot on EC 18 either, until I had one of Binny's selections. Wow, that was great whiskey. For those who haven't had good luck with EC 18, try to find a retailer bottling. You won't be disappointed.

I'll echo that sentiment - I had the Julio's EC18 and it was fantastic. Full, well-balanced (spice/vanilla/sweetness/oak), not overly woody at all - I guess this is where single barrel helps if you got a retailer picking whose palate lines up with yours.

________________

Mark

[jburlowski]

Speaking of EC12, I talked with Jay Erisman of the Party Source today and he told me he has a single barrel selection of EC 12 coming in next week.

Could be interesting....

[Flyfish]

Might as well give my two cents..

I enjoyed the 12yo immensely and will be going back, however on the back of enjoying the 12 i decided to give the 18yo a go and boy was I disappointed. Far too woody and over aged. It was like this dry wood taint which never left the palette, i can still taste it and its not good.

The extra aging spoils the great sweet flavors abound in the 12yo.

I tried EC12 several years ago and was disappointed. Opened another bottle last night and was really pleased by the caramel and vanilla and nice finish. On Tuesday, my wife and I sampled the EC18 at the distillery. (I am too cheap to spend real money on bourbon that so many people find "too woody.") Bottom line: We were blown away. (She has a better nose than I.) Fantastic stuff. De gustibus non disputatum est.

[ebo]

Great call on the EC12, Philly. I, for one, have never...ever...been disappointed in any EC12 I've had. Terrific whiskey, at a terrific price.

:toast:

I echo that sentiment.:cool:

[hambone]

I am in the camp that loves EJ12. Picked up a 1.75 of it last month. I think it has the best nose of any bourbon.