!! HELP !! What to replace EC12 with?

[BigD]

OK The bourbon made me do it....

 

Wife poured ECSmB 12 Year (Noted on the back label) VS ECSmB NAS Blind side by side.  I liked the new label NAS better Neat.  But,  I picked the 12 year age stated on the back label as the best with the addition of a 1/2 tsp of water.

 

So next She poured the EC1793 and tasted it blind against the ECSmB 12 year on back label and Picked the New EC1793.  I was certainly surprised, and reaffirmed my blind tastings as my best guide.  Try it, I have been somewhat predictable but in the end I learn what I like by my tastes which is what matter and what a replacement for EC12 is all about in the first place.  

 

Dan 

[BDanner]

If you really must have EC12, just hang in there. Breaking Bourbon has it on their rumored  release calendar, so it may be coming back! One problem with that is the $50 msrp listed. They also have ECBP going NAS on their rumored release calendar so there's also that to look forward to.

 

I will second everyone here saying to give the Henry Mc 10yr SiB BIB a shot. It's one of my favorites, but I don't find it similar in profile to EC12 at all.

Edited December 17, 2016 by BDanner

[JPK]

Hey Guys.

I really appreciate all your comments and help.

I find it amazing how people can have different tastes...and this thread only confirms it.

 

I'm really happy for you that prefer the new NAS EC...I really am.

 

There is a taste in that stuff that comes up about 1.5 secs after the swallow that I can't hide from.

I won't say what it tastes like to me since I don't want to take the chance of ruining it for the lovers of the stuff.

 

Our bottle of Henry McKenna came in yesterday and my Wife and I did a blind 4 way test of NAS EC, HM, EWB, WR.

We were able to pick them out without any problem.

 

The new NAS EC was at the bottom of the list.

EWB was 3rd (2nd when $$ was figured in)

WR was 2nd

Henry McKenna was a run away 1st for us.

It lacks some of the richness of flavor found in the old EC12...but it has some other flavors in it's place.

A little sweeter up front..not quite as much all-spice or oak.

But it has more vanilla and cinnamon to me...and really almost as much oak.

I think the oak in the henry tastes more fresh cut than aged oak.

For me the finish of a whisky is HUGE in my ranking dept.

Lets face it..a drink is over pretty quick..but if there's a nice looooong finish the experience just lasts longer.

That's my thought anyway...lol

 

The HMcenna has a nice long fairly spicy finish.

Like the EC12...the finish is a great balance of alcohol burn and spice...not one sided.

 

I truly thank you for helping me out here.

I think the HMB is a pretty darn good replacement of EC12..at a very similar price..$1.80 more.

 

Thank you

 

 

 

 

Edited December 17, 2016 by JPK

[BDanner]

Agreed...love the finish on the HMK 10 yr. Musty oak and leather that coats and lingers. 

[JPK]

Hey Gang,

 

Worked through the bottle of HMK.

Have to admit..it started getting a little 1 dimensional as a drank it.

I was trying to find a replacement for EC12..and this was close..but sweeter and not as as heavy in the carmel and cinnamon/clove dept.

EC12 had so many flavor changes from 1st sip to finish in your mouth.

 

Thinking of dropping the hammer on Four roses single barrel.

Reviews speak of sweet and cinnamon....and pretty major changes in flavor from 1st sip to finish.

Would you all say the 4RSB is somewhat similar to EC12's profile?...or at least seems to change flavor like EC12 did?

 

Thank you

 

[smokinjoe]

Personally, I find 4RSB and EC12 nothing alike.

[garbanzobean]

20 minutes ago, smokinjoe said:

Personally, I find 4RSB and EC12 nothing alike.

I feel the same way.  I'm not sure there's much overlap at all.  I personally find FRSB to be a superior bourbon to EC12 and ECNAS, but I don't really care for EC12 or ECNAS.

 

To the OP: I'm not sure you're going to find a 100% substitute whiskey at a price point that pleases you.  Please do remember that Henry McKenna 10 is a single barrel, so it is going to have a more singular nature and barrel variation than EC12.

 

Off hand, EH Taylor Small Batch might work if you find it on sale.  Other than that, I suggest maybe buying HH6BIB, OE7101, or ECNAS and blending them with a little bit of beaver bourbon like the Orphan Barrel releases.  A little will go a long way, and might produce a result that makes you happy at a satisfactory price point.  Other than that, OFSIG kind of sort of reminds me of EC, but it is way younger.

[JPK]

thanks guys.

Not the answer I was hoping for but I'd rather truth than lies..lol

 

[Paddy]

^^^EC NAS is going to be your best bet.  Some of them are 'spot on' in the EC12 profile dept, while others are 'close but no cigar'.  I think I recall reading up thread that you had one that didn't do it for you.  

 

As there's always variability in any brand, my two cents would be to give it another go.  Why?  Because nothing else (that is readily available) will get you any closer. 

[flahute]

What Paddy said. I had an NAS recently that was spot on the 12 profile. 

[JPK]

was it in the new bottle design?

 

[Nm0369]

It's not a permanent solution, but why not take a road trip to a neighboring state and load up on EC12?  I assume you can't find it locally because Michigan is a control state.  If it's feasible, drive down to northern Indiana and load up.  Start in South Bend and work west.  

Edited February 18, 2017 by Nm0369

[JTaylor]

On 12/12/2016 at 9:11 AM, JPK said:

Hello Everyone,

 

It finally happened in my neck of the woods. Elijah Craig no NAS front or back, new bottle design arrived.

Wife and I bought it with high hopes and were VERY disappointed.

I'm not going to get into how bad the new stuff is..but we don't enjoy it at all.

 

EC12 was by FAR our favorite pour. It had everything we wanted...and nothing we didn't.

now it's gone..boo hoo and all..lol

 

I'm asking for your help here.

 

...Is there anything else out there that tastes like EC12 around the same $$$?

Everything we've tried didn't have the "richness" of EC12. We've tried WT101, BT, EWSB, EW's many bottlings, 4 roses, KC, BH, Gent jack, Bulliet rye, WR & I'm sure some others...they just don't have the "richness" of flavor.

I can't put into words the exact differences we've noticed.. (We just want EC12 back lol)

I guess EC12 just seems to have more of a concentrated full rich flavors that we miss.

 

I'm thinking we might try Russel's Reserve 10 year next for a replacement...then maybe Eagle rare...?

I've been trying to get a bottle of Elmer T. Lee..but that seems difficult to pull off.

 

I'd really appreciate any info you'd like to share on our proposed next move.

Also..PLEASE if you have any other better suited "next try's" for us please share.

 

Thank you so much!

 

John

Well, you said EC 12 was by far your favorite, just replace it with one from the several cases in your bunker... or haven't you been paying attention? Sorry but I hope you've learned your lesson so when you find your next favorite you'll know what to do. Unfortunately this has basically happened to all of us here with the way so many good bourbons are now allocated, high priced, or just plain unavailable. I'm sure you've seen the size of some of the bunkers we have, it's not because we're all hoarders, it's because we've seen something we like disappear from the shelves. On the bright side, now your adventure begins! There are dozens of readily available, reasonably priced, delicious bourbons and ryes out there, start trying them, and when you find one you like go back for more! Hopefully you're able to score an occasional ECBP to satisfy your cravings while you're trying new things and building your bunker. And remember, you're already one step ahead of most of us by having your wife on board. Good luck, and happy hunting! For a next try I'd suggest Pikesville Rye.

[OldFitzWithTheGoldLabel]

Hello Everyone,
 
It finally happened in my neck of the woods. Elijah Craig no NAS front or back, new bottle design arrived.
Wife and I bought it with high hopes and were VERY disappointed.
I'm not going to get into how bad the new stuff is..but we don't enjoy it at all.
 
EC12 was by FAR our favorite pour. It had everything we wanted...and nothing we didn't.
now it's gone..boo hoo and all..lol
 
I'm asking for your help here.
 
...Is there anything else out there that tastes like EC12 around the same $$$?
Everything we've tried didn't have the "richness" of EC12. We've tried WT101, BT, EWSB, EW's many bottlings, 4 roses, KC, BH, Gent jack, Bulliet rye, WR & I'm sure some others...they just don't have the "richness" of flavor.
I can't put into words the exact differences we've noticed.. (We just want EC12 back lol)
I guess EC12 just seems to have more of a concentrated full rich flavors that we miss.
 
I'm thinking we might try Russel's Reserve 10 year next for a replacement...then maybe Eagle rare...?
I've been trying to get a bottle of Elmer T. Lee..but that seems difficult to pull off.
 
I'd really appreciate any info you'd like to share on our proposed next move.
Also..PLEASE if you have any other better suited "next try's" for us please share.
 
Thank you so much!
 
John

For a similar price range, I recommend trying Henry McKenna Bottled in Bond and Russell's Reserve 10 year.

Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk

[BigD]

FWIW I feel the same way and am working on trying to come up with a clone that is reasonably priced with the same old EC Flavor profile as a blind SBS showed me I need to ration my Stock and come up with an alternative, So I started Mingling/Vatting.  I started with:  Old Forester/Evan Williams Black 2:1 which someone posted was similiar to EC.  It in fact does taste like a weak EC12 to me.   It is lacking the Oakey Vanilla and and the full mouth feel.  So I'm going to continue to play by adding toasted Oak chips to EWB which will increase the oak.  I may do the same to EW Single Barrel to see if I can improve the missing dark vanilla component.

 

 

[MTNBourbon]

Nice thread. I'm late, but FRSB is nothing like EC12, and also to me ETL is nothing like EC12. The Henry McKenna 10yr. SB BIB is not around here, going see if I can find some on-line. Definitely, thanks for all the info.

[MTNBourbon]

Just ordered 2 bottles.

[OldFitzWithTheGoldLabel]

Nice thread. I'm late, but FRSB is nothing like EC12, and also to me ETL is nothing like EC12. The Henry McKenna 10yr. SB BIB is not around here, going see if I can find some on-line. Definitely, thanks for all the info.

I bet you'll love Henry McKenna Bottled in Bond. It is a great bourbon, and fabulous at its price point.

Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk

[MTNBourbon]

3 minutes ago, OldFitzWithTheGoldLabel said:

I bet you'll love Henry McKenna Bottled in Bond. It is a great bourbon, and fabulous at its price point.

Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk
 

Sounds like I will. At $24.98 ea, is very reasonable enough.

[no proof]

What about Old Ezra 12yr? I haven't tried it yet, but I understand it's HH juice. Has anyone done a SBS with EC12?

[kevinbrink]

7 minutes ago, no proof said:

What about Old Ezra 12yr? I haven't tried it yet, but I understand it's HH juice. Has anyone done a SBS with EC12?

The Ezra 12 yr is pretty much gone I think, all I have seen is the 7yr 101 and the 90 proof, I know a few places that have straggling 12 yrs but the dates on them are all 2013 IIRC.

[no proof]

18 minutes ago, kevinbrink said:

The Ezra 12 yr is pretty much gone I think, all I have seen is the 7yr 101 and the 90 proof, I know a few places that have straggling 12 yrs but the dates on them are all 2013 IIRC.

 

It's still around here in Tokyo, in the $35-ish range. Higher price than an EC12, but also higher proof. I didn't realize these were becoming scarce.

[kevinbrink]

3 minutes ago, no proof said:

 

It's still around here in Tokyo, in the $35-ish range. Higher price than an EC12, but also higher proof. I didn't realize these were becoming scarce.

No mention of it on the Ezra Brooks website, nor for the forthcoming Rye, however there is a small mention on the Luxco site FWIW. When they rebranded their bottles I don't beleive they ever showed one for the 12 however it was always very different anyway. Pretty sure it is a thing of the past but I suppose that might be confirmed by contacting Luxco.

[Richnimrod]

I'm pretty sure Ezra B 12-year is all gone, at least for now. 

Call it a hiatus for an indeterminate time up to and maybe including forever. 

Never say never, as Luxco may find another source for something that old; or eventually have enough of their own distillate to re-introduce the brand; but, I'm not gonna bet any money that it will ever happen.

[Limegoldconvertible68]

I enjoyed Ezra B (12yr) but alway found EC12 was more in my wheelhouse.