BOTM 04/22 Elijah Craig Small Batch

[flahute]

For the second month in a row, I had to go out and buy a bottle in order to write up the BOTM post. Last month, I was pleasantly surprised with the result. This month, not as much.

 

Now, us old timers remember when Heaven Hill moved the 12yr age statement from the front of the bottle to the back. The astute ones saw what was coming. Then the predictions came true - the age statement dropped all together. Heaven Hill tried to cover the decision by saying that by being trapped into the age statement, and because they had less of those barrels, that they were being forced to use sub par barrels in the blend. I can see the point, but I can also see reason for skepticism. The boom was on and they needed the barrels for all of their brands. Now, here's the deal for me. I saw the age statement drop coming so I stocked up on the age stated bottles. Then, for reasons unknown to me, my market gets good and steady supply of ECBP which retains the 12yr age statement. So, I never ever once bought a bottle of non age stated EC until yesterday.

 

So, how is it? Well I wouldn't be me if I didn't do a side by side of the current version with a back of the bottle age stated version. 

You can see in the photo below that the 12yr age stated is clearly darker. No surprise.

The current version is still a good bourbon but is clearly a shell of its former self. It's kind of bland. I might actually prefer the new 1783 more. Now to be fair I might be on an off palate night so I will revisit and also do a sbs of those two, but tonight, the 12yr age stated is stealing the show.

 

Here's a strange development - when I had my first taste of the old 12yr age stated I detected flavors that I get from dusties. What's up with that? Does this mean that some of the flavors from dusties are a result of simply sitting for a long time? This is a discussion for another thread but my curiosity is severely piqued. 

 

Back to this moths's bottle though. I have to say that I don't recall seeing many of you post about this in the what are you drinking today thread. Have most of you given up on this one? Let me know your thoughts.

 

[dcbt]

Back in the day, I used to always have a bottle of this on my bar..  Now the only time I buy some is at a restaurant when everything else they have lines up with what I have at home and I want something different.  

 

edit to add - But I do always have the new 1783 at home.  In two different rooms in fact.

Edited April 10, 2022 by dcbt

[Skinsfan1311]

I've given up on it.  

I have a few bottles of the ECBP, which I really enjoy, but not enough to replace them when they're gone, unless I can find them at MSRP.    There are too many options for great bourbon at that price point, and below.

I will however, buy the rye, if it's on sale, because Mrs. Skinsfan likes it.

 

 

[Jazz June]

It has been a while since I have had the regular batched version of Elijah Craig, but I'm surprised it has fallen so far in the estimation of some. Initially, when the age statement dropped I didn't think it was that much different, but over time it has clearly gotten younger and the profile has shifted. To me, that wasn't necessarily a bad thing, as I sometimes found the 12 year over-oaked. Again, I can't speak to recent experience with the batched version, but there are some nice picks of the 94 proof bottling (although the trend is heavily towards the barrel proof picks now that they are an option).

 

This is effectively Heaven Hill's flagship bourbon and at $33 MSRP, something I would usually recommend as one of the good starting points for a new bourbon explorer. Based on the ages of the many barrel proof picks I have seen the labels of, it does appear to be heavily slanted to eight, nine, and ten year barrels. There are some 11 and 12 year barrels in there, but I would think of this as more of an 8 to 9 year bourbon, with a bit more oak than average. With Evan Williams SiB rumored to be going Kentucky only and Heaven Hill BiB 7yr only distributed to some states, this is the best option for a medium aged Heaven Hill bourbon. This is one of the bourbons I would think of when we talk about what's left during "lean times," so it is especially disappointing to hear that it may have slipped in quality.

[flahute]

1 hour ago, Jazz June said:

It has been a while since I have had the regular batched version of Elijah Craig, but I'm surprised it has fallen so far in the estimation of some. Initially, when the age statement dropped I didn't think it was that much different, but over time it has clearly gotten younger and the profile has shifted. To me, that wasn't necessarily a bad thing, as I sometimes found the 12 year over-oaked. Again, I can't speak to recent experience with the batched version, but there are some nice picks of the 94 proof bottling (although the trend is heavily towards the barrel proof picks now that they are an option).

 

This is effectively Heaven Hill's flagship bourbon and at $33 MSRP, something I would usually recommend as one of the good starting points for a new bourbon explorer. Based on the ages of the many barrel proof picks I have seen the labels of, it does appear to be heavily slanted to eight, nine, and ten year barrels. There are some 11 and 12 year barrels in there, but I would think of this as more of an 8 to 9 year bourbon, with a bit more oak than average. With Evan Williams SiB rumored to be going Kentucky only and Heaven Hill BiB 7yr only distributed to some states, this is the best option for a medium aged Heaven Hill bourbon. This is one of the bourbons I would think of when we talk about what's left during "lean times," so it is especially disappointing to hear that it may have slipped in quality.

I had some on its own last night and really enjoyed it. Though it pales against the former 12 yr, it's still a really good bourbon for $27 before tax here. I have numerous private picks I've done of the 94 proof version (long before BP was an option) and they are all in the 9-11yr range and all are top notch. Because I have so many of those I haven't needed to buy the shelf version and only did so for this BOTM (and to satisfy my curiosity). Next up is a sbs of the shelf version with the EW1783.

[B.B. Babington]

3 hours ago, flahute said:

...Though it pales against the former 12 yr, it's still a really good bourbon for $27 before tax here. ...

 

my sentiments also.  though former 12 was good, and stuff from way back in day was great, what we have today is basically a good value bourbon.  if looking for something good, get something else.  If looking for dollar value, then keep a few 1.75 jugs on hand.  

 

something I've found interesting about it lately, when pull it off shelf and have it cold 1st up for the night, it's tasty.  but if have some other good stuff then move to EC, the EC comes up sorely lacking.  

[flahute]

1 hour ago, B.B. Babington said:

 

something I've found interesting about it lately, when pull it off shelf and have it cold 1st up for the night, it's tasty.  but if have some other good stuff then move to EC, the EC comes up sorely lacking.  

I can see this. When I had it as the second or third pour it was definitely lacking. when it was the first it was much better.

[Kepler]

Good choice for BOTM.

I drink the current EC NAS from time to time.  But I can't help but be a tad disappointed because I also compare it to its formerly glorious namesake.  When I first got into fine sippin' bourbons, EC12 was the best thing going for the money IMO.

EC Small Batch is still a fine affordable bourbon but it's no longer on the "must have" list.  In fact the EC12 was so much more rich and full flavored compared the current product, it's questionable to me whether they should share the same name on the label.  

[HoustonNit]

On 4/9/2022 at 8:52 PM, flahute said:

The current version is still a good bourbon but is clearly a shell of its former self. It's kind of bland. I might actually prefer the new 1783 more.

This!

[mbroo5880i]

I always enjoyed the older version EC12.  However, there were times I found it a little too oaky.  Not a show stopper just a night specific phenomenon.  I actually enjoyed EC NAS when it first came out.  Probably because it had older - but not 12 year barrels - in it.  The last few bottles were meh.  I can get OF100, WT101 and OGDBIB in the same or lower price range so I don't visit standard EC much anymore.  Maybe if I hadn't experienced what it was, I would be less disappointed in what it is.

[flahute]

So I did a sbs with EC and 1783. They are different profiles for sure but in terms of flavor/quality they are on an even level to me. Need to revisit to verify since my palate may be amplifying 1783 tonight but based on this tasting, $28 for EC vs $17 FOR 1783 makes for an easy choice.

[lcpfratn]

EC12 was one of the best bourbons made in my opinion, and is what I use to this day as a benchmark for really good bourbon. Sure, there was an occasional batch that was a bit oaky, but most of the time it was nectar of the gods! I hated to see the loss of the age statement, and I’m thankful that I still have a few bottles of the old 12yr in the bunker! The NAS small batch is decent bourbon, and I like it as well or better than many other choices at its price point…but it’s not quite the same as the old 12yr version…First world problems. 

[Kepler]

20 hours ago, flahute said:

So I did a sbs with EC and 1783. They are different profiles for sure but in terms of flavor/quality they are on an even level to me. Need to revisit to verify since my palate may be amplifying 1783 tonight but based on this tasting, $28 for EC vs $17 FOR 1783 makes for an easy choice.

 

I've never even tasted 1783 at all, the new or the old version.  Maybe I need to fix that! 

[PhantomLamb]

4 hours ago, Kepler said:

 

I've never even tasted 1783 at all, the new or the old version.  Maybe I need to fix that! 

It’s phenomenal for the price. Drinks much older than it’s age and for $17 750 and like $26 for a handle it’s a no brainer IMO.

[fosmith]

Back in the late '00s and early teens, I tried a bottle or two of EC12.  I remember liking it but it didn't resonate because I was mainly a scotch drinker at the time and just starting to dabble in bourbon.  Fast forward to the modern era of NAS EC and my impression is that it's ok but nothing I ever really seek out.  It's more a bottle I'll bring to my BIL's place at Clear Lake for the weekend.  A year or so ago, I picked up a 12yr EC store pick and did a sbs with the standard NAS version and the store pick was heads and shoulders better.  Just so much more depth and complexity.  I thought, "this is more like it". 

 

Then, I cooked up an experiment.  I took four or five oz. of ECBP C917 and proofed it down to 94 proof, let it sit for a couple of weeks then did a sbs with the 12 yr store pick.  (I calculated the correct amount of water using this dilution calculator: https://americanhomedistillers.com/distilling-calculator/ ).  Wow! The proofed down BP blew the store pick out of the water!  If this is what the old EC12 used to be like, I can understand why folks are so sad about its passing.  Interestingly, I repeated this experiment with B521 and, while still better than the store pick, it was not quite as good as the C917 version. 

 

[Dannabis]

EC NAS killed me.

EC12 was my daily drinker until it was gone. I was naive and didnt see the end acoming. I regret not grabbing a case for myself.

I keep going back and getting a bottle, done this maybe three or four times, and despite my hopes, the result is always fairly the same.

EC NAS is thin, dry and bitter in an unpleasant manner compared to EC12 which I found more rich and syrupy. Now I rarely find and drink a bourbon that is worse than NAS EC in my experience.

The NAS tastes young to me.

This thread reminds me of the ups and downs of chasing the bourbon high.

Good on you, those who saw the fore shadowing and stocked up on 12 year. What a value it was then too. Now the EC 12 would like be an 80$ - 120$ bottle, I reckon.

Edited August 17, 2022 by Dannabis

[Jazzhead]

I had never been a fan of HH bourbon but the current EC 9 -year small batch and the 94 proof 10-year single barrel I recently picked up are both excellent and certainly better than current Buffalo Trace or Eagle Rare at this approximate proof point.

[fosmith]

20 hours ago, Jazzhead said:

I had never been a fan of HH bourbon but the current EC 9 -year small batch and the 94 proof 10-year single barrel I recently picked up are both excellent and certainly better than current Buffalo Trace or Eagle Rare at this approximate proof point.

Is the EC small batch now 9yr age stated or is that just an approximate age?  I haven't bought one in the last three or four years because the last one I had (NAS) was pretty bland.  About on a par with my last regular BT, IMO.  Agree that the single barrel store picks can be outstanding for both EC and BT.

[Jazzhead]

3 hours ago, fosmith said:

Is the EC small batch now 9yr age stated or is that just an approximate age?  I haven't bought one in the last three or four years because the last one I had (NAS) was pretty bland.  About on a par with my last regular BT, IMO.  Agree that the single barrel store picks can be outstanding for both EC and BT.

Fosmith,  the age statement has still not returned to EC small batch.   The open single barrel EC on my bar - which is excellent - has a 10-year age statement, and the same 94 proof as the small batch.   My understanding is that current EC small batch ranges from between 8 - 12 years.  The EC full proof is 12 years.