BOTM 04/23 Elijah Craig Barrel Proof

[flahute]

We're back with another edition of BOTM and this month we have a crowd favorite. Of course this one can be hard to get depending on what part of the country you live in.

I know some of you rarely see it if ever. Some of you can get it from time to time. And then there are those of us who can almost always get it. 

 

This is a long time favorite of mine and many here and those of us who have been doing this for a long time have very fond memories of those earliest editions. (And some of us were smart enough to bunker quite a few.) Before writing this I decided to try some from across the years. While I don't have a current release on hand I can say that the last one I had a few months ago was great so HH is still delivering quality with this brand. I tried a recently purchased 8yr private pick, a B518, and one of the old school bottle styles.

 

The private pick while good definitely tastes young compared to the other two. The B518 at 12yrs old is noticeably darker and richer than the private pick. The older one is even darker still and no surprise is the best tasting one. Many of you will remember when the standard EC was in the process of losing the age statement one of the reasons was that HH said they were being forced to use inferior barrels in order to maintain the age statement. And we all know that in the lean times barrels older than the age statement were being used everywhere. I can tell this is definitely the case with the older bottle style. There is clearly older whiskey in here.

 

So we can definitely say that the older bottles were something special but as said above the current ones are still delivering very high quality. And, as I know from experience, if you can pick a private barrel of this you can get back into that special category.

 

Photo below of the three I tasted.

[flahute]

[Richnimrod]

Good Choice, flahute!    Most of the earliest ones were very special pours.   The very first release was so damned dark, I thought maybe somebody snuck a couple barrels of blackstrap molasses in with the Bourbon.   But, no!

Just some very old, and very tasty whiskey in that first batch... and nearly all since to varying degrees.   I haven't owned or even sampled every one; but, I'd bet on enjoyment even before I tasted one.   ...And, I'd WIN!

[Davesnothere]

I've been on an EC tear this past year. I've picked up a dozen or so private barrels and barrel proofs. I have to agree, in general, the barrel proofs tend to butter my biscuit just a bit more than the private barrels.

We opened these three on the same day last month to do a tasting. 

The bestestness (copyright DNH) of the three bottles is reflected in the amount left in the bottles.

The 8 years, while delicious, do tend to be a bit ethanol forward, but still have a great caramel finish.  

I still think the C922 tops the A123. I'm glad I was able to bunker several C922.

 

 

Edited April 6, 2023 by Davesnothere

[flahute]

10 minutes ago, Davesnothere said:

I've been on an EC tear this past year. I've picked up a dozen or so private barrels and barrel proofs. I have to agree, in general, the barrel proofs tend to butter my biscuit just a bit more than the private barrels.

We opened these three on the same day last month to do a tasting. 

The bestestness (copyright DNH) of the three bottles is reflected in the amount left in the bottles.

The 8 years, while delicious, do tend to be a bit ethanol forward, but still have a great caramel finish.  

I still think the C922 tops the A123. I'm glad I was able to bunker several C922.

 

 

Love this!

[PaulO]

I was lucky enough to try two different batches in the original style package (a.k.a. pirate bottle).  They were superb, just wow.  Then those got hard to find around here.  Not too long ago, a manager hooked me up with the new package version, but I've been saving that in the bunker. 

[Richnimrod]

4 hours ago, PaulO said:

I was lucky enough to try two different batches in the original style package (a.k.a. pirate bottle).  They were superb, just wow.  Then those got hard to find around here.  Not too long ago, a manager hooked me up with the new package version, but I've been saving that in the bunker. 

Just a personal observation from a long-time Bourbon drinker...

Pouring and savoring the best pours has always yielded me greater enjoyment than saving 'em for later.

...Not that I've never bunkered anything special; but, generally I keep 'em back for a particular celebration with folx that will also  enjoy the experience, and maybe haven't the pleasure of (say) a Pappy or other unicorn.

Don't get me wrong.   I don't make daily drinkers of the hard-to-find-and/or-exceptional pours; but, once opened, I usually find good enough reasons to pour 'em once in a while. 

[PaulO]

Oh no worries, my bunker is a staging area.  It's all meant to get opened.  

[Jam]

I have been told the barrel proofs are very well like by most. I have had them on my list for a bit and finally picked up a c922 and an A123 today, looking forward to giving them a try. 

[Jazz Nut]

Love the BOTM threads—I haven’t posted for a while, but love ECBP!  I think they’ve stayed close in profile over the years, but the earlier bottlings seem to have more depth, and character.  I’ve got a few more recent batches open on my bar, and a few older ones (as well as the newer batches) in the bunker.

 

In honor of the BOTM, I'm sipping a nice sized pour of the A117 batch, with a little R/O water to tame the heat.  The A117 batch was easy to find in Minnesota, so loaded up.  Although I think many thought this was a lesser batch, I still like it.  Still have a bottle of the 70.1 that I picked up in (2013?) when visiting San Francisco, and had to get a few bottles, as Minnesota didn't get a distribution yet.  It was a landmark bourbon for me in the early days (that and Promise of Hope).  Good memories, but plenty of good bourbon to drink on the shelves now as well.

Edited May 2, 2023 by Jazz Nut

[Davesnothere]

Well it was an excellent choice for bourbon of the month! I shall continue sipping until I need to hit the bunker.

 

 

Edited May 3, 2023 by Davesnothere

[yobber76]

This is back to being one of my favorites, even though most of the recent releases get good not great reviews.

I probably have had every release since B520 maybe earlier, and while they can vary from batch to batch, I find all of them nicely drinkable.

I currently have C921, C922, and A123 all open for tasting. 

 

Tasting them all neat,  C921 has an oakier dryer taste, the the C922 a thinner sweeter taste, and A123 seems more balanced in flavors and richness between the 3.

Neat I think I like A123 best, but I appreciate them all.

I find myself drinking them often with a big cube, a few drops of water, an orange peel, and a dash of cherry juice. 

 

Eagerly awaiting B523.