Elijah Craig Small Batch is a Kentucky Straight Bourbon from Heaven Hill Distillery. It's a whiskey that pays homage to the early days of bourbon. That's when Elijah Craig discovered aging in burnt American oak barrels.
This blend comes from a hundred barrels aged between 8 and 12 years. It is composed of bourbons distilled from 78% corn, 10% rye and 12% barley. It is 94 proof, or 47% alcohol.
Nico's tasting notes
The nose of this bourbon is quite clean, dark, and heads straight for well-toasted American oak. Cereals and toasted nuts hasten out of the glass, taking with them a breath of freshly ground pepper.
Aeration reveals a rather elegant beeswax, which introduces a beautiful gourmandism. A lovely roundness has set in, with soft white oak, full-bodied vanilla and milky, toasted coconut.
On the palate, the focus is on wood, with typical, generously waxed American oak. It retains a soft, nougat-like core, even if its toasted bark is largely caramelized. Vanilla and pepper advance hand in hand, passing between rows of fatty, toasted and caramelized nuts.
The finish is long, gently cereal-like, with vanilla and a hint of velvety aromatics.
"A fine bourbon cask delicacy that remains tasty throughout..."
Stéphane Ti'verre
On the nose 👃🏻: the first impression is of dark, well-cooked caramel, hinting at its age, not too sweet. The oak is also prominent, asserting its maturity but remaining reasonably spicy, with a hint of vanilla, pepper and nutmeg. The fruit is greedy. With aeration, the ripe black fruits assert themselves more particularly. Wait a little longer and it'll gain in roundness and sweetness.
On the palate 👅: I'm immediately reminded of the well-baked caramel on the attack, but above all of these fruits that express themselves enormously, black cherry and blackberry berries for example. It's quite dry, relatively intense and spicy in the aftermath, on a par with the 47% advertised. With a little vanilla, some nuts, but above all woody notes that spread across the palate with a certain elegance. It's never disturbing or bitter, on the contrary, the balance is very good. And I find a note of mint after a long aeration.
The finish is in continuity, moderately long, dry but not excessively so either. Slightly sweet fruit mingles with slightly damp oak, which lingers on the palate for a few moments 👌
Very happy with this discovery, which is exactly what I expected. It's practical and easy to find your way around thanks to this big Bourbon community, especially on YouTube 🤠