Elijah Craig Archives - First Pour Cocktails

Elijah Craig All Star Wine & Spirits Single Barrel #5

Posted on October 11, 2023October 3, 2023 by Nick

Although less common than Elijah Craig Private Barrels bottled at barrel strength, there are Elijah Craig batches that are bottled at the small batch 94 proof. Given that the small batch is routinely one of our recommended bottles for beginning your home bar, are these viable options to add to your shelf? To find out, I grabbed a (now sold out) bottle of Elijah Craig All Star Wine & Spirits Single Barrel #5 [they still have batch #6 if you feel inclined as of the time of writing this].

Elijah Craig All Star Wine & Spirits Single Barrel #5

Barrel No.: 6071250
Age: 10 Years
Rickhouse: T
Floor: 4
Proof: 94 (47% A.B.V.)

Sight: Chestnut Oloroso Sherry – Slightly darker than their standard offering.

Smell: A significant amount of a vanilla and caramel sweetness lead off. Big touches of powdered sugar, peanut brittle, and maple come through. There’s more heat here than you might expect at 94 proof. There’s an underlying spice that compliments the sweetness here, giving good amounts of oak spice, cigar box, and cinnamon. A little hint of orange peel and apple comes through.

Sip: The sip starts off moderately, but immediately pulls through a good run of sweetness. There’s nice hits of caramel, oak, and a little bit of dark chocolate. The predominate nuttiness downgrades a little, turning more into a background note. That slight touch of apple or orange is still there. Overall, it’s pleasant, soft, and mildly assertive.

Savor: Sweet oak continues through out with nice amounts of caramel, touches of maple, and a little spice. It lingers pleasantly and softly.

Elijah Craig All Star Wine & Spirits Single Barrel #5 is well textured, decently layered, and subtly different than the standard offering. The flavors here are more bent toward fruit and nuts than the standard, but this makes it a little more fun to explore as it opens in the glass. The price difference being less than $10 makes this a nice option if you’re hoping to enjoy your Elijah Craig Small Batch neat.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan, it gives a nice medium body and plenty of flavor. There’s good spicing from the oak and bitters that help to lay the background for some caramel and chocolate notes. The subtle apple notes gain a cinnamon element and it has a bit of baked apple. As Manhattans go, it’s very nice and slightly autumnal.

In Review – Elijah Craig All Star Wine & Spirits Single Barrel #5

Elijah Craig All Star Wine & Spirits Single Barrel #5 was very good value at only $40. The age comes through in the neat pour, while it’s versatile for cocktails. These sort of bottles (single barrels that are from producers we recommend for beginning your bar) are bottles you should consider when stocking or restocking your bar to introduce both quality and variety. While not all of them will be like exactly like this bottle, it’s reasonable to go with confidence when selecting an Elijah Craig single barrel selection.

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof – C923

Posted on September 27, 2023 by Nick

We’ve highlighted before the idea that proof means flavor. Proof on it’s own isn’t doesn’t mean flavor though. While many factors are important to create the flavor profile of bourbon (mash bill, cask type, etc), perhaps few are so regarded as longer aging. So when the most recent Elijah Craig Barrel Proof – C923 – showed a 133 proof and a 13 year, 7 month age people became understandably excited. So does this combination of age and proof work out.

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof – C923

Proof: 133 (66.5% A.B.V.)
Age: 13 years, 7 months
Filtration: Non-Chill Filtered
Price (MSRP): $75

Sight: Auburn to Mahogany

Smell: To start, it’s 130+ proof, so just don’t stick your nose directly in it. There’s undeniable heat, but behind it are sweet layers of lacy caramel, spiced oak, vanilla, burnt marshmallow, sarsaparilla, and brown sugar. The vanilla in particular is fragrant and luscious, wrapping floral vanilla bean notes around the baking spices. There’s a bit of nuttiness in the background, and a bit of preserved cherry.

Sip: The body is rich and silky from the start, and the heat begins to build, but slower than the nose would suggest. The flavors gather steam, pulling in creme brulee like vanilla and burnt sugar. Caramel wraps around and builds elements of bing cherry. The oak then steps in with plenty of spice and almost a hint of candied orange. There’s a subtle brown sugar like sweetness, but it gives ways to a strong hazelnut note and perhaps some other nuts. A hint of char is present as well.

Savor: The ending carries forward a wonderful candied praline and layered with vanilla and almost latte like mellowed coffee and char. The spices linger in the background and lean toward a dessert like mocha. Somehow the finish almost feels creamy and coating. As it lingers, the tannins of the oak expand, give a velvet feeling as the flavors continue to linger.

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof – C923 is impressively balanced, sweet, complex and rich. The flavors are built on a dessert like sweetness but have a great reflection of the char and spice of the oak. Amazingly, despite the proof, it never really gets hot. The lingering finish is pretty, and carries forward the mix of oak and sweet in a balanced way. There’s a ton to love about sipping this, and it should only get better with time.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan Elijah Craig Barrel Proof is unsurprisingly aggressively and powerful. The notes of oak and perfumed vanilla take the lead here with burnt marshmallow, caramel, praline, and mocha leading the charge. The flavors are assertive and pleasant, but beg you to take notice. The ending has a lovely dark chocolate and concentrated brown sugar note with plenty of oak. There’s a nice luscious caramel drizzle and creamy note that occasionally comes through. Overall, this is a heavy handed Manhattan that will mostly apply to those who are a big fan of barrel proof whiskey offerings.

In Review – Elijah Craig Barrel Proof – C923

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof – C923 is delicious neat. There’s no getting around the fact that the team at Heaven Hill has produced a particularly good batch with a 13 year age statement. Without a doubt this whiskey will be showing up on several ‘top whiskey of the year’ lists As a result, this is a no brainer at MSRP ($75), and one that those who enjoy high proof, high age statements should hunt down. Unfortunately, as of the time of writing, the secondary market on this is asking for up to double that price. While it’s good, that’s a bitter swallow (approaching $150).

Those looking for cocktails are going to find this one a little harder to justify. While the flavors are delicious, there’s a lot going on here for the average drinker. Additionally, many cocktail elements may impact some of the neat nuances. Combining this with the proof, and you could also set some guests down a path to more consumption than plan. For all these reasons, this is a bottle that we definitely recommend, but more so for enjoying neat than making drinks.

Previous Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Reviews:

Elijah Craig B520

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof – Batch B520

Posted on February 1, 2023January 15, 2023 by Nick

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof was one of the first bourbons that captured my attention in a way that I felt the need to try to obtain a bottle of it. The reviews discussed soaring notes of caramels, brown sugar, toasty oak, and amazing desserts. They spoke as though the burn doesn’t exist, and that it tastes like dessert. It took me over a year to track down a bottle here in a Ohio, so did Elijah Craig Barrel Proof – Batch B520 live up to the hype that sent me down this bourbon rabbit hole?

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof – Batch B520

Sight: A solid tawny

Smell: The nose is massive out of the gate. It explodes with vanilla, spice, massive cherries, pepper, and tons of oak. Caramel drizzles through the whole thing and sweet notes of graham cracker and baked snickerdoodles come through. The nose has some heat to it, giving away it’s proof. The vanilla almost has a creaminess and hides a cigar box like note.

Sip: The start of the sip is full bodied with a little bit of sweetness. It opens with a quick disappearing of fruitiness, followed by caramel and vanilla bean, before spice finally begins to build. The flavors of bruleed sugar mix with cigar box and toasted oak. The spice continues to build moving to clove, dark chocolate, and cinnamon territory that head for touches of roasted or slightly burnt notes. Heat sneaks into the picture and some floral characteristics of ethanol flit around the edge with some dried cherries and freeze dried strawberry.

Savor: The end shows a pop of red fruit before it slides massively into oak and spice. The finish lingers with a cigar box / toasted tobacco element.

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof is a big, bruising puncher of a barrel proofer that delivers on flavor with a side of power. There’s some really amazing vanilla and caramel notes that come out of this bourbon. The spice and baked good notes are also impressive. All things consider, it’s powerful, a bit hot, and truly tasty. It has enough complexity to keep you coming back, but enough heat to remind you what it is.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan Elijah Craig Barrel Proof adds a richness to the body with plenty of the caramel and vanilla that make it since on it’s own. The spice becomes super charged, and leaves the fruitiness in the back seat. A truly interesting coffee and toasted marshmallow like note come out at the ending. The vermouth struggles to keep up here, and the bitters actually super charge the oak. While it’s does make a decent Manhattan, you can make a better Manhattan with a cheaper whiskey.

In Review – Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Batch B520

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Batch B520 is incredibly interesting on it’s own, but is a little aggressive for work in cocktails. The result is mostly as intended, a beautiful bourbon for drinking one neat. As such, the way we recommend you drink it is neat. If you feel the need for a higher proof bourbon to do some of the work, give

Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel

Posted on July 11, 2022July 14, 2022 by Nick

Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel is a relatively new product from Heaven Hill. Starting with Elijah Craig Small Batch, the bourbon is then finished again in a new specially toasted oak barrel. Similar to their Small Batch, there’s no aged statement here, and the site doesn’t suggest how long it’s in the barrel. The idea is that the new finishing step will add chocolate and baking spice flavors to compliment the oakiness. It also adds another $20 to the price, so does it justify the cost?

Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel

Sight: Burnished Chestnut / Sherry

Smell: The nose is an explosion of freshly made caramel, butterscotch, and stewed cherries. Confectioner sugar, fresh candy store fudge, and almonds follow things up. Traditional notes of oak and spice come through with some additional fresh red fruit and plum (albeit slightly heading toward fermenting). There’s a hint of heat to the nose as well, and a little bit of corn or grain.

Sip: The body is on the light to medium side. There’s a strong influence of oak that leads things off with vanilla and caramel notes. Spice and plum skin start to pick up with a bit of dried cherry. There are touches of butterscotch, more oak, cigar box, and almost a confectioner sugar / artificial vanillin. There’s a touch of heat, but the flavor profile isn’t overly clear or aggressive.

Savor: The ending hits on a deep undercurrent of oak, with flavors of charred oak giving way to vanilla and unripe cherries. There’s a touch of nutty toffee and a little heat. The char begins to lean bitter over time.

Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel packs a solid amount of oak into a turned up version of their standing offering. The result is something that gives the vanilla and oak a forefront, but doesn’t appear to give a lot of room to many other flavors. The result is a tasty bourbon with an extra step of finishing that doesn’t add a whole lot of extra complexity.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel brings a lot of oak and caramel to the party. The result is a spicy and caramel ladened sip with some peaks of red fruit, which is followed by a literal battering of oak. The oak is so strong it leads to bittering and tannic notes on the back end of the palate. Which is amazing, because Carpano Antica is one of the most aggressive vermouths on the market (to the point where some cocktail groups will even recommend avoiding it for certain bourbons). Elijah Craig Toasted just steamrolls it.

In Review – Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel

Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel is oaked. Really oaked. In the wine world, we’d complain when a wine was oaked to the point where the actual grape got lost in a mess of vanilla, wood notes, and caramel flavors. Toasted Barrel is fringing into this territory. If you happen to find the flavor of oak to be the thing you want to focus on, this is a potential winner for you. For everyone else, $55 plus territory is going to be expensive, chased after by bourbon lovers, and outshined by other more balanced bottles.

Elijah Craig Straight Rye

Posted on November 5, 2021October 1, 2021 by Nick

We’ve been a big fan of Elijah Craig’s Small Batch bourbon for a number of years. While it keeps tettering back and forth on our recommended bourbons list, we keep it there because the produce is incredibly well made for the price (even if the price creep is what keeps threatening to throw it off the list). Earlier this year, Heaven Hill committed to bringing a rye to the market under the Elijah Craig brand. Similar to Rittenhouse, Elijah Craig Straight Rye is a barely legal rye. This is surprising given Heaven Hill owns both brands, and only a small amount of supporting corn and malt separates the two. We previously also noted that Rittenhouse offers a great value, so should you give Elijah Craig the additional dollars?

Elijah Craig Straight Rye

Mashbill: 51% Rye – 35% Corn – 14% Barley
A.B.V.(%): 47% (94 Proof)
Age: No Age Statement (N.A.S.)

Sight: Tawny bordering on auburn.

Smell: There’s a heavy amount of herbal and minty elements that run parallel to a nice vanilla and spice mix. There’s a nice dried apricot and fresh plum note going on as well.

Sip: The herbal notes are definitely there giving it a black pepper and mint heavy character. Spice and black tea come out with an almost smoked character, similar to peat. Despite all the heavy elements going on, it’s not a very heavy mouthfeel.

Savor: The finish is leaned into campfire smoke and charred wood. Herbal notes run though the background over time with a bit a traditional bourbon sweetness.

Elijah Craig Straight Rye on its own is a smokey, herbal, and kind of bourbon like rye. Its nature is probably not for everyone, and not that inviting as a sipper. The result is also somewhat bitter, and oddly like licorice candies at the end of a meal. Both palate cleansing and somewhat off putting.

In Cocktails

In a Manhattan the spice of the rye is clearly forward. Notes of black pepper, banana, green apple, unripe black cherries, and cardamom all are present. An oversteeped black tea element and the tannic nature that goes with are around at the end. This flavor profile isn’t inherently smooth, but rather aggressive and bombastic.

In Review – Elijah Craig Straight Rye

Elijah Craig Straight Rye is uneven, aggressive, and a more savory set of flavors. Some of these flavors aren’t that weird in rye, such as herbal notes, but they get away from Elijah Craig here. In tasting side by side with Rittenhouse, the Rittenhouse displays more fruit, more caramelized sugars, and fewer burnt notes. The body is also more even. When you consider the Rittenhouse is $7 less per bottle, and comes in at a higher proof, then you end up with a hard sell on Elijah Craig Rye. For all these reasons, we don’t recommend you select Elijah Craig Rye over the cheaper, better Rittenhouse.

Elijah Craig Small Batch Bourbon

Posted on January 20, 2020 by Nick

When it comes to bourbon over the past year – there’s been no substitute on our bar for Elijah Craig Small Batch Bourbon. This no age statement bourbon delivers solid bourbon for a good price. In the mid-$20 price point, Elijah Craig Small Batch Bourbon comes from Heaven Hill Distillery. This same group also makes the wonderful Rittenhouse Rye we covered not to long ago.

Elijah Craig Small Batch has a nose of caramel, dried apricots, pecan, and oak. The palate is woodsy, but reveals baking spices, toffee nut, and more vanilla like oak. Just a hint of burn, a mild finish that layers out with oak, caramel, and spice. While it’s not unbelievably special, it also not unbelievably expensive – and delivers a solid bourbon to make a cocktail with.

So How Does Elijah Craig Small Batch Bourbon Play In Cocktails?

Elijah Craig Small Batch Bourbon shows up – bringing a nice healthy dose of toasted oak and spice box. The rye notes and hints of dried fruits emphasis well with other liqueurs. In a Manhattan, the rye notes and the spice notes in the sweet vermouth work well together, and give a nice bit of spice to the underlying vanilla and caramel flavors. Ultimately, it has a stronger presence than a softer whiskies – like the wheated Weller Special Reserve. This dominance can make it a bit more unruly when crafting new flavors – so balance of sweetness and acidity are more crucial, but the base canvas is pliable.

Final Thoughts

There are fewer and fewer bourbons sitting in the $20-$30 price point, and among them Elijah Craig is quite solid. If you’re looking for a bourbon that’s stereo typically bourbon-esque, then Elijah Craig will easily fit your home bar and serve as a work horse, even in a Glencairns glass or on a giant ice sphere.

Elijah Craig Small Batch Bourbon Raw Tasting Notes

Nose of caramel, dried apricots, pecan, oak, and minerality. Woodsy palate, oak, hints of cigar box, and baking spices. With water – it opens up revealing toffeenut, cinnamon, spice, and honey.

Distillery: Elijah Craig Distillery Co. – Kentucky

Website: Elijah Craig on Heaven Hill