Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Batch A117
63.5% ABV
$60 (original retail)
Website
What the Distillery Says
To sip Barrel Proof is to experience Bourbon in its purest form: uncut, straight from the barrel, and without chill filtering. Each bottle is hand labeled with its unique proof and batch number; but the nose, taste, and finish are pure Elijah Craig.
UNDERSTANDING THE LABEL
Each batch of Barrel Proof is bottled with a unique age statement, including the month and year of the youngest barrel from the batch. The proof also varies with each release.
The batch number on the label provides specific information about each batch. The first letter indicates the order of the release for that year, starting with “A.” The first number represents the month of the release. The third and fourth digits indicate the year.
TASTING NOTES (not batch specific)
Color: Deep amber
Aroma: Caramel with toasted oak, fruit notes of apple and orange
Taste: Rich vanilla, caramel, and butterscotch along with spices of black pepper & cinnamon at the back of the palate
Finish: Nicely layered showcasing all flavors, fades slowly then lingers as it cools
What Gary Says
Nose: Salted caramel, cocoa, charred oak, vanilla, brown sugar, citrus zest with oak spices.
Palate: Caramel, cinnamon, vanilla, cracked pepper, oak, black cherries, a hint of sassafras and cloves.
Finish: Moderate in length, drying with pepper spice, caramel and tobacco.
Comments: I’ve long been a fan of Elijah Craig Barrel Proof since before it’s original retail release in 2013 (if you’re wondering how that’s possible, chat up a member of the Georgia Bourbon Society about their ‘amnesia barrel’, which was a 15 year old single barrel at 64% ABV – picked prior to the first retail release). While there have absolutely been some batches that appealed to my tastes more than others, I don’t recall ever having purchased one that I thought wasn’t at least good. This is a fine representation of the label. A splash of water brought out more chocolate on the nose along with graham cracker, and on the palate more of a chocolate donut with maple cream frosting. Back in the day, for 12 year age stated barrel proof bourbon, it was hard to beat!