Category: Bourbon Whiskey

Hannah’s Elijah Craig Small Batch Private Barrel 2019 Idaho State Liquor Division Batch #1 Review

Original review written February 29, 2020

GENERAL DESCRIPTION:

Elijah Craig Small Batch 2019 Idaho Batch #1 Review: You may recognize that you’re drinking Heaven’s Hill’s Elijah Craig, but you’ll know that you’ve got something a bit more special and complex than the standard Small Batch offering. 89/100

VITALS:

– Made In: Louisville, Kentucky, USA
– Distiller: Heaven Hill Distillery
– Classification: Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey; Small Batch; State Private Barrel Select
– Age: 9 yrs.
– Mash Bill: Corn=78%; Rye=10%; Malted Barley=12%
– Casks: Char #3
– Barrel Entry Proof: 125
– ABV: 47% (94 proof)
– Non-Chill Filtered
– Barrel Serial Number: 5682075*
– Warehouse: Q-5 (HH main)
– Price: $29.95 USD in Idaho
*Barrel 5682075 was purchased by the Idaho State Liquor Division for exclusive release to state patrons. As a result, availability is highly limited.

Visit heavenhill.com for more information

ENJOYMENT METHOD:

I enjoyed the juice neat from a Glencairn glass with father and fellow Whiskey for the Ages reviewer, Brian. For comparison methods, I also sipped the standard Elijah Craig Small Batch neat from a whiskey tumbler. I will make brief notes of comparison in this Idaho Private Barrel review.

Check out Brian’s review for this bourbon here!

SETTING:

I’d love to perch on a ridge, looking down in a crisp and green valley, grasses and trees swaying with a soft summer wind. The crystal blue skies match all of the vibrant greens in the valley and in the uprising slopes beyond. This pour is nature in a whiskey: complex, wild, and ever-surprising.

Photo by Zach Taiji on Unsplash

NOSE:

There is alcohol here, yes, but there is a floral component that is quite strong as well. With it are dark fruits, likely a stone fruit, but I can’t distinguish it further. There is allspice, heavier on the cinnamon perhaps, but it isn’t aggressive. I find a deep vanilla essence too, which makes for a pleasant balance. This couples with an equally dark brown sugar. I also can sense some pecans and seasoned oak. Overall, it has a robust character that is both warm and inviting.

– Compared to Elijah Craig Small Batch (ECSB): Batch #1 is much deeper than its standard sibling, with a larger brown sugar element.

PALATE:

– Mouth Feel: Oily with a pleasant, tingly texture.
– Balance: Batch #1 is very complex; there is fruit, but earthy tones certainly dominate.
– Visual: Mahogany with Henna notes, there are thick legs that droop from a weak crown, but they drip quickly. (Note that ECSB is lighter in color.)

Elijah Craig Batch #1 (left); Standard Elijah Craig Small Batch (ECSB) (right)

– Taste: Not too alcohol forward, the fruit and flowers remain the most predominant flavors. While I feel like there are dark fruits, the vibe of this bourbon is remarkably light and fresh. I get a pinch of black pepper and some rye heat that eventually gives way to a cherry and apple flavored pastry, drizzled with some simple sugar frosting that isn’t overpowering the fruit at all.

The character also opens up here too, coming across earthier than it was on the nose, as I can taste a little bit of leather out of the glass along with a little bit of grass at the end of the sip.

The nuts have disappeared, but the oak seems stronger in the palate than in the nose, constituting a decent base for this bourbon.

A Kentucky chew keeps the sip smooth with a slight tingle. Dried cherries come out here, which mix with the leather, grass, and a dusty, earthy soil. Very complex and entertaining.

– Compared to ECSB: Batch #1 is far more complex and textured on the palate as well than the standard ECSB, with heavier spices and earthy richness being the most notable difference.

FINISH:

– Lasting Power: Short to medium. You know you’ve had a sip of bourbon, but you’ll forget pretty quickly.
– Between Sips: Grass and cherries stick around a bit between sips, but the natural subtlety of the grass soon mellows the cherries (and itself) into nothingness.

– No More: Without needing to get very far in the glass, the aforementioned fruits and pastry elements all but disappear, leaving grassy grains, leather (very aged/worn) and dusty soil to steal the stage. The cherries sneak in and out though, which keeps things interesting.

The empty Glencairn is a light oak that is only strong on a very deep inhales. Either way, I’m very pleased.

– Compared to ECSB: I actually think the standard ECSB outmatches Batch #1 in the finish, as ESCB persists with a greater sense of cherry flavors and more warmth.

WORTH THE PRICE?

I think I prefer Batch #1 to standard ECSB, but with both priced at just $30, you cannot go wrong with either of them.

RATING: 89/100

Click to see Hannah’s rating process

Click 89/100 to access other whiskies with this rating.
To access other whiskies from this brand, click Elijah Craig.

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Brian’s Elijah Craig Small Batch Private Barrel – Idaho State Liquor Division Batch 1 – 2019 Review

29-February-2020

GENERAL DESCRIPTION:

Elijah Craig Small Batch Private Barrel – Idaho State Liquor Division Batch 1 – 2019 (ECSB PB – ID SLD B1) is a wonderful pour. If this was representative of all Elijah Craig expressions, it would be a highly sought after. It is so much more the every day Elijah Craig Small Batch. Recommendation: When a “Private Barrel” or “Store Pick” is found, take it home.

ELIJAH CRAIG SMALL BATCH BARREL SELECT 2019 IDAHO STATE LIQUOR DIVISION BATCH #1 WHISKEY INFORMATION:

– Category: Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
– Type: Small Batch
– Region: Louisville, Kentucky, USA
– Distiller: Heaven Hill
– Mash Bill: Corn: 78%; Rye: 10%; Barley: 12%
– Barrel Char: #3
– Barrel Serial Number: 5682075
– Barrel Entry Proof: 125 proof
– Warehouse: Q-5 (HH Main)
– Age: 9 Years Old
– Non-chill filtered
– ABV: 47 (94 Proof)
– Bar code: 096749000067
– Price: $29.95
– Availability: Highly limited release.

Learn more at https://heavenhill.com/

On occasion, certain barrels aged in Heaven Hill’s Bardstown, KY, USA rickhouses destined to become Elijah Craig Small Batch bourbon outshine others. When this happens, privileged vendors are given the opportunity to purchase the entire contents of these special casks. The privately selected barrels are dumped, bottled in personalized packaging and delivered to the purchasers account (along with the actual emptied barrel) for distribution.

Cask 5682075 was one of these barrels. Offered for sale by Heaven Hill, it was purchased by the Idaho State Liquor Division for exclusive release to its patrons in State Liquor Division sponsored release events.

ENJOYMENT METHOD:

For the evaluation, I shared the juice neat from Glencairn glasses with my daughter and fellow Whiskey for the Ages reviewer Hannah.

Check out her review for this bourbon here!

NOTE: For comparison, a small pour of readily available Elijah Craig Small Batch was used as a control spirit just to see how this privately selected barrel measures up.

NOSE:

When brought to the nose, ECSB PB – ID SLD B1 nips with a slightly strong alcohol presence. More nosing brings dusty corn and fruits of fresh caramel apple, yellow and red gourmet raisins and freshly dried prunes. Spices of nutmeg, allspice and rye blend nicely with rich vanilla, and sweets of caramel corn, brown sugar, caramel, and chocolate toffeed pecans. This is a deep and earthy bourbon with a nice leatheriness which mixes well with the dry oak of a hazy, toasted barrel.

PALATE:

At 94 proof ECSB PB – ID SLD B1 has a bit more of a bite and a little more burn than I expected. But after a few sips the warming juice offers plenty of roasted corn and a just a bit of grassiness. There is an element of dark sweet stone fruit which comes across as sweet prune fruit leather. Spices of ginger, black pepper and rye blend well with graham crackers, chocolate chips and rich vanilla. But these sweets play backseat to its more prominent brown sugar caramel and chocolate toffee with crushed pecans. When the liquid is held in the mouth, an earthy leatheriness blends with dry seasoned oakiness and sweet smoke.

Balance, Body, Feel and Look:
ECSB PB – ID SLD B1 is buttery smooth, pleasant and yet has a nice tickle to remind you it’s bourbon. It is well balanced and in the Glencairn its well defined inverted crown gives way to long clinging legs which return the juice back into the Mahogany and Henna colored pool. This private barrel has many of the same aromas and flavors as Elijah Craig Small Batch but all are much richer an deeper. This would have made an amazing Barrel Proof offering.

FINISH:

Elijah Craig Small Batch Private Barrel – B1 selected by the Idaho State Liquor Division finishes long and warm as its aromas and flavors fade in and out. Memories of dusty corn hide in hints of grassiness while traces of cinnamon, black pepper and rye give way to its caramel sweetness. This is an earthy bourbon with just enough smokey barrel char, dry oak and plenty of depth as it fades away.

MY RATING: 89/100

Will I seek out this whiskey in the future? Yes
_{Click to read Brian’s scoring process.}

Click 89/100 to access other whiskies with this score.
To access other whiskies from this brand, click Elijah Craig.

WHISKEY TRAITS AND FLAVOR NOTES AND PROFILE GRAPH:

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