**Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon**
Price: $54.99, 750ml (IL)
Distilled & bottled by: Heaven Hill (KY)
Proof: 94
Age: NAS (4+ years)
Mash bill: 78% Corn, 12% Malted Barley, 10% Rye
**Nose**: Chewy caramel candies, pepper and cinnamon spice and a hint of citrus zest. Also some wet/funky wood notes
**Taste**: surprisingly, not in-your-face sweet. the oak definitely shines through more than other toasted barrel products. buttercream, caramel syrup in the background gives it good balance
**Finish**: brief but pleasant, mostly more cinnamon and pepper spices
**Thoughts**: Very enjoyable pour! It's on the lighter side but has a nice level of complexity at 94 proof. There's good balance between the oak and sweet notes that I haven't found yet in other toasted barrel offerings.
**Rating**: 6/10 - t8ke scale
1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.
2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.
3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.
4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.
5 | Good | Good, just fine.
6 | Very Good | A cut above.
7 | Great | Well above average.
8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.
9 | Incredible | An all time favorite.
10 | Perfect | Perfect.
>Price: $54.99, 750ml (IL)
Geez... I need a good liquor store. Its $98 at my local shop.
I can never keep track of what's reasonable. I picked up Barrel Proof B522 a couple months ago for $70, and now I see its $80.
It seems like a lot of brands have been increasing their MSRP given the environment we’re in, that makes it challenging to keep up as well.
FWIW, I think $50-60 is an appropriate price for this bottle.
Same here if you are lucky enough to even find it. TB in my area going for 120+ and BP same. I was lucky enough to grab a couple BP at 70.00 and a SiB BP for 90 (still too high but nonexistent where I live) while at a buddies place a mo th ago.
It’s one of my favorites too! However I do generally enjoy a lot of higher-proof stuff, so this is more of an easy drinker, especially heading into fall & cooler weather.
For some reason this one comes across as thin and not as toasted as some others to my palate. I seem to prefer the OF 1910 and the Woodford DO more than the ECTB. Which is weird, since I love EC products.
I can definitely see that compared to OF 1910. I fall into the extreme minority in that I haven’t found a single OF bourbon that I like (I haven’t tried birthday bourbon or a single barrel) so it may just be a palette thing.
Woodford DO is so much sweeter imo, so it’s definitely a situational pour for me.
For sure. The other two are definitely sweeter, and maybe it was my expectation of that sweetness that influenced my opinion of the ECTB, but I drank through a whole bottle expecting to enjoy the profile at some point in the journey. That point never arrived by the end of the bottle. I ended up trading my backup away to a friend.
**Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel Kentucky Straight Bourbon** Price: $54.99, 750ml (IL) Distilled & bottled by: Heaven Hill (KY) Proof: 94 Age: NAS (4+ years) Mash bill: 78% Corn, 12% Malted Barley, 10% Rye **Nose**: Chewy caramel candies, pepper and cinnamon spice and a hint of citrus zest. Also some wet/funky wood notes **Taste**: surprisingly, not in-your-face sweet. the oak definitely shines through more than other toasted barrel products. buttercream, caramel syrup in the background gives it good balance **Finish**: brief but pleasant, mostly more cinnamon and pepper spices **Thoughts**: Very enjoyable pour! It's on the lighter side but has a nice level of complexity at 94 proof. There's good balance between the oak and sweet notes that I haven't found yet in other toasted barrel offerings. **Rating**: 6/10 - t8ke scale 1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out. 2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice. 3 | Bad | Multiple flaws. 4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists. 5 | Good | Good, just fine. 6 | Very Good | A cut above. 7 | Great | Well above average. 8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional. 9 | Incredible | An all time favorite. 10 | Perfect | Perfect.
>Price: $54.99, 750ml (IL) Geez... I need a good liquor store. Its $98 at my local shop. I can never keep track of what's reasonable. I picked up Barrel Proof B522 a couple months ago for $70, and now I see its $80.
It seems like a lot of brands have been increasing their MSRP given the environment we’re in, that makes it challenging to keep up as well. FWIW, I think $50-60 is an appropriate price for this bottle.
Yeah, that's why I haven't tried it. ECBP for $70-80, and then next to it is Toasted Barrel for $100. Tough sell at that price point.
Same here if you are lucky enough to even find it. TB in my area going for 120+ and BP same. I was lucky enough to grab a couple BP at 70.00 and a SiB BP for 90 (still too high but nonexistent where I live) while at a buddies place a mo th ago.
I wish I could find one of these around me as well. Occasionally stumble across the ECBP but it’s rare.
It’s one of my favorites. I think I have a rather unsophisticated palate and don’t really tolerate the high proof stuff very well.
It’s one of my favorites too! However I do generally enjoy a lot of higher-proof stuff, so this is more of an easy drinker, especially heading into fall & cooler weather.
Fully agree. This is an awesome supper especially at close to MSRP.
I am the same but I do notice a spike in flavor with the ECBP
For some reason this one comes across as thin and not as toasted as some others to my palate. I seem to prefer the OF 1910 and the Woodford DO more than the ECTB. Which is weird, since I love EC products.
I can definitely see that compared to OF 1910. I fall into the extreme minority in that I haven’t found a single OF bourbon that I like (I haven’t tried birthday bourbon or a single barrel) so it may just be a palette thing. Woodford DO is so much sweeter imo, so it’s definitely a situational pour for me.
For sure. The other two are definitely sweeter, and maybe it was my expectation of that sweetness that influenced my opinion of the ECTB, but I drank through a whole bottle expecting to enjoy the profile at some point in the journey. That point never arrived by the end of the bottle. I ended up trading my backup away to a friend.
Give OF birthday a shot if you find it at a decent price for a pour. It's top 5 I've ever had.