Company: Elijah Craig
Distillery: Heaven Hill Distillery
Region: Louisville, Kentucky
Aging: 18 Years
ABV: 45%
Proof: 90
Mash Bill: 78% Corn, 12% Malted Barley, 10% Rye
Non-Chill Filtered: No
MSRP Price: $150
Appearance: Dark Amber
Elijah Craig 18 Year Tasting Notes
Nose: Rich caramel, heavy toasted charred oak, vanilla, cinnamon, baking spice, crisp apple, citrus zest
Palate: Buttery caramel, heavily charred oak, light vanilla, cinnamon, brown sugar, baking spice, light apple notes, citrus, and a bit of rye spice and pepper
Finish: Medium finish that is extremely smooth and leaves you with a lasting caramel and oak flavor coating your entire mouth
Is Elijah Craig 18 Year an Approachable Whiskey?
Elijah Craig 18 Year is extremely easy to drink and goes down very smoothly.
Since this is one of the top-tier bottles Elijah Craig offers, I would certainly reserve this bottle to only drink on special occasions or with experienced whiskey drinkers.
Is Elijah Craig 18-Year Complex?
Elijah Craig 18 Year has a lot of layers of flavor.
It starts out with an extremely well-balanced nose full of rich caramel, heavy oak notes, light vanilla, cinnamon, baking spice, and a bit of fruit.
On each sip, you get big blasts of caramel and toasted oak which is what you would expect from a bourbon aged for 18 years.
But that’s not all this pour offers.
As I sat with it, I really started to pull out a lot of baking spice, cinnamon, brown sugar, and a good bit of fruit flavors that stuck around for a long while on the finish.
It also has subtle rye spice and pepper flavors on the finish that really round out the experience.
Oftentimes, I would assume that 18 years is too long to age a bourbon but this bottle really pulled through with a well-balanced and delicious flavor profile.
What are Elijah Craig 18 Year’s strongest attributes/flavors?
Elijah Craig 18 Years strongest attribute is most certainly the oak that’s infused into the whiskey from being aged for over 18 years.
Is Elijah Craig 18 Year a go-to whiskey?
If I could find this bottle regularly and could afford to drop $150+ on a bottle all the time, this would absolutely be a go-to whiskey for me.
I really love the flavors and could sip on this all day long.
However, with the rarity of the bottle, this is one that I reserve for special occasions.
Is Elijah Craig 18 Year priced accurately to its quality?
Elijah Craig 18 Year is a unique experience that I do this lives up to the price tag.
Many people don’t like a lot of oak on their bourbon and think that aging bourbon for 18 years is a bit excessive, but I really enjoy it.
Conclusion for Elijah Craig 18 Year
Of all the Elijah Craig bottles that I’ve opened and reviewed, this bottle is definitely my favorite that Elijah Craig has to offer.
While I really love the Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel and Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Batch A123, this bottle is the most refined and offers the most balanced pour from anything I have found with Elijah Craig so far.
Let Us Know What You Think
I hope you enjoyed this tasting experience with me.
If you decide to give this bottle a shot, please let me know on social media via Reddit, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.
Thanks for reading and cheers!
0 Comments