Review #: 14
Description: Elijah Craig Small Batch: Tippin’s Market Single Barrel
Spirit: Bourbon
Background: Elijah Craig is touted as the Father of Bourbon. While the origins of bourbon are scattered and several brands taking claim to it, I believe Craig is more related to the use of charred oak for again. Take these stories with a grain of salt, but I heard that Elijah Craig wanted to transport his whisky to be sold in other markets and wanted to send it down the Mississippi River to get to New Orleans. Barrels at the time were the best method for storing liquid, but also products like fish. These fish casks were the only thing available, so to remove the fish influence, the barrels were burned. The whiskey was dumped in, but then the charred insides added color and flavor to the whiskey that people enjoyed. Now, is this true? Who knows. But it seems to make sense and the stories and legends are another dimension to what makes whiskey so interesting. So now, let’s jump into how it tastes.
Distillery – Heaven Hill
Bottler – Heaven Hill
Brand – Elijah Craig
Selection – Tippin’s Market
ABV – 47%
Age – 10 Years
Nose – Nuttiness, corn, earthy, clove
Taste – Cinnamon, oak, tart apple
Finish – Cinnamon red hots fading to sweetness followed by some tannic oakiness
Score: 6
Would I buy a bottle? Yes
Thoughts: A really nice barrel picked by Tippin’s. This one brings a lot of cinnamon spice but also a good amount of oak. It was barreled in 2008 and purchased towards the middle of 2019, so I’m guessing it’s about 10 years old. I think it skirts the line of being too much spice and the oak not being balanced with it. For some it might be too much, for me it’s just on that line and very enjoyable. These EC picks are amazing value around $30. Make’s it easy to take a chance on a store you might not know and get a feel for what kind of barrels they like to pick.