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Elijah Craig 12 Year Old

Bourbon of yesteryears.

3 992

mReview by @masterj

24th Mar 2018

1

Elijah Craig 12 Year Old
  • Nose
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  • Taste
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  • Finish
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  • Balance
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  • Overall
    92

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Distribution of ratings for this: brand user

This is a bottle from my collection that I purchased years ago. The only reason I'm drinking it is because I noticed the fill level was decreasing, indicating the cork wasn't doing its job. Can you believe this was once $24.99? Good stuff.

Nose: A nice layered combination of oak, beer malt, herbal dill, cinnamon, sweet fruits (apricots and apples), and vanilla. There's some alcohol present but the smell is intense enough to not make it an issue.

Taste: Gentle arrival with bitter oak, dill, leather, and vanilla. It has a nice light velvety mouthfeel with a steady low temperature warmth that reminds me of some desert wine like a sauternes. It's well balanced. There are no off-putting or dominant flavors.

Finish: Here you can really taste the maltiness. Big fruity beer malt notes as well as a nice balance of leather, dill, and vanilla oak. The finish reminds me of some belgium ales such as a quad. Fruity, malty, herbal, oaky, goodness.

I have recently tried the NAS small batch and I have to say, it just doesn't compare to this. This is complex and interesting where as the NAS is just sweet and oaky, but not much else. I know for a fact this is still available in some European markets such as Germany, so don't hesitate to get one if you should come across some EC12.

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9 comments

@RianC
RianC commented

Nice review and one of my favourite bourbons. I have one in the stash as well and will go and check the fill level post haste!

6 years ago 0

@paddockjudge
paddockjudge commented

@masterj, thank you for a very nice review for a very nice bourbon! Some batches of EC 12 YO are spectacular and it appears that your reviewed bottle is from one of those spectacular batches.

I too had concerns about the fill level on a recently opened Elijah Craig 12 YO bottle. Down into the basement I went to fetch all of the EC bottles which I had recently bunkered. Upon examining the fill levels of eight bottles, I determined they were not losing liquid. The fill level on all of these bottles did not reach into the neck cavity. For me, this had created an impression of low fill. The bottles in my possession have been filled six years or less.

I have provided a pic of four bottles, two ECBP 12 YO and two of the formerly standard core offering EC 12 YO...I hope this helps. The levels on all four are similar. The last two bottles I have opened both have good fitting corks that continue to produce a "pop" when puled from the bottle...I have learned not to twist a cork when pulling the stopper from the bottle (not nearly as much fun)...a substandard cork or stopper will fail more easily when twisted...that's another topic worthy of discussion.

6 years ago 1Who liked this?

masterj commented

@paddockjudge All your bottles look fine. EC12 normal fill level is at the lower taper in the neck like the bottle that's the 2nd from the left in your pic. Usually the first sign your losing some content is a small void develops right at that point. See image below.

6 years ago 0

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@Nozinan
Nozinan commented

I find the volume stays relatively constant until first opening...then I fear a lot of evaporation will occur...

6 years ago 2Who liked this?

@paddockjudge
paddockjudge commented

@masterj, I see the void where the fill level recedes from the face, almost like an air bubble on the flat side.

6 years ago 0

@NamBeist
NamBeist commented

This is indeed a great bourbon. I was lucky to buy two of the EC 12 y. I gave 1as a present to a good friend. He is a fan of bourbon now. He did not like it before. Told him it is not for sale anymore in the Netherlands. It's a great pity .

6 years ago 1Who liked this?

masterj commented

@paddockjudge Yep that's it. Pains me to see it as I've found two other bottles of mine that have that including a BP version. I guess I'll be reviewing that sometime soon.

6 years ago 0

@paddockjudge
paddockjudge commented

@masterj, I'm hopeful your declining fill levels won't compromise the quality of the bourbon. I'm actually crying and blowing my nose.....because I knocked onto the floor a freshly ground container of black pepper, only about four ounces. I'll be drinking Talisker tonight, for sure!

6 years ago 0

@Nozinan
Nozinan commented

@paddockjudge You're supposed to grind the pepper, not the container. No wonder you're crying!

6 years ago 0