Elijah Craig Small Batch Review And Tasting Notes Of The Best Bourbon Under 50 Euros
The Elijah Craig small batch Bourbon whiskey is a great distillate, soft, spicy, and full of butterscotch, but it has the great advantage of always remaining fiery and straight.
It is not soggy, it does not wink with a soft and buttery softness, but rather it hits hard and, at the same time, caresses it with a warm and enveloping complexity.
The alcohol content is 47 degrees, so it is not exactly light. Pepper and mint tingle on the palate, but pleasantly and overall, it is sinuous and velvety. The drinkability is at its best. It tickles and soothes as only bourbon can do.
How is it produced?
The wash blend contains a good dose of rye, the percentage is not declared, but the clear scents and flavors of pepper, after-eight, and mint speak for themselves. The blend includes two drams (8 and 12-year-old), obviously aged in charred American white oak barrels.
Organoleptic characteristics
The bouquet is sculpted in spices, dripping with butter and vanilla mixed with nutmeg and oranges in an incessant succession of sumptuous suggestions. Mint and pepper to give thickness, cut a fleshy fruit transversely, but immersed in caramel, sandalwood, withered flowers, and the more balsamic and woody tones of cedar. Overall it is very expressive and never too stylized: it offers a stimulating variety.
On the palate, it is rightly smoked. Spicy notes of cinnamon, pepper, and mint emerge from the fruit of citrus jam to give breath and rhythm. Overall, the flavor of the wood is well dosed and does not take away the articulation and thrust of the whiskey. On the contrary, it exalts it, adding a more severe layer to a thousand flavors of cream and toffee. The finish has a smoky and marzipan touch.
Price
40-44 euros: an honest price for a precise, rich bourbon that never expires in repetition and redundant softness. This small-batch version has successfully replaced the 12-year-old, making the whiskey less complex and slightly rougher without taking away bombast from the sip. It is a bourbon with an incredible value for money in this price range.
Food Pairings
Smoked meat dishes such as ribs with BBQ sauce or brisket, spoon desserts, cakes, and chocolate, trifle, chocolate, salmon terrines, brisket and pulled pork, salami of chocolate, apple pie, tiramisu, creme brùlée.
What cocktails to make with Elijah Craig small batch Bourbon whiskey
Drunk neat, obviously without ice, it is fabulous. Add a dash of pure water to bring out the most delicate floral scents, and you will see that it will bloom like a Kentucky field in spring. For the great classics, it is excellent, but certainly a little expensive: Boulevardier, Old Fashioned, Irish Coffee, Mint Julep, Sazerac, Godfather, Rusty Nail, Rob Roy, Old Pal, Manhattan, Brooklyn, Toronto, Penicillin.