Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Batch B516 Proof 139.4

A little background

Elijah Craig Barrel Proof is a product from Heaven Hill Distillery. Named after the founder of bourbon, Reverend Elijah Craig, this whiskey packs a 12 year age statement and is bottled at barrel proof without chill filtration. Three batches are put out every year, and this particular one is the second batch for 2016. Taking a closer look at the name B516, the “B” denotes that it is the second batch of the year, “5” is the month that it was released in (May), and “16” signifies the year it was released in. This bottling sits at an amazing 139.4 proof, and had a retail price of around $65.

(Tasted neat from a Halo Glass)

Color

Dark Mahogany

Nose

The nose is complex and absolutely incredible. It is filled with dark notes of oiled leather, tobacco, bourbon-soaked cherries, and German chocolate cake. Even after letting it sit for a few minutes, there is still a pretty noticeable, yet not overpowering, ethanol burn on the nose. Upon a heavier nosing, notes of cherry cola and oak spice are gathered. I can already tell that the palate is going to be humongous!

Palate

The palate is equally as impressive as the nose. The palate is thick, and contains amazing amounts of flavor. I immediately have the entire palate coated by dark chocolate cake, wet leather, dark tobacco, oak spice, cocktail cherries, and cherry cola. The flavors are extremely robust, pushed forward by the intense proof. It leaves absolutely nothing to be desired, cowering every single aspect of what a bourbon should.

Finish

The finish is very long, and carries over just about every flavor that the palate contained. The flavors stick to every single aspect of the palate, including the roof of the mouth. I can wait several minutes in between sips and be perfect satisfied. I believe that the lack of chill filtration assists in this greatly, and I am glad that Heaven Hill has continued to do this with the new releases.

In closing

Wow. I am absolutely stunned. Elijah Craig Barrel Batch B516 is an amazing whiskey, one of the best I have ever been lucky enough to try. Everything about it is impressive, from nose to finish. Writing this review took about 4x as long as it normally takes me, as there was so much to dig into and dissect. I really wish I had been able to snag one of these bottles when they were being sold in stores! This makes me very excited to try other “old label ECBP” releases in the future.