If you listen to the experts, the good old days of drinking are over. By this I don't mean some “Mad Men” era of American history where you could get shithoused at work four days out of the week and have nobody bat an eye. No, I'm referring to the days when the aisles were filled with well-aged spirits at prices everybody could afford.
About twenty years ago, the market for brown liquor wasn't nearly what it is now. The mixology craze hadn't taken root, there wasn't a push to target younger or female demographics with whiskey, the Chinese market wasn't really a thing, and in general fewer people had a taste for the stuff. As a case in point: think about your dad. If he did drink whiskey back then, did he drink good whiskey, or did he just get a handle of the same shit over and over again?
Honest to god, I'm glad more people are discovering fine spirits. Here and internationally! But the other side of that coin is that with every year that goes by, there’s less of the good stuff to allocate to an ever-widening population, and we can't magically will aged whiskey into existence.
Elijah Craig hit a snag about a half decade ago when they saw the writing on the wall. The “Small Batch” carried a 12-year age statement and was $20. To offer that product in perpetuity was impossible. Something had to give—either the aging needed to be less, the price had to increase, or some combination of the two.
“The Elijah Craig Small Batch isn’t the most sophisticated or transformative bourbon, but there’s a level of consistency and sophistication that’s a goddamn bargain in a $20 whiskey.”
Elijah Craig chose to keep the price where it was at and drop the 12 year age statement. The decision attracted the ire of the entire bourbon internet at that time. I'll admit that this was largely the reason why I had never sought it out: while nobody trashed the new formulation, it seemed that people were grousing that the brand had lost its way, the bean counters had won, or simply that the new stuff wasn't as good.
Flash forward to the waning months of 2020. I picked up a bottle of the Elijah Craig SB on a whim and found it to be particularly complimentary with the Balcones Bourbon I talked about recently. Where the Balcones pushed the envelope, the Elijah Craig was more traditional. While the Balcones was aggressive, the EC was gentle. Going back and forth between the two, I was struck by the clear difference between the old and new approaches to bourbon, and while both had some flaws, I was blown away by both being at the $20 price point.
Elijah Craig Small Batch might have been better at some point in the past when it was aged for at least 12 years. Maybe. I can only judge what’s in front of me, and so I have no frame of reference to validate that claim. It's possible I might actually prefer this new stuff given my experiences with bourbon I'd consider over-aged.
So today, in the opening weeks of 2021, I'd say you get a bargain with the EC:SB. I really appreciated a soft, sweet arrival that opened into some unexpected depth. It starts off with a good chocolate-and-vanilla approach, but quickly puts down some additional structure by way of cinnamon, star anise, and tobacco. There's some good Kentucky chewiness to the spirit, with the secondary grain made up of barley, and then an extra bit of rye added in as well. This isn't as spicy or rye heavy as something like Wild Turkey 101 or Old Grand Dad Bonded, respectively (both good choices, by the way), but just well balanced and enjoyable.
On the finish, the Elijah Craig builds on its pedigree with a sweet finish that's big on licorice and chestnuts. It's not the most sophisticated or transformative twist, but I appreciate that there's consistency between how things start and how things end, with some slow-building evolution of the sweetness and wood spice.
And let's get back to brass tacks: all of that is a goddamned bargain at $20. I could pick nits and say that in comparison to bourbons costing four times as much, there's some thinness to the mouthfeel and a little bit of a rubbery quality on the development that could probably be eliminated with more barrel time. But again: twenty bucks. This is batting well above its weight class.
It's also interesting to note what happened with the brands that went in the other direction—that is, those that decided to increase price while keeping the age number exactly where it was. W.L. Weller 12, long considered something of an “other brand” of whiskey, kept the age statement. Because of some combination of that decision and getting cast as a budget Pappy Van Winkle, it's now about a hundred dollars a bottle. No thanks.
All said and done, I always appreciate being able to (a) source a good bottle anywhere in the continental United States, and especially one that (b) I'm not afraid to talk up and walk a newcomer through a tasting at (c) a price that's really, absolutely fair. That holy trinity is as wonderful as it is rare. By all means, try this stuff if you haven't. Even if you don't love it, you've only shelled out what a large pizza would cost.
