I've been struggling with what whiskey post to do next, mostly thinking it would be another individual bottle. Then I realized I had several similar-tier high-proof Bourbons open and could knock out more than one at a time, in a sense. So, instead of writing up multiple individually, we'll look at them side by side. Efficiency in writing aside this is the best way to compare expressions and often the differences in quality, and in flavor, are more significant than you would've otherwise thought. And when that happens, choosing between them can become quite easy.
We (my wife and I) have done a few comps like this before, though previously they've been from the same company, see: Benriach 'The Tasting Collection' in 2023, A Johnny Walker Vertical in 2021 and Russell's Reserve 10 vs WT101 in 2020. This time it's three more premium Bourbons from three different brands. They have similar but not the exact same proofs and prices. It should be a fun and revealing experiment. The whiskeys are as follows:
(see here for review of an older batch, B518)
Distillery - Elijah Craig Distillery (Heaven Hill) in Bardstown, KY
ABV - 60.5% (121 proof)
Mash - 78% corn/10% rye/12% malted barley
Age - 12 years
Price - ~$75
Trend - These are lower in proof lately but more available and cheaper than in past
Distillery - (Bottled by) Lux Row Distillers in Bardstown, KY
ABV - 58.5% (117 proof)
Mash - Supposedly 78% corn/10% rye/12% malted barley (thinking face emoji)
Age - 7 years
Price - ~$80
Trend - I haven't seen this in a while and it looks like the price is way up
1792 Full Proof - Total Wine store pick
Distillery - Barton 1792 Distillery (Sazerac) in Bardstown, KY
ABV - 62.5% (125 proof)
Mash - Officially unknown (guessed to be 75% corn/15% rye/10% malted barley)
Age - No age statement (at one point announced at 8.5 years)
Price - ~$55
Trend - These aren't in stores all the time but can be found occasionally, look for stickers
A couple quick things before we dive in. It's funny these are all from the city of Bardstown, and there's no doubt it's the Bourbon capital of the world. Also, from the looks of it, my Old Ezra was sourced (they do have their own distillery now but my bottle is older) and according to my Googling their spirit came (comes?) from Heaven Hill. Considering it's the same mashbill the ECBP vs OE7 comparison is more interesting than I realized when starting this. Finally, considering the proofs here, we gotta be careful with this one. Small pours only.
Thoughts after sampling:
The Elijah Craig is a little rough around the edges but has fantastic flavor and richness. It's punchy, spicy and sweet. I continue to love these but I have to say it's a little less impressive than some older batches at higher proofs (>130!). My wife thought it tasted woody and liked the initial feel but didn't like the end, just too hot and harsh for her.
The Old Ezra is super easy to drink for the proof. That 'charcoal mellowing' (something done with Tennessee whiskey and others like Wild Turkey's Longbranch) certainly had an impact. It gives a lovely warming feeling on the way down, has solid depth of flavor and impressed me more than I expected in the comparison. My wife picked out some fruit/citrus and liked it a great deal.
The 1792 is fine. I didn't find it interesting enough for the heat, it's too much in this case. In the past we've thought the Full Proof tasted like banana bread and didn't get that this time. Maybe their quality is down? Maybe TW picks poorly? My wife thought it smelled bad and couldn't get past the heat at all.
I expected the Elijah Craig to be my favorite and the 1792 to be a solid value pick, but that's not exactly how it went. The Old Ezra made this tough. My ranking was ECBP>OE7>>1792FP, with the first two in a clear tier above. I like full flavor, and the burn, and it was always going to be a challenge to beat the ECBP. My wife had the OE7 first by a wide margin and I get it, it's stupidly smooth for a high proof and complex whiskey. In the end the 1792 wasn't in the same class, and perhaps it wasn't a fair comparison, but I wasn't going to know until we tried. I'm going to put that one away for a while.
My biggest takeaway is that the Old Ezra line is good stuff. I also have a Old Ezra 7 barrel strength Rye, which is exciting, and they have cheaper '99' (proof) versions widely available as well. Unfortunately the Bourbon tried here is relatively hard to find and that's driven its price up ($65 would probably be more appropriate). I'm also a little disheartened that the Elijah Craigs I see in stores are consistently lower in proof than they were a few years ago. While still very good those older ones were some of the best whiskey I've ever had and I won't say that about the newer ones. At least they've cleared ramped up production and I see it everywhere now, including what appear to be store pick ('Private Barrel') bottles. I haven't tried one of those yet and should.
For today, cheers! Now I want to do more of these. :)
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