Elijah Craig 18 and Barrel proofs A120 & A125; Ep. 37

Daniel AI: Welcome to Bourbon Brass and Beyond. Tonight Dan and Bob crack open a new Elijah Craig 18, barrel-proof A120 and A125. Listen in to see which one takes the evening. Thanks for watching. Please like, subscribe, follow, and share. Please leave five stars, comment, and send us feedback. Don't forget we have swag at www.burbanbrassandbeyond.com.

Dan And Bob: Welcome back. Hi, how are you? Good, how are you? I'm doing good today. tonight we are doing Elijah Craig 18 single barrel. Looking to this one. This is of those randos that sneaks its way out here every once in You just recently got this one though, right? Saturday morning. Okay. Did you really? I didn't think you were getting one. Okay. Yeah. ⁓ Well, that's That's right. I did know this, but then it out. I don't want. two, three months ago in allocation season. Cause I got one a while back. So maybe it was late last year I got it. I couldn't have been, so was just, this was bottle 12-1-25. So it had to, this has to have been newer than the one I have. I guess I'll have to look at that one. And Elijah Craig just announced today they're coming out with a 15 year single barrel. So we'll see if that shows up in Ohio. I guess it's just getting released. Sometime in 2029. Yeah, by the time OHLQ lets it sit in the warehouse for six months. Listen, I going back and forth. had, which was the Eagle Rare 10 year that was the storage? Yeah, that one's crazy good. That was really good. So I guess I got to cut back the hate. mean, it is. Right. I it's to when you're run by the state and we are a big organization to keep people happy. You got a lot of. But it's a private public partnership. but it's also still listen, ⁓ easy. just throw stones at this, I think I always coming back to. Our availability isn't our selection, their of selection ain't that great, but our availability tends to be pretty darn good. I mean, you always hear all these guys talking about how Ohio is the land of weller. At the end of the day, we've been living high on the hog for a long time on some of this stuff. listen, I think when some of these come by, and again, this was out of allocation season too, because I mean, it's been pretty darn dry. So to see something like this come around, I think is a pretty darn good deal. Yeah. So. So I got up early in the morning to go get in line and nobody was there. Yeah. So I go in. And I asked, do you have the Elijah Craig 18? And he's like, oh no, that came in on Thursday. We put it out Thursday night and it was all gone. So that's why I got that Nashville Barrel Company. Well, I guess I'm not getting it. And I turn around and go walking out the store and there's the Elijah Craig 18 sitting in one behind one of the If it was a snake, it would have bit ya. Right. And I said, well, wait a second. Is this one for sale? He's like, oh, I didn't know that was back there. So I got this one and then they put another one back up in its place. I'm like. Hadn't known they had something somewhere. Yeah. that's nice. At you got one. Yeah. So I opened this one, try to get some the ethanol off. One is barrel 7737, 18 years old, 90 proof. Bottled 12, 1, 2025. It's also got a nice little tag. Yeah, fancy. I can't read. Get the readers. Yep, it's a single barrel. So. Hmm. I don't know if I would go with sweet on this one. This one's a little... I get a little bit of rye. Yeah. I definitely get the Elijah Craig. Yeah, well, yeah, that was yeah. which I do have a couple barrel proofs. Are they here or they downstairs? No, they're here. I've got an A120 and actually my nephew Noah brought over his, this is an A125. So I've got an A125 open and an A120 that's open. And the A120, I mean that's years old. It's even got a different. Sticker and and everything. ⁓ 136. It's a little hot. Yeah. Yeah, I think it's got its... I get a little fruit. I get a little fruit on it. much caramel. ⁓ Hmm. in do like the flavor on this one. ⁓ it's not as smooth as you would think for 90 proof Compared to like the other 90s. We've had this. ⁓ yeah, that's we yeah But think it is It's got a nice flavor on it. would say it's more... Like a pie crust flavor. All right. It's like the pie crust when all the filling, all the berry filling has been removed. There's just a little bit left on it. So you just get a little bit of the fruit. and mostly pie crust, is my favorite part, but. Wait, what, really? Yeah, ⁓ like that more than the filling. My grandma used to make homemade pie crust. yeah. With lard, not the butter, with the, yeah. Yeah. The right way, we're gonna call it. way. There's something on there that I can't quite pull out. I again I get some of that stone fruit. Little bit of pepper on the back. I that's what it is. But it's not overpowering. It's a nice little pepper. Just kind of tingles all along the tongue. I mean, at 90 proof it's an easy drink. mean... Yeah. is it ⁓ $177 bottle. ⁓ that's true. I forgot about that. Yeah, I don't know. I would say when you can go to up to 200 and get that double doll. ⁓ you know, it's like, listen, every time I come back here, I look at this thing. I need to just go get it. I know I've said this before. need to go. So sweet, caramely. It's literally like a Werther's in a jar. Yeah, I would say this is a nice bourbon. Yeah, I think it's on profile. think it is. I mean, it's good for, like, I think it's a very good representative sample. think that at 18 years, it's pretty darn mellow. think that 90 proof, it's really easy to drink. So, yeah. You get a little bit of the wood, you get a little bit of the oak. looking to see what else it might actually at 18 years. mean, we did that in Knob Creek 21. I mean, ⁓ not the same, but that good too. actually, well, was more expensive though too. Yeah. I would say that Jefferson's presidential select 16 year. Yeah, but that one's expensive too though, Like. Yeah. And we have a Jefferson's presidential select 18 year. Yeah. I mean, if we're to do 18 to 18, that's the right way to it. Right. Once that boy comes in. Yeah, that was that was a unicorn. Hello. Congratulations. So we had what we wanted to bid on it. I still think we got a decent enough deal. Yeah, because that's the old Stitzel Weller stuff. But it's the bottle Steph wanted. Yeah. Yeah, it really is. Yeah. It's easy when it's one your wife wants. Yeah. Perfect. ⁓ says it is her bottle. OK. So we'll get to try it for a podcast. But ⁓ can I a sample of that, please? Right. I love She has been, she's been like, you know, doing the nosing on all of the bottles. So yeah, I'm enjoying that. I think that becomes a question. Is this something I'd sign up to pay 180 bucks for? I mean, it fits a mold, right? $10 a year when it comes to aging? Yeah, it does. I would say... I'm glad I have it. Yeah. Oh, yeah. But I wouldn't. It's also one of those ones if you come across somebody who has who loves Elijah Craig. Right. Then it really does become top of the heap for them. Right. Now, I know they have a 21 year, 23 year. I don't know what. Those I don't think I've seen yet. So I know that gentleman from Canfield, Jimmy, he's got. But they're the old. Yeah. those ones. Yeah, they've been around forever. different, probably distilled different. You're back that far. Yeah, I know. ⁓ I don't it. It's just, I don't know if I love it. I think that's the, and you're right, when you compare this to Woodford, that double double oak is crazy compared to this. It's what I'm looking at. It's looking different from color. From. Yeah. The 2020 A120 and the 2025. ⁓ 2021 is much darker. Much darker. Yeah. Yeah, right. Tough to tell. Yeah. This looks darker to me. Maybe not. I'm say we... Give her a shot. Yeah, give me a little bit of a tweak. I will try not to do my normal pour. Careful now. I you just gotta commit. Just go. So this is the A125. It'll put a year on it, right? So the last two digits are the year. Oh, okay. The first number is the month. Okay. And the letter A, B, and C is the quarter. okay. Okay. So this is first quarter. 2020. Of 2020, bottled in January. Okay. these are exactly five years apart. Hmm. So now this the nose on this is much better than that. Yeah me Little sweeter a little more car is a little more sweet It's got a nice little, almost cherry. It's hot. mean, it's 136 proof. it's high proof though at that point. But that is pretty drinkable. That's really nice. I mean, going from 90 to that is a huge step up. This was 90? Yeah. Yeah. That's huge step up. But that's a... Yeah. The flavor on that is fantastic. Hmm. Go figure. Right? do you want to come in and try the 18? Yeah, I think this is, the proof is a lot on it, but. It's a warm one. It's almost hazmat. Yeah. But it's. Still, in terms of the nose and the flavor on it, I think it's pretty darn good. ⁓ I'll So I what the difference is for the 125. Goes back down 118 proof. ⁓ Right. Are we it? we're going to do it. I got you. That is like a syrupy. Yeah. That 120 is. Wow. Yeah. That Kentucky hug. Yeah, olden too. You're good. good waste. Boom. gonna taste like water at this point, right? Yeah, I'm not getting near as much fruit. Yeah. On the nose. That closer to the 18 in terms of the nose in my book. Yeah, but I think I get more of the oak and leather on the 18 than I do on this. The seams a little thinner. Yeah. or no? I'm no. Wow. Yeah, it's way bitey. bitey and like the flavor profile is ⁓ different. It's bright. It's like. Yeah, with like a. ⁓ starfruit or something. it's got something. It amazes me there could be that much difference in flavor. Yeah, between, I mean, with ultimately, mean, same but not. Right. mean, to your point, one's five years older than the other. I mean. And put both these bottles, it's not like they're a fresh crack. Yeah. If you go, this was 10 year. This one doesn't have a year on it, I guess, right? This one's labeled 10 year. Yeah, I don't know. Maybe, maybe this one's older. Nah, if it was older, they would have been age dating this. Although if you go back, this is pre-COVID at this point, right? That's 12 years old. Oh is it? Oh it's over here. Yeah it says 12 years old. Yep sure enough there you go. But I mean just the fruit difference. Yeah. And now I know there's a lot of people that have different ones that they like. Oh yeah this is one where people are hunting batches. Yeah so I've heard of people looking for the CA925, for the 525. I don't know if either of these are one of the sought after ones. I know that that A120 was the first one I bought. So that's six years ago. I think that's... I'm trying to remember why. or why or yeah. Yeah, I feel like this one's, I mean, again, we're going all over the place on proof, I guess, but. Yeah. I guess I'm surprised this one drags as hard as it does. I'm surprised more on the flavor. I mean, it does. I think this one tastes hotter than this one. Oh yeah, no, absolutely. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I agree with that. And it's only 118 proof versus the 136. Yeah. And to your point, it's been open, it's had time to air, it's been... mean, it's... Yeah. I don't know that I'm a... Go back to that one. Yeah. You just feel it. Yeah, she's a burner. Go home, kiss my kids goodnight. They're going to know. They're going to know. Exactly. Yeah. We get crazy up and down all over the place. Right. think so of the three, my favorite is going to be the 2020. Yeah. I think the 18 is pretty darn good compared. I mean, compared to this, I think this would. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So mean, if you're an Elijah Craig fan, take that 18 over barrel proof. Right, a sipper. Yeah, ⁓ yeah. But I just think that flavor, that flavor in that barrel proof 2020 is just fantastic. Yeah, no, I agree with that. ⁓ Even the proof. Hmm. ⁓ We'll Not the way I would have predicted it, right? Right. No. Here are. It's like wrestling, you never know. You never know. ⁓ It was good. was so good. So talked about it in a podcast before last that you were going to the wrestling. How did that end up? It was, we my seven old son, went with a neighbor, ⁓ we took both my And we took his daughter. think that we had, you it is as much fun as you would have expected. My son was eating it up. idea that, I mean, it was kind of like a, they had like a competition with a bunch of different tag team groups. It was, can't get over. These dudes are doing flips off top ropes, and I can't fathom like climbing to their top rope, let alone doing flips off and landing on somebody. ⁓ ⁓ think ⁓ son had a ⁓ Screaming he came home his throat was sore from just screaming and yelling so it was what I mean it was a good night I and we were out later than I would have chosen and what and my son's hungry by the time and he's like daddy I'm hungry. I'm like, what do you want? Am I seven year old like Taco Bell? So it was just funny it was a good night. Like I said, the kids had a blast I'm just impressed by those guys. That's what that's the that's the big takeaway. Yeah, and Our friend Curtis is still doing it. How old Curtis Curtis. Yeah, yeah, Curtis is I don't I don't know if I'm not gonna give it away but Curtis isn't all that much younger than any of us and I think that's the part like Imagine climbing to the top ropes and jumping on dudes doing backflips So in your last 10 years, let alone in the last 20. So I stopped competing in martial arts about four or five years ago. Okay. Because I was tired of getting hurt. Yeah. And not from getting hit. I was getting hurt from like coming down on my heels too hard. You know, like that type of hurt. your legs are all tingly and yeah. Yeah. Getting ⁓ heel ⁓ And the sad thing is, I had started very young, my dad and I started together, we competed up to the ranks, and I remember making fun of my dad for him complaining, like, oh, this hurts too much anymore. And he was like 35 at the time. So here I am, 43, now complaining, and... There's like a magic switch that happens at like 45 or 46. I think it was 46 for me. I'm like, yo, what just happened? Like things go sideways fast when you hit a certain point. I think this ends up being a good tasting though. I it's a good variety. I think we're a little low over the place. Could have planned a little bit better, but still, mean, I think you learn how to drink in the variety of them though, even still. Again, I never would have picked the highest proof one as something I would have searched out for. Yeah, as the sweetest. Yeah. That to me is the, taste-wise, is the best. think, yeah, it's nice. It's a good bottle. drinker. Yeah, again, I think we've done this where I think as Elijah Craig's go, that's a pretty darn good bottle. think maybe not my exact profile, but man, that yeah, it's nice. Well, that's That's it. Thanks for watching. It's going to be a busy week. Yeah. We'll keep everybody up. Yeah. Have a good night. Good night, everybody.