Whiskey Review: Elijah Craig Small Batch Bourbon

We’re revisiting one of the whiskeys that helped shape our entire podcast: Elijah Craig Small Batch Bourbon. It might not be the flashiest pour on the shelf, but for a long time, this was our benchmark: everything we tried in the $30–$40 range got measured against it. So today, we’re asking: does Elijah Craig still deserve that pedestal?

This Kentucky Straight Bourbon comes from Heaven Hill Distillery, with a mash bill of 78% corn, 10% rye, and 12% malted barley. It’s aged 8–12 years and bottled at 94 proof (47% ABV). With its #3 char barrels and lower rye content, it’s built to be approachable while still offering a depth of flavor. Let’s break it down.

This review is taken from our episode "Casablanca (1942) / Elijah Craig Small Batch Bourbon." Click the link to listen to this review in audio format.

Nose

Brad:
Dude, the nose is just like the platonic ideal of what you want from a bourbon. There is caramel. There’s brown sugar. There’s vanilla. For me, it gets a little bit nutty, a hint of banana kind of going on. But those are like the effervescent kind of extras you get. This is bourbon. This is everything you want out of a bourbon. I don't think it's like transcendentally great, but I think it's really good.
Score: 7.5/10

Bob:
It’s not like a transcendent nose, but it’s all the notes that people say they smell when they smell bourbon. So it is kind of like the quintessence of bourbon. It’s caramel, vanilla, tons of oak—but the oak presents as really spicy black pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg. I get a lot of maple on this. It’s just a damn good nose for a bourbon.
Score: 9/10

Taste

Bob:
There’s a ton of baking spice here, Brad. I will say it’s everything you want in a bourbon, but as I kick it to the back of my palate, there’s one little note—it was like pink bubblegum, but as it got to the back of my palate, it turned a little bit like aspartame-y. It has almost like an artificial sweetness to the back of the palate and into the finish. So I’ll ding it for that here.
Score: 7/10

Brad:
For me, the palate sat with a lot of burnt sugar. It got a little bit peanutty. The caramel and vanilla were there. It had like a sugary sweetness, like a frosting. And it had that oaky spiciness going on. It’s not wildly complex, but there’s a lot of flavor going on here that once again, I really like. It’s really solid.
Score: 7.5/10

Finish

Bob:
Since I dinged it for that note on the palate, I’ll come back up a little bit on the finish. Super warming—you feel it in your chest. That 94 proof is just high enough that you’re like, alright, this has a backbone. This would stand up really great in a cocktail. I think this would make a killer old-fashioned because there’s just enough of that burnt sugar flavor you were talking about and quite a bit of oak on this.
Score: 8.5/10

Brad:
I think this is oaky, peppery. The vanilla is the main sweet flavor that sticks around for me. Once again, I’m going to give it a 7.5/10. Like, I think this is a really solid example of what you should expect from a bourbon.

Balance

Bob:
We judge balance especially by how consistent it is across those first three categories. For me, I do think the taste dropped a little, but overall, this is still a really well-balanced whiskey—especially when you consider that this is the baseline offering and they’re cranking out thousands of barrels a year.
Score: 8/10

Brad:
I’m with you, man. The mixture of flavors is really beautiful. It’s peppery, but not overly oaked. It’s sweet, but not cloying.
Score: 8/10

Value

Bob:
This is $35. If it was $30, it’d be a 10. But even at $35, I think it’s damn good. I’d probably buy this before I bought Woodford, and I like Woodford a lot.
Score: 9/10

Brad:
I think I’m still a Woodford guy at the $35 price range. But this is an 8/10 on value. It just feels hard to find great whiskey in that $32–$36 range anymore. I’m all in on this.

Final Scores

Bob:
41.5/50
Honestly, I think I like this better than Elijah Craig Barrel Proof. Every once in a while, you just need a really good cocktail bourbon, and this is that for me.

Brad:
38.5/50
It’s a good score. This isn’t a 40+ whiskey for me, but I’d still recommend you go buy it.

Conclusion

Our average score comes out to 40/50, right on the line where we start making strong buy recommendations. For us, anything 35 or above is bar-worthy, while 40+ is a bottle buy. Elijah Craig Small Batch lands in rare territory—a classic bourbon experience that holds up incredibly well against its mid-shelf peers.

Whether you're a new whiskey drinker or a seasoned collector looking for a reliable pour, this one continues to earn its spot on the shelf.