Elijah Craig 18 was one of those bottles I saw in the case that I was attracted to at the very beginning of my whiskey journey. It was only a matter of time until I got my hands on it. Trying the standard EC bourbon and rye and various batches of the ECBP only solidified my interest in this bottle. And here we are. Bottled: 9-27-22. Barrel 6133. Nose: Caramel, nougat, vanilla, and toffee. Almond and pecan. Some apple, dried apricot, golden raisin, and a blueberry/blue raspberry candy note. Parfait. Peach tea. Clementine, tangerine, and even a bit of lemon citrus. Honey and bubblegum. Espresso. Cocoa. Black tea, a touch of pipe smoke, newspaper, and a trace of sawdust. Loads of oak. Palate: Caramel, brown sugar, vanilla, toffee, and maple. Peach tea. Dried apricot and golden raisin. Apple cider. Cherry and even plum. Orange rind and tangerine/clementine. Bubblegum. More berry parfait. Almond, hazelnut, and pecan. White and black pepper combined with cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, allspice, and oak. Finish: Almond, hazelnut, and pecan. Gala apple, clementine/tangerine citrus. Caramel, vanilla, and brown sugar. Gala apple and cherry. Parfait. Black tea. Rye spice. Black pepper, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, allspice, and oak. Moderate length. This delivers to my expectations established all those years ago. It’s vibrant, delicious, and avoids the stigma of being “over-oaked,” which gives some older whiskies aged in hot climates a bad rap. Instead, the quality grain and the careful aging process shine. In fact, the profile is on the lighter side for bourbon—especially for Elijah Craig. It’s much more fruit forward and generally sweeter than the other EC offerings. At $200, I’ve got to say this was worth the price of entry. It’s a lot—for anything—but in the context of bourbons that are in this general age ballpark, this is a steal. This could’ve been a 5-star bourbon if the ABV were a bit higher, but this lands comfortably at a 4.5.