NOSE:

ECTB smells warm and inviting. While sweetness dominates the nose, I do get a trace of roasted corn and drying grain along with faint spices of powdered ginger, white pepper and rye. But sweet vanilla infused toasted graham stands out along with candy notes of Milky Way nougat and vanilla taffy. And there’s more — I also get butterscotch and sweet, buttery brown sugar syrup drizzled over toasted pecans. However the woody aromas are faint, simple and gentle even though ‘Toasted Barrel’ is emblazoned the label.

PALATE:

The first sip of ECTB is warm and easy to hold. I sense an herbalness of roasting corn and a few dark dried figs. Spices of dark cinnamon, cloves, and rye are faint as are sweet notes of bittersweet chocolate, some light vanilla, buttery brown sugar and a hint of honeycomb. But now comes the wood, first in the form of bitter hazelnuts, then with plenty of heavy, old oak and toasted barrel char. There’s also some earthy leather here too.

Balance, Body, Feel and Look:
As I hold ECTB on my palate while taking notes, my salivary glands go into overdrive making the liquid buttery and quite viscous. While the aromas are more sweet, the flavors are more woody … but the blended combination works. After each sip, a heavy sheet clings to the inside of the glass before breaking into fat legs transporting the whiskey back to the deep burnt amber colored pool. The only trace left behind by the sip is a ringed crown with just a few drops.

FINISH:

Elijah Craig Toasted Barrel has a warm medium-long finish. There is a bit of lingering roasted corn and grain mixed with dark fig, cloves and rye but other than a hint of dark molasses, the sweetness sensed on the nose and palate is all but gone. The finish is heavy old oak and char forward, but in no way harsh as a bit of leather fades away. And when the last dram is gone, dried oak plywood sawdust and buttered popcorn drifts from the empty Glencairn.