Pretty good for a bourbon. Nice nose, pretty soft, somehow not very exciting. But put Jim & Jack loose in the bag.

Nose: Corn, slightly adhesive, ripe apricot, orange oil, vanilla, honey, roasted aromas, light floral notes on the rim
Taste: oily, spicy, syrupy, pleasant sweetness, vanilla, powerful with noticeable but round alcohol notes, tart, resinous oak, sawdust, dry finish

Pleasantly sweet

Legend has it that the Reverend Elijah Craig, a local pastor from Virginia, is the ‘father of the bourbon’. He is said to have built his distillery in 1789. Today, this bourbon is distilled at Heaven Hill. This 12 Year Old is the best known of the brand. A 12 years old bourbon is rather exceptional, actually. Most bourbons spend less years in a cask.

Quite some fruit (caramelized oranges and fresh apples), caramel and a touch of oak. Brown sugar and vanilla join early. A hint of leather. The whole is well integrated. Nice nose.

Good body with an early spiciness. Black pepper and cinnamon. Then the fruit kicks in. Pleasantly sweet. Toasted oak gives it some depth. Caramel turns into butterscotch.

The finish is rather short with mostly the oak and spices that linger. It leaves the mouth dry.

Those 12 years of maturation have made this nicely round, if you know what I mean. In that sense, this is value for money.

PS. This is no longer available in the States. It was replaced by a NAS version.

Nose: sweet spice, classic bourbon, little sour, smells rather nicely. liquorish. Hint of black pepper.

Taste: Little pepper, vanilla, oak, fudge, 5 spice. Coriander (minced), caramel.

Body: rather full-bodied for a bourbon.

Finish: Some spices, wood, vanilla and caramel-cream.

Price: very reasonable for a 12yo american one.

Presentation: Very nice stopper and I personally like the bottle. For the rest there is not much of the marketing blablabla, so all good to me!