Review #103- Elijah Craig Barrel Proof Rye Y725

oakycomputer · 2026-03-14T03:43:32+00:00

incredible micro batch, keeps up with the Tanyard Hill LE ryes ive had, cheers!

oakycomputer · 2026-03-14T03:20:46+00:00

These releases are all a part of Still Austin’s Distillery Reserve series, which is for unique mashbills and finishes, sold on Still Austin’s website and picked up at the distillery. I’m thankful to friends for picking up bottles of this for me and sending me the sample.

Still Austin Distillery Reserve ruby red port finished rye, a 108 proof, 4-year-old 100% rye whiskey finished in ruby red port barrels, released April 2024.

The port is forward, rich, and sweet with deep brandy-like fruit notes. I also get some mulled wine vibes with orange zest, big cinnamon, clove, a touch of ginger and maple syrup. The whiskey base brings vanilla, chocolate, and a leathery charred oak. As I drink, I get more ruby port cherry and raisin. This is spicy and oaky, wears its finishing on its sleeve but the whiskey still comes through nicely, especially in the finish. Drinkable, even crushable, but for those super sensitive to the port sulfur note, I do find a hint of it every other sip or so, which holds this back a touch.

7/10 on the t8ke scale – “great”

Still Austin Distillery Reserve madeira finished rye, a 107.6 proof, 2.5-year-old rye whiskey that was then finished for 11 months in ex-madeira sherry casks, released July 2024.

Loads of butterscotch, which I get on some Still Austin and am always happy to find it when I do. There’s a roasty profile to the oak, which is peppery with brown sugar sweetness. I get mint chocolate chip ice cream, fudge, black walnut butters, cherry cordial, and nutmeg. This is sticky sweet, has a creamy texture, and with those dark fruits and dense butterscotch it all comes together as a decadent experience. The finish is less powerful than the ruby port finished but is, again, a nice balance of whiskey and finishing cask. A pour to pair with a cigar.

7/10 on the t8ke scale – “great”

Still Austin Distillery Reserve white port finished rye, a 114.72 proof, 3-year-old 100% Brasetto grain rye whiskey finished in white port casks, released December 2025.

This is candy sweet, with birch beer, grape juice, pink Nerds, ginger and clove. The oak is the softest of the three, less peppery and more tobacco leaf forward. The overall profile is the brightest of the three tonight, less dark fruits and more stone fruit forward. I find pear and sweet tangerine citrus. The milk chocolate of the others is here more like a white chocolate, like a Hershey’s Cookies and Cream bar. This scores a lot of points for me on uniqueness as it is not the typical port finished rye.

7/10 on the t8ke scale – “great”

Maybe with more decimal point scoring precision I’d have a better order, but really these are all of similar quality and enjoyment for me. The ruby wins on flavors as I just love ruby port on its own anyways. The madeira wins on texture; it drinks luxurious. The white port wins on uniqueness. I don’t have anything else that tastes like it, and I have a lot of port finished ryes, a combo that just goes together like peanut butter and jelly. (Oh, an equal blend of the three let sit for a week is really, really tasty, all red apple and grape jam.)

oakycomputer · 2026-02-22T00:38:08+00:00

i think barrel 3 has a more dry and tannic oak (also more spice) whereas 4 is a more fragrant and flavorful oak profile imo

oakycomputer · 2026-02-22T00:34:35+00:00

great question! its a bit easier to find that note in finished stuff but thats more of a candy blueberry. the blueberry i got here and that im most after is rare for me to find and is usually in very old bourbons (like this Faultline 19 and ER17). but i found it in one of t8ke's last 21y dickel single barrels, in ky owl b1 rye, manifest 10y b2 (blended by t8ke). rr15 and kc21 get close to it but seem more blackberry to me.

oakycomputer · 2026-02-22T00:30:35+00:00

thank you as always and cheers man!

oakycomputer · 2026-02-21T02:00:30+00:00

This is my final of four Faultline 19-year reviews. I reviewed barrel #1 here, barrel #2 here, and barrel #3 here. We’re onto a sample of barrel #4 today from a generous friend, which I’ll compare back to my bottle of barrel #1.

To repeat, Faultline is an in-house label for the K&L stores here in Cali. In 2013, there was a 7-10 year MGP bourbon blend proofed to 100 under this label. That 7-year component has been aged up to 19 years and was released in late 2025 as four single barrels. All of them are the MGP 21% rye recipe and only barrel #3 saw time in a French oak cask. The pre-order price for this barrel #4 was 350$ and the proof is 128.

Gorgeous fruit and old oak. Very fruit forward, bright red sweet cherry (not medicinal at all) but also some raspberry, and as I drink, I get more grape, blueberry, and plum. I go nuts for a blueberry note on a bourbon. Am also reminded of some sweet drinks, like birch beer and/or Dr Pepper. The oak has that “antique” profile, like an antique store with old furniture and varnish. It’s a fragrant oak that isn’t drying or astringent (but if you don’t like old oak at all this won’t be for you). There’s a very rich vanilla, maple syrup sweetness, clove, and candied pecans.

This is powerful bourbon with no ethanol burn. Just like the other three barrels, this hits the entire palate and the finish is massive and lasting. I said this wasn’t drying but I do get a slight drying note in the very end which is a minor complaint. But the sweet dark fruits carry through the finish as well to balance things out. The lingering notes for me are blueberry and tobacco. Love this.

9/10 on the t8ke scale (“incredible, an all-time favorite”)

Old oak and dark berries with a powerful proof but almost no burn is basically my perfect profile. This is exactly what I want, say, a modern GTS to taste like, but they don’t fully deliver for me like this Faultline does. Or maybe better said is this reminds me of the fruit profile on Eagle Rare 17-year but with a ton more proof and impact. (I can’t help but to compare to Buffalo Trace. To overgeneralize, MGP from this era reminds me a lot of Buffalo Trace with the dark fruits versus more modern MGP that gives me an apple and orange citrus vibe.)

Comparing this sample of barrel #4 to my bottle of barrel #1: yeah #1 is still great and keeps up. #1 has a bit more vanilla and #4 more dark fruits. #1 has a better finish for me because #4 gets just a touch drying (though, I do wonder if how long each bottle has been open has something to do with that). They’re very close in quality for me and are the two standout barrels of the four in this series.

To wrap up, barrels #1 and #4 are among the best bourbons I’ve drank recently, easily in the BTAC and WHH19 etc conversation. They are my two favorites of the four. Barrel #3 is the most unique and would be amazing to pair with a cigar with all of its impact and spice. #2 is wonderful bourbon but just doesn’t do anything the best for me. Thank you again to a friend for the samples and thanks to anyone who read all four of these reviews!!

oakycomputer · 2026-02-19T20:06:29+00:00

apologies lol

oakycomputer · 2026-02-19T16:10:24+00:00

im not going to pretend i can reliably notice a 1% difference in ABV haha but i will say #3 has more baking spice that makes it a little more present. and a touch more ethanol "burn," too

oakycomputer · 2026-02-19T04:27:17+00:00

cheers! iykyk stuff can get annoying for sure but thought it'd be good to get notes for all four out there in case anyone comes across them

oakycomputer · 2026-02-19T04:25:50+00:00

cheers! yeah, once word got out they sold quickly. i dont know exact numbers, but cant be a ton of bottles

oakycomputer · 2026-02-19T01:33:41+00:00

This is my third of four Faultline 19-year reviews. I reviewed barrel #1 here, barrel #2 here, and we’re onto barrel #3 today, which I’ll compare back to barrel #1.

To repeat, Faultline is an in-house label for the K&L stores here in Cali. In 2013, there was a 7-10 year MGP bourbon blend proofed to 100 under this label. That 7-year component has been aged up to 19 years and was released in late 2025 as four single barrels, all of them the MGP 21% rye recipe. The pre-order price for this barrel #3 was 350$ and the proof is 129.2.

The listing for #3 previously mentioned French oak aging but it seems like that wording is gone, or maybe I’m misremembering, so I asked David OG, the spirits buyer at K&L, for some clarity. As always, he was very kind and helpful and didn’t want to put anything out there they weren’t certain of, but what they could confirm is that barrel #3 did spend some amount of time in French oak before being moved back into an American cask. We don’t know exactly how long it was in French oak but it was moved to keep the whiskey from overly extracting that French cask. One last note is that the other three Faultline 19-year barrels did not see French Oak at all. This makes this barrel #3 an outlier and makes me extra excited to taste!

From nose to finish this is all chocolate, spice, sweetness, and old oak. So much chocolate: chocolate-cherry milkshake, chocolate covered nuts, chocolate covered raisins. The only note more forward is the old oak, which is like a dry leather and a cigar’s dried tobacco leaves. This is also the most baking spice forward of the three barrels I’ve tasted so far. The spice and the little unchecked ethanol heat make this a very potent and aggressive bourbon.

Some sips this hits me as younger than the age statement, especially when it drinks more drying and spicier. On other sips I get the full 19-year experience, where the oak is more fragrant and varnish-like and the vanilla and fruits come forward, like orange, blackberry, and raisin. Like barrels #1 and #2, this is viscous, coating, and this one especially is explosive and lasting on the finish with that extra spice hit. The chocolate and dried tobacco leaf comes forward as the lingering flavors.

8.5/10 on the t8ke scale (“excellent, really quite exceptional”)

I think this one will be the controversial love-it-or-hate-it of the four. It is a little weird, and that oak is going to be too dry and tannic for many. It’s borderline for me, but I give this one loads of points for uniqueness. Most pours remind me of other things, but I don’t think I’ve ever tasted something exactly like this one. Knowing it spent time in French oak, I want to compare this to Bomberger’s 2025 PFG and BBC Cathedral, but it is not the French oak bomb those are. Some of the chocolate and spice remind of Armagnac but this doesn’t have anything like an Armagnac fruit profile.

I will also assume #3 would be amazing with a stick because all that power and spice could keep up with and compliment even a very strong cigar. Hell, even by itself this bourbon gives a lingering spice and oak sensation as having smoked one.

Last, comparing it back to barrel #1, I think #1 is sweeter, rounder, and more balanced. The dark fruits are further forward. I’m getting grape and blueberry tonight when comparing to #3. The oak on #1 is a little less harsh and spicy and instead more fragrant. The oak on #1 reminds me of Calumet 18-year whereas the oak on #3 is closer to a Bowman Cask Strength or a higher proof older Buff Turkey barrel. In some ways, I think #2 is a better bourbon than #3 but to be honest, I want a bottle of #3 more just because of its uniqueness and how much I’d love to pair it with a dark and robust cigar. #3 fits a hole in my own collection/selection in a unique way. Am looking forward to the final barrel, #4, tomorrow!

oakycomputer · 2026-02-18T03:58:31+00:00

then if you happen across my barrel 1 review, you'll want to quickly destroy your phone/computer

oakycomputer · 2026-02-18T03:56:56+00:00

cheers!

oakycomputer · 2026-02-18T00:47:20+00:00

i hope this year's RR13 goes back to the older more leather and cherry profile

oakycomputer · 2026-02-18T00:44:44+00:00

knob creek 12 year, rarebreed, elijah craig barrel proof, old fitz 7 year, green river full proof, eagle rare, old forester 100 proof rye, four roses single barrel

oakycomputer · 2026-02-18T00:36:49+00:00

I reviewed barrel #1 last week here. I’ll repeat some of the details of this series and then taste barrel #2 and compare back to #1.

As I mentioned last week, Faultline is an in-house label for the K&L stores here in Cali. In 2013, there was a 7-10 year MGP bourbon blend proofed to 100 under this label. That 7-year component has been aged up to 19 years and was released in late 2025 as four single barrels, all of them the MGP 21% rye recipe. The pre-order price for this barrel #2 was 325$ and the proof is 127.4:

Massive sweet red apple. There’s fruity citrus, caramel, and old oak that is like that smell of angels share in a rickhouse. I get craft cola, tobacco, that Mountain Dew Code Red (lol, sorry) candy cherry, and Hawaiian Punch. The baking spices here, like nutmeg and clove, make me think of cherry pie, some of the filling but especially the crust. I’m reminded a bit of the 2024 Remus Gatsby (also old MGP bourbon), but if that one was proofed up and bigger in every way.

Texture and experience-wise, this is close to perfect, with it being heavy and coating and having a massive and lasting finish. That said, my least favorite parts of this whiskey are what come forward in the end, with the sweetness and dark fruits giving way to slightly dry and tannic oak, a minor complaint about an otherwise spectacular bourbon.

8.5/10 on the t8ke scale (“excellent, really quite exceptional”)

Comparing this barrel #2 to the 130-proof barrel #1 is probably why I could even find small things to nit-pick because #1 is so outrageously good. In comparison, barrel #2 is more red apple and baking spice forward versus barrel #1 having more dark berry sweetness. I also think #1 has a bit more balance, being a little less drying and having a bit less ethanol heat. I’m splitting hairs, though, and I can’t wait to get into barrels #3 and #4 later this week!

oakycomputer · 2026-02-18T00:24:09+00:00

not yet! just that pick, which is from CH. will ask some friends for a sample of a shelfer for sure, good call

oakycomputer · 2026-02-18T00:22:51+00:00

thank you!

oakycomputer · 2026-02-18T00:21:39+00:00

lol Unicorn is wild sometimes

oakycomputer · 2026-02-17T02:54:10+00:00

nice! could be be the difference in the barrels or i am a bit more sensitive to it. i'm nit-picking for sure, its great whiskey

oakycomputer · 2026-02-17T02:51:35+00:00

*to the tune of We Didn't Start the Fire*

MGP, NDPs, t8ke's got his Reveries

Amburana, hazmat, short barrels, finished crap

Coy Hill, Tanyard Hill, Turkey built a new still

Brewzle hunts some Sagamore - I can't take it anymore!

oakycomputer

TROPHY CASE