Elijah Craig 12 year 3 month old Barrel Proof (Batch A925)

At Heaven Hill, and indeed across the modern Kentucky whiskey landscape, rye has taken a back seat to bourbon. Heaven Hill's Elijah Craig, which debuted with a bourbon in 1986, didn't add a rye until more than three decades later. And it wasn't until this past September that Elijah Craig's barrel proof expression finally got a rye sibling. Now, in its first year on the market, Elijah Craig Barrel Proof rye is our 2025 Whisky of the Year. Readers may recall that Elijah Craig Barrel Proof bourbon was our Whisky of the Year in 2017. Unlike its bourbon counterpart, which was bottled at 62.1% ABV, this barrel proof rye is at just 54%. And with a mashbill comprised of 51% rye—the so-called "Kentucky style"—it's also no spice bomb. Yet it's a whiskey with a big, robust profile; a beautifully mature rye, aged just over 12 years, intensely flavored and with plenty of heat and spicy complexity. An inviting nose offers dark fruit, rye spice, and aged oak. The palate has dark flavors of licorice, chocolate, and stewed fruits, melding with lighter sweet notes of French toast and sweet lemon, all sprinkled with cinnamon, clove, and generous rye spice. The finish shows great integration of sweetness and spice, vanilla with prickly pepper, cinnamon, and ginger, all balanced superbly against the aged oak. Like Elijah Craig Barrel Proof bourbon, this one will be released in batches, three times a year: in January, May, and September, labeled as Batches A, B, and C. This whiskey is Batch A925 because it's the inaugural release from September 2025, but starting next year we'll see them labeled in that order. Whether at full proof, in a cocktail, or with ice, this whiskey is a delightfully enjoyable ride—and at a very reasonable price of $75.