It has long been thought that the Reverend Elijah Craig, of Georgetown, Ky, produce the first batch of what, on June 14, 1789?
Elijah Craig (bourbon) age statement from the Small Batch label and switch to a composite of 8- and 12-year-old bourbon to extend their stocks. The new labeling of Elijah Craig Small Batch debuted shortly thereafter without an age statement. The company also increased the maximum number of barrels dumped per batch for the Small Batch expression from 100 to 200 barrels. On September 29, 2016, Heaven Hill announced a redesign of the Elijah Craig Small Batch and Small Batch Barrel Proof offerings. The Elijah Craig Small Batch (94 proof, 47% ABV) offering is the only Elijah Craig release available for private barrel selection.
Elijah Craig (bourbon) Since 2013, there have been three releases of Elijah Craig Small Batch Barrel Proof annually for a total of 17 releases as of May 2018. Starting with release #13 and the redesign of the Elijah Craig Small Batch Barrel Proof and Small Batch labels, batch numbers were included on the Barrel Proof label to specify the batch release order, month, and year. A single barrel variant of Elijah Craig is currently available in 18- and 23-year old bottlings. Heaven Hill has offered a single barrel version of Elijah Craig carrying 20, 21, and 22 year old age statements as well.