Updated May 20, 2018 By S.D. Peters Average Rating: B+ There’s not much that needs to be said about the Pepper brand nor it’s 3rd Generation heir, Col. James E. Pepper, that The Whiskey Reviewer hasn’t already said – or that can’t be found nicely summarized on the back of this Rye’s bottle. The Pepper brand is currently owned by ...

By S.D. Peters Rating: B- Firefly White Lightning Moonshine is crafted by the Firefly Distillery on Wadmalaw Island, SC, and, other than the professional label on the jar, has the look and feel of the sort of a illicit moonshine you might expect from a small, out-of-the-way place– which is to say it looks like moonshine, and comes in a ...

By Kurt Maitland Rating: B The supposed back story on John E. Fitzgerald is that he was a bonded treasury agent and one of only people legally allowed to carry the keys to the barrel storage warehouses. Rumor has it that Mr. Fitzgerald had a particularly discerning taste when it came to fine Bourbon, and would use the aforementioned warehouse ...

By S.D. Peters Rating: B+ There’s a certain predictability about white whiskeys that’s comforting. For those who enjoy getting it together in the country every once and a while, the pure grain flavor of most white whiskeys won’t disappoint, and a few may even surprise. Take LBL Moonshine, for example. This 100% unaged corn whiskey from the Silver Trail Distillery ...

By Richard Thomas Rating: C+ Scottish Leader is the blended scotch brand from Burn Stewart Distillers, a company perhaps best known for the Bunnahabhain single malts. As such, it is the work of Ian MacMillan, a 40-year veteran of the scotch industry who has served as Master Blender at Burn Stewart since 2002. MacMillan reportedly based the Scottish Leader blend ...