By Richard Thomas Rating: C- Rebel Yell has gone through plenty of changes between its 1936 introduction* as a Stitzel-Weller bourbon and its present ownership by Luxco, reflected both by what is inside the bottle and in the appearance of the bottle itself. The brand began life as a small circulation release focusing mostly on Southern customers, but by the ...
Read More »C
I.W. Harper Bourbon Review
Updated May 12, 2016 By Kurt Maitland Average Rating: C+ The Harper brand was launched in 1879 by the famous Bernheim Brothers, Isaac and Bernard, the pair who are the same Bernheims as the Heaven Hill distillery and release. It was named after Isaac who was the president of the company. “I. W.” were his first two initials, but perhaps ...
Read More »Passport Scotch Review
By Richard Thomas Rating: C- Passport is a familiar sight on supermarket liquor store shelves, especially in Europe and certain South American countries. Being a cheap blended scotch from Pernod Ricard, I have come to think of it as kind of a sub-Chivas Regal. The blend and brand date back to the 1960s. When it comes to cheapo whiskeys of ...
Read More »Jim Beam Green Label Bourbon Review
AKA Jim Beam Choice By Richard Thomas Rating: C+ I sometimes find Jim Beam Choice, or “Green Label,” mistakenly referred to as Jim Beam does Jack Daniel’s because of the charcoal filtration. That extra step isn’t the same thing as the Lincoln County Process, which relies on sugar maple charcoal specifically and is done before the whiskey goes into the ...
Read More »Fary Lochan Vinter Scotch Review
By Richard Thomas Rating: C- Danish distillery Fary Lochan releases its whiskies in small, three-digit batches named for the seasons, hence “Forar” or Spring Batch 1. “Vinter” is a more obvious translation into English, and the Winter Batch 1 was a 663-bottle run of 54% abv Danish whisky. The Whisky I think perhaps the reason they named this winter has ...
Read More »