By S.D. Peters It could be the Pennsylvania blood in my veins or a taste for the less popular that made a Rye drinker of me.  American Rye whiskey, that is.  But really, if I’m going by taste, then it’s the distinctly dry, spicy qualities that drew me to this often overlooked style of American whiskey. Or, I should say, ...

By Richard Thomas When our review of Grant’s Family Reserve was posted on Grant’s official Facebook fan page, one of the comments received mocked us for labeling Grant’s as “whiskey.” This is because Grant’s label reads “Grant’s Blended Scotch Whisky,” and this website defaults to spelling it as whiskey all of the time, and to some whiskey lovers a lot ...

By Richard Thomas I’m sometimes surprised by how little so many lovers of whiskey know about distillation until they make their first visit to a distillery. Until that visit, distillation is an almost magical liquor-making process involving almost medieval equipment and ancient techniques. Distillation is an ancient process, but there is nothing magical about it. Instead, distillation is the science ...

Bourbon Whiskey Under American federal law, bourbon must be made from a grain recipe with at least 51% corn and distilled to a strength not greater than 80% alcohol. The latter is at least ten points weaker than what is allowed in Canada, Ireland or Scotland. It must be then aged in new, charred oak barrels and bottled at a ...

Updated December 12, 2014 The Whiskey Reviewer rejects the typical “100” numerical rating system, because it is flawed, misleading and often abused. No matter what particular method is used for the 100 scoring system, only the top quarter of the spectrum or so is really used to rate the drink in question. For example, Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate bottoms out ...