James E. Pepper Barrel Proof Kentucky Straight Bourbon

VITALS:

- $70

- 107.8 Proof

- NAS

- Batch No. 0034

- Kentucky

I have to admit, I haven't tried a whole lot from James E. Pepper, and what I have had has consisted strictly of their ryes.  I didn't have any significant recollection of what specifically I've had before, and I had to look up previous reviews to even recall that I had had them, which included the 1776 Straight Rye and an Old Pepper Rye Binny's Selection.  I was apparently a big fan of that Binny's pick, but it was an MGP rye. 

Why I decided to give this one a go, I'm not really certain.  Probably three things: (1) I'm a sucker for barrel proof bourbon; (2) I hadn't had much from this distillery (bonus points for being a Kentucky distillery); and (3) while it shouldn't influence my decision, I am a fan of the bottle design.  So, for $70, I decided to give this a go.

The nose was full of those traditional notes of vanilla and caramel, along with some cinnamon spice. But, what stood out most was how much cherry I also got on the nose. The cinnamon was also more forward than than the sweet components, and that mix of cherry and cinnamon was great.  It also had (fittingly) a bit of a Dr. Pepper note to it. While there is no way that was intentional, it made me really appreciate the coincidence.

Not unexpectedly, the palate was very cinnamon forward. This was definitely on the spicier end of the bourbon spectrum, as opposed to the sweeter end.  The decent amount of oak I got, in addition to showing a little bit of age, made sure that this stayed away from that sweet side.

Don't get me wrong, there was some sweetness.  Some of those cherry and cola notes from the nose came through.  I even got a touch of rich toffee and some semi-sweet chocolate. But it was never enough to consider this a "sweet" bourbon, as opposed to a "spicy" bourbon. Rather, these sweet notes were there more to complement the spice.

Unfortunately, I found myself wishing there were a bit more sweetness on the finish. Instead, this finished dry and slightly bitter.  I got a lot more oak on the finish, as well as a walnut note that added even more of a bitter component. All the sweet notes seemed to die away entirely, and even those cinnamon and cherry notes faded quite a bit.  

This started out as a fantastic bourbon, particularly for someone such as myself who prefers them on the more spicy side.  That was up until the finish, at which point it then really fell flat, leaving a significant dry and bitter note for me to reflect on.

Grade: B

James E. Pepper 1776 Straight Rye Whiskey

VITALS:
- $35
- 100 Proof
- 2 Years
- Region: Indiana (bottled in Kentucky)

This is one of those whiskeys that I've seen pretty regularly on the shelves, but frequently passed it over for no reason in particular. For a long time I knew little about it, and I guess that was reason enough. As someone who is a fan of MGP ryes, however, having happened upon a list of Non-Distilling Producers that are bottling MGP's product and seeing James E. Pepper 1776 Rye on the list, I then figured, what do I have to lose?

It's only a two-year rye, so my expectations going in weren't great, regardless of where it came from. On the nose I got a LOT of alcohol. It's not a super-high proofer, so that was quite off-putting, and it was pretty difficult to get past.

Once I was able to get past that alcohol smell, though, I was able to notice some distinct cherry and vanilla on the nose. Unfortunately, though, that alcohol smell made it very hard to enjoy what should otherwise have been some very pleasant aromas.

On the palate it had some harsh and rough edges. The cherry and vanilla flavors were there, even at times reminding me of a cherry Coca-Cola. The cherry was more dominant on the palate than on the nose, and it brought a significant sweetness to it, kind of like maraschino cherries.

There was a light, peppery spice on the back end to compliment that sweet, syrupy cherry flavor, but the finish was short and unremarkable. Any flavors I found myself enjoying seemed to disappear almost immediately.

On later pours I got some further notes that made this an interesting pour. Orange peel came through, giving some (not sure the word I'm looking for here . . . character? substance?) to the bitterness that I didn't really like at first. It sort of gave that bitterness a reason for being there, a purpose, rather than just being bitter for bitterness' sake.

In the end, though, this is a young, rough rye. It's interesting at times, but those times were fleeting, and ultimately those rough edges never seemed to smooth out. In the end it was a somewhat one dimensional pour, lacking any robustness or complexity. While I really enjoyed the unique, cherry cola flavor, it just wasn't enough for me.

Grade: C+