James E. Pepper 4 Year Old Rye (Caskers Exclusive)

Elijah Pepper began distilling whiskey at the dawn of the American Revolution and during the War of 1812, he built the first log cabin distillery in Versailles, Kentucky. Eventually, he passed the family business on to his son, Oscar, and then on to his grandson, James E. Pepper.Colonel James E. Pepper was one of Kentuckys first Bourbon aristocrats he raced thoroughbreds in the Kentucky Derby, traveled in a private rail car and made famous the Old Fashioned cocktail. "Pepper Whisky is an old fashioned whisky, made in the old time way from a formula used for more than 100 years by three generations of the Pepper family," wrote James, in an advertisement dated August 22, 1887. "We claim not only to make the oldest but absolutely the purest and best brand of whisky made in America, and we invite comparison with any whisky of any age."In 1958, after the whiskey industry fell on hard times, the James E. Pepper Distillery was forced to close its doors. During its tenure, Pepper Whiskey, or "Old 1776 Whiskey" as it became known as, was a favorite of Presidents Andrew Jackson and Ulysses S. Grant, and was preferred by Daniel Webster, a leading American statesman and senator from Massachusetts.Today the re-launched brand is back in full force. "We did extensive research and spent years collecting and analyzing full, preserved bottles of original Pepper Whiskey," says Amir Peay. They even acquired a letter written by Pepper himself, detailing the exact mash bill and recipe used to create Old 1776. "We wanted to pay homage to Peppers legacy and do our best to recreate the original Pepper Whiskey something that was part of American history," he says.This super-limited bottle comes from the Old Pepper Single Barrel selections of their very favorite barrels of straight whiskey. This particular liquid spent 4 years in its new oak barrel before being selected by Caskers and bottled by hand at 107 proof right there at distillery no. 5 in Lexington. Complex and full-bodied, this rye is a rare chance that shouldnt be missed.Get one of these strictly-limited bottles today!