James E. Pepper Distillery

The Pepper family brand of whiskey is an iconic Kentucky whiskey brand initially produced during the American Revolution and continuing through 1967. In the late 1960s the bourbon industry hit hard times, and both the brand and distillery in Lexington were abandoned for over half a century. In 2008 the brand was relaunched by whiskey entrepreneur Amir Peay. A decade-long campaign of thorough historical research and collection of historic materials was used to retell this iconic American whiskey brand's lost story and distill new stocks of "Pepper" whiskey. After a multi-year construction effort, the historic James E. Pepper Distillery—which after fifty years of neglect, had fallen into a terrible state of disrepair—was completely rebuilt and restored. In December 2017, the distillery again began distilling whiskey using the same historic recipe as when it shut down in 1967.