EIt sounds crazy, but the evening starts with a gin. And with Marion and Chris Pepper, that actually feels like sacrilege. Finally, the two and their “Mr. Pepper’s” is all about whisky. Or whisky. Depending on what you prefer. But in any case, it’s always about grain distillates that mature in wooden barrels to become fine spirits – to put it very simply. Juniper schnapps is not actually part of the core of the brand. But for one thing, the two of them put the Glendalough Rose Gin on their happy hour menu as an aperitif, and for another, this slightly pink-colored brandy, which we are served with some lemon, simple syrup, soda and dried rose petals, at least comes from one Irish whiskey distillery.
The Peppers are an institution in the whiskey scene. Not primarily because of the shop that they have been running in Darmstadt since 2007 with a steadily growing range of whiskeys from all over the world, but above all because of their “whisky chef” program. Chris Pepper isn’t just English, he’s also a chef – yes, there really is a combination. In addition to tastings and rehearsals, he and his wife have also offered whiskey-themed dinner evenings and cooking classes in their specialist shop from the very beginning. “We don’t cook with whiskey, we cook with whiskey,” says Marion Pepper. And they soon had so much success with it that in 2018 they expanded their store to the restaurant “Mr. Pepper’s”.