High West is very hit-or-miss --- I actually don't like most of what they sell --- but I think they're pretty honest. Midwinter is probably in my top 5 American whiskies. (If you know something in the same style that's better, please correct me).
It's unfortunate that with US whiskey, you really need to know brands. You can tell people how to shop for Scotch with just descriptions --- you like smoke you buy an Islay single malt, you like character you buy something that says "first fill sherry cask". The US market is trickier.
And even more unfortunately, the most important advice you can give someone shopping for US whiskey is: ignore entirely the concept of "craft" whiskey. The very best US stuff isn't "craft".
There's a vaguely analogous problem with "craft" beer in the US.
Local brewpubs sell beer that is pretty good. The slightly larger breweries blow them out of the water when it comes to consistency and actually delivering a style.
I (usually) really like several of the beers that a local place brews. Bells or New Belgium are far more reliable.
Bells and New Belgium are commonly referred to as "craft" despite their volume. The stuff that definitely isn't craft is AB Inbev, Miller-Coors, and imported mass-produced beer.
It's unfortunate that with US whiskey, you really need to know brands. You can tell people how to shop for Scotch with just descriptions --- you like smoke you buy an Islay single malt, you like character you buy something that says "first fill sherry cask". The US market is trickier.
And even more unfortunately, the most important advice you can give someone shopping for US whiskey is: ignore entirely the concept of "craft" whiskey. The very best US stuff isn't "craft".