Whistle Pig

Rye Whiskey

Written by Brian Donnelly, CSS, WSET III

Distillery Location: Shoreham, Vermont

Establish: 2008

Master Distiller: David Pickerell (deceased November 1, 2018)

Chief Blender: Pete Lynch

Fun Fact: Whistle Pig is another name for a groundhog.

History
In 2007, an eccentric entrepreneur named Raj Bhakta bought a 500-acre farm in rural Vermont, complete with pigs, sheep, goats, horses, and 20 acres of maple trees. The following year he decided to enter the craft distilling world when Robert Sherman of Vendome Copper© introduced Raj to former Maker’s Mark master distiller David Pickerell. The duo shared a passion for Rye Whiskey, and both saw the potential in creating an ultra-premium rye whiskey. When scouting for an initial stock of whiskey, Dave discovered and purchased an incredible amount of 10-year-old whisky, at an undisclosed distillery in Canada, that was, unfortunately, being misunderused for blending. One thing that was unusual about this whisky was that it was made from 100% rye, rather than a high proportion of rye, and the rest made up from corn and malted barley. The whisky was transported back to the Whistle Pig farm in Vermont for bottling.

The distillery is located in a 150-year-old renovated dairy barn on the farm. First opened in 2015, the copper pot stills are operational seven days a week. The Farm has an aquifer that runs under the property, and the distillery taps into this aquifer as the whiskey’s water source.

Rye is a problematic grain and is often used to balance the sweet flavor profiles of corn dominated mash bills. Younger rye whiskeys can be sharp or bitter, but much like a great Bordeaux wine, older rye whiskeys can develop greater depth and complexity than corn, wheat, or malted barley. Whistle Pig continues to innovate and experiment with sourcing, distilling, blending, and finishing.

Whistle Pig Piggyback

Founded in 2018, Dave Pickerell wanted to create a Whistle Pig expression that would be a more affordable option for cocktails. This whiskey is sourced from the same warehouse in Alberta, Canada, that Dave found his first batch of 10 year old whisky back in 2008.

• Matured 6 years

• 100% Rye

96.56 Proof (48.28% ABV)

Whistle Pig Farmstock Rye Crop No. 003

Farmstock Rye is a limited edition annual release, that changes every year. No. 003 is the third release, comprised of three different whiskies, one distilled at the Whistle Pig farm in Vermont, and two sourced from Alberta, Canada. This is the first year that the majority of the blend comes from Whistle Pig’s estate distilled whiskey. This product has been proofed with Whistle Pig’s particular water source, and matured in their custom Vermont White Oak. Whistle Pig calls this combination of in-house distillation, proofing, and maturing their Triple Terroir Whiskey™.

• 3 year old rye whiskey distilled at the Whistle Pig farm in VT (52%)

• 6 year old whisky soured from Alberta, Cananda (31%)

• 10 year old whisky sourced from Alberta, Canada (17%)

86 Proof (43% ABV)

Whistle Pig 10 Year

Matured 10 years, sourced from Alberta, Canada, and matured in new American oak.This whisky is inspired by that original stock of blending whisky, that David Pickerell found in Canada in 2008.

100 Proof (50% ABV)

Whistle Pig 12 Year - Old World Cask Finish Rye

This Rye Whisky is sourced from MGP in Indiana, and has been matured 12 years in New American Oak, and cask finished in Port (7%), French Sauternes (30%), and Madeira (63%).

86 Proof (43% ABV)

Whistle Pig 15 Year - Estate Oak Rye

This Rye Whisky is matured 15 years in new American Oak, then is cask finished for 1 to 3 years in Vermont Estate Oak, harvested directly from the Whistle Pig Farm.

What Makes Vermont Oak Special?

Vermont Oak is different than the rest, which makes for a better whiskey.

For most of the history of whiskey, new White Oak was Federally-Mandated standard, with even Scotland and Ireland importing wood to make their barrels. The barrel wood and construction give Whiskey it’s color and help impart wood notes from the swatch of complex plant compounds naturally occurring in trees.

Fast forward to today, and distilleries experiment: French oak staves, maple, and Garryan oak can be found, but we select only from locally sourced Vermont Oak, which is then sent to American Stave Co. to produce our barrels.

Shorter growing seasons, caused by cold winters in Vermont encourage oak trees to grow hardier, and their rings form tighter. When made into staves certain flavors are pulled from the wood. The distillery enhance the natural flavors of Rye through a very particular “micromanaged” process, and staying true to “Our Grain. Our Wood. Our Water.”

92 Proof (46% ABV)

Whistle Pig 18 Year - Double Malt Rye

This whisky is sourced from Alberta, Canada, and has been matured 18 years in new American Oak.

Mash Bill: 79% Rye, 15% Malted Rye, and 6% Malted Barley

92 Proof (46% ABV)

The Boss Hog VI 六 - The Samurai Scientist

The purpose of Boss Hog is to push the boundaries of rye whisky’s potential. The Boss Hog Edition 六 is the first American Whiskey finished using Japanese Umeshu, the result of a true collaboration between WhistlePig and Kitaya brewery on Japan’s Kyushu island. This expression was created using using koji fermentation, and each bottle is topped with The Samurai Scientist, Jokichi Takamine, who pioneered koji fermentation in the American whisky industry over a century ago.

• Single Barrel

• Finish in Umeshu Barrels

120 – 122 Barrel Proof (50% - 61% ABV)

The Boss Hog VII Magellan’s Atlantic

This expression is the newest limited release from Whistle Pig and the seventh edition of their seasonal Boss Hog series. This single-barrel straight rye whiskey was aged 17 years before being double cask finished in first New Spanish Oak, then New South American Teakwood barrels. The unique use of both Spanish and South American Oak commemorates the voyage of Ferdinand Magellan, who sailed from Spain to South American in 1519 before circumnavigating the globe. The Spanish Oak from the Cantabrian Mountains in Northern Spain is uniquely proud and high in tannins, making it a rare and challenging cask. South American Teakwood (also known as Amburana) is soft and aromatic, imbuing roasted nut, allspice, and cinnamon notes. The pewter stopper that tops the bottle features Magellan as a pig in traditional Spanish dress, bravely taking up his sails and an explorer’s staff at the outset of his journey. Each edition of The Boss Hog is crowned with a bespoke pewter stopper, designed and made by hand by Danforth Pewter in Middlebury, Vermont, just 11 miles from the Whistle Pig Farm.

105.10 – 1076.80 Barrel Proof (52.6% – 53.99% ABV)

The contents, statements, and thoughts expressed on this site are purely my own and do not officially represent the opinions of any supplier, brand, or distillery. All brand names are the official copy right of their respective parent company, and I do not own the right to any of the included brands on this website. Any mistakes made on this website are purely my own.

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