WhistlePig Boss Hog IV “The Black Prince.”Whistlepig
It you want to sip the finest whiskey in the world, the name you’ll need to know is WhistlePig.
The Vermont distillery’s Boss Hog IV “The Black Prince” bottle was recently awarded the titles of “best in show whiskey” and “best rye whiskey” by the judges of the San Francisco World Spirits Competition.
The fourth edition of WhistlePig’s Boss Hog line — the brand’s premier, top-of-the-line offering — the Black Prince is a 100% rye whiskey bottled at cask strength (124 proof) and finished in Armagnac barrels. It was aged 14 years.
WhistlePig isn’t a distillery with a lot of history or pedigree. It was started in 2010 by former “Apprentice” contestant and failed congressional candidate Raj Bhakta, who opened the distillery at a 500-acre dairy farm in Vermont.
It has since become one of the most-awarded whiskey makers. Since WhistlePig is obviously not yet old enough to have 15- or 10-year aged whiskeys, it buys its spirits wholesale and finishes them with the help of oak cut from their Vermont farm.
The whiskey is not yet available for purchase, but when it is, it could be hard to come by because only 30 barrels are being produced. It will retail for $500 a bottle.