Taste Test: WhistlePig’s Solid (But Not Spectacular) New Boss Hog Rye Is Still as Unusual as Ever

Jonah Flicker
·4 min read

WhistlePig’s annual Boss Hog release keeps getting weirder and weirder, but ultimately that’s a good thing for people who are interested in whiskey innovation. The cask finish on this high-priced, instant collector’s item rye whiskey changes from year to year, and the 2022 edition might just be the most unusual yet.

A few years ago, I might have said the same thing about WhistlePig’s Boss Hog VII: Magellan’s Atlantic, which was finished in Spanish oak and South American teakwood. Two years later, Boss Hog IX: Siren’s Song has arrived, a single-barrel, sourced rye whiskey that brings that previous oddity to mind as far as flavor, and it both confounds and satisfies. The whiskey represents a journey from Canada (where it was distilled) to Vermont (where the WhistlePig farm and distillery is located) to Greece (which inspired the cask finishes employed). That last step is quite unusual—the whiskey was finished in barrels seasoned with Greek fig nectar and Tentura, a Greek-style liqueur that was made onsite, for one week each.

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According to head blender Meghan Ireland and head of whiskey development Liz Rhoades, the Greek nectar used to season a barrel was similar to a concentrate, a non-barrel-aged syrup made from Greek figs. They came up with the Tentura recipe based on studying that tradition in its homeland. “This included making our own ‘Farm-ily’ recipe—hence ‘farm-scratch,'” the two told Robb Report. “Keeping with the theme, we used a combo of both Grecian and local ingredients—for example Tsipouro (a Greek brandy as a nod to Greece) and Vermontian honey for our Tentura. We considered how each finish would interact, complement and glorify the rye whiskey.”

But no matter the story and maturation methods, it all comes down to the taste, and this whiskey teeters towards losing its intrinsic rye whiskey character but thankfully stops just short. Is this an everyday sipper? Certainly not, but it’s a fascinating whiskey just the same. On the nose, there are big notes of baked cinnamon rolls, incense, sweet vanilla and nutmeg. The palate explodes with sweet honey, nectar, fig syrup, vanilla custard and loads and loads of baking spices. There’s nutmeg, cardamom, cinnamon, allspice, et al. throughout every sip. Finally, the rye character pops through on the finish with black pepper and dried fruit, some oak and plum.

This is a bold, brash and borderline beautiful whiskey, but perhaps the cask finish has gone just a tad overboard. On the other hand, maybe that’s the point. The women in charge of this release seem to have pondered this as well. “In some ways cask finishing has jumped the shark, with nearly every type of wine cask finish out there, as well as finishing and blending across spirits,” they said. “We’re here to take an old, tradition-based category into the future, so we are always trialing things that haven’t been done before. . .The fig nectar was our first food-based or non-alcoholic finish for The Boss Hog. Creating the finishes here on the farm is another first. We don’t believe there are any limits on what we do with Boss Hog.”

There may not be limits on what can be done with this whiskey, but there might be a limit on how much we, the whiskey drinking public, are willing to spend on a bottle. Boss Hog is priced at $500, but let’s be real—these bottles sell for twice, triple, quadruple that on the secondary market. If you’re a dedicated collector and ride-or-die WhistlePig fan, go forth and seek this out. But if you’re more of a casual acquaintance, stick to the core lineup.

Score: 88

What Our Score Means

  • 100: Worth trading your first born for

  • 95 – 99 In the Pantheon: A trophy for the cabinet

  • 90 – 94 Great: An excited nod from friends when you pour them a dram

  • 85 – 89 Very Good: Delicious enough to buy, but not quite special enough to chase on the secondary market

  • 80 – 84 Good: More of your everyday drinker, solid and reliable

  • Below 80 It’s alright: Honestly, we probably won’t waste your time and ours with this

Every week Jonah Flicker tastes the most buzzworthy and interesting whiskeys in the world. Check back each Friday for his latest review

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