Vice Advice: WhistlePig PiggyBack 6-Year-Old Rye and Farmstock Rye

For a Taste of Your Whiskey, I’ll Give You Some Advice

The best part about being a traveling sot is I get to drink across the globe. I’ve been squiffed with my wonderful friend, PJ Media’s own Stephen Kruiser, on South Pacific islands/military bases you can’t get to without either a major background check or a grateful genie you’ve just released from a bottle. I’ve sipped some of the best and all of the worst booze imaginable. I’m not a pro but I know a bit when it comes to swilling clown juice.

Whiskey 101: It’s All Whiskey, You Plebe

You know what steams my clams? When some jabroni says, “I don’t like whiskey, I’ll have a Jame-O.” First and foremost, don’t hip up Jameson to “Jame-O” unless you are an overweening college yuppy-brat frat boy who looks like he fell out of a J. Crew catalog, in which case please take your Axe body spray and continue reading here. Adults, please press on.

What do scotch, rye, Irish whiskey, and bourbon have in common? They are all different types of whiskey. There are other types of whiskey, but today I want to focus on rye and all things WhistlePig.

Endangered Species

Rye, like the moderate Democrat, disappeared. Unlike the moderate Democrat, rye made a comeback.

Much like the Australian laughing tree frog, my libations change with the seasons. I’m typically a devoted bourbon drinker. I always thought rye was akin to diet bourbon but decided to give rye a shot when I got a free bottle. It’s lighter in taste (and color) than bourbon and has a sweetness to it that a true bourbon fan may not appreciate. Rye is the .380 EDC compared to the bourbon 9mm, lighter and slightly less intimidating to newcomers.

Enter WhistlePig

My friend in the whiskey business, whom I’ll call “Whiskey Friend,” gave me a bottle of WhistlePig FarmStock Rye on a gig. That’s when I fell in love with “the pig.”

FACT-O-RAMA! WhistlePig is the only rye made in the state of Vermont.

Related: Democracy, Whiskey, Sexy

The 6-year-old pig I am drinking right now is lighter than the FarmStock so I drink it neat. FarmStock has a “fuller” taste and, in my opinion, tastes better with a Death-Star-sized ice cube or in an Old Fashioned or Manhattan. Both are incredibly smooth. If you “don’t like whiskey” you may like either of these, though I’d recommend wetting your beak with the PiggyBack first. PiggyBack is also roughly $23 cheaper than the FarmStock, but the taste is noticeable and, if you have the wallet, worth the extra coin if you like a fuller-flavored rye.

This is sipping whiskey; if you want to shoot something, please go here.

I’m not a “nose, palate and finish” kind of man so I’ll quote what Whiskey Friend said to me: “I love that they use Vermont white oak barrels. They give a nice toffee and vanilla flavor with hints of baking spices. Vermont Oak is very unique and this sets it apart from other ryes.”

When I make Manhattans with bourbon I add a little triple sec. I don’t do this with rye because, as I mentioned earlier, it’s a little sweeter.

Experiment: I mixed PiggyBack rye, an ice cube, and a dash of Barsmith Old Fashioned mix and it’s delicious.

FINAL THOUGHT: Both the PiggyBack and the FarmStock are delicious for different reasons. Which one I purchase is directly related to how much cheddar I have to spend on strong water, so please share this with everyone you know.