WhistlePig Is Throwing A Party. Are You Invited?

WhistlePig’s League Of The Flying Pig Is Gathering, And They Have Much To Celebrate

By Kurt Maitland

(Credit: Kurt Maitland)

WhistlePig is a relatively young whiskey company, but it has something in common with some of older brand names out there. Just like Laphroaig’s Friends of Laphroaig, Diageo’s Friends of Classic Malts, and Balvenie’s Warehouse 24, WhistlePig has its own “secretish” society: The League of the Flying Pig.

In keeping with the spirit of a semi-secret club, The League is made up of people who have been intimately involved with the brand and have proved themselves to be loyal to the brand. At present there are roughly 400 members from some 20 states, with most members chosen by WhistlePig’s brand ambassadors.

These clubs have their perks, and WhistlePig’s is no exception. League members can get the opportunity to visit the WhistlePig farm and spend time with Raj and his family, or the esteemed Dave Pickerell when this year’s 2-day celebration kicks off this coming September 18^th and 19^th. This year’s gathering will include a live distillation demo with Pickerell, in his role as Master Distiller,  plus a sneak preview of this year’s Boss Hog release, a black tie dinner, live music, a balloon rides, fireworks and carnival games and rides.

The still Pickerel likes so much, he had it tattoo’ed on himself
(Credit: Kurt Maitland)

When I spoke to Raj Bhakta about the event, he was looking forward to showing the farm off to the members this year. For him it’s a time when he can do more than share their whiskeys with their fans. Here he can personally show those fans what he means by triple terroir: rye grain grown on their property; distilled on the farm; and barreled in Vermont wood.

With the legal issues that have flared up around WhistlePig of late, this is great time to Raj to focus on the brand’s next steps and show their biggest fans where he can lead the brand in the future. I also spoke to Dave Pickerell, who is so fond of the still installed on the farm that he has a tattoo of it on his leg. He and Raj will have the pleasure of showing off new stills, new whiskeys and all the things that have made WhistlePig so popular to their biggest fans. That is something to celebrate.