Every now and then, I’d say a few times a year, I throw caution to the wind and blind-buy an expensive bottle of spirits just because.  I feel like treating myself; I want to try something special.   The bottle grabbed my eye, impulse… any number of reasons may lead me to bring something special home to the basement bar.  WhistlePig Straight Rye was the latest bottle I couldn’t say no to.  I had no preconceived notions; I’d never heard of it.

Like any whiskey I buy, I start my experience with a straight-from-the-bottle half-shot.  I drink a fair amount of rye and know what to expect.  This WhistlePig threw me a little but not in a bad way.  The spiciness and strong peppery notes were right there.  The finish to the mouthful changed as the liquid washed down my throat.  It coated the tongue and pallet longer with that rye-richness and with more complexity than other premium ryes I’ve experienced.  This is a one-hundred proof, 100 % rye whiskey, so along with the complexity, came a fairly smooth fierceness of a higher-proof.  She should have biten more, but she didn’t; more on this in a sec.

WhistlePig Distillery is located on an old Vermont farm, and they managed to entice Kentucky Master Distiller, Dave Pickerell  to make the trip North, roll up his sleeves and create this rye. His work paid off in higher-end circles; it was awarded Wine Enthusiasts highest rating ever for a rye whiskey, coming in with 96 out of 100 points.  Sounds good…but does she make a good Manhattan?

The rye is aged for ten+ years in new American oak barrels, and Distiller Pickerell said that he was looking for high notes in proof, purity and age with this one.  He found it.

The nose on WhistlePig is very pleasant.  The vanilla, spice, and citrus smells are there, and hold up for the duration of your drink; I only wish they came across a bit stronger.  For such a complex whiskey, I’d like a bit more strength as I breathe it in.  Still, I was satisfied.  As long as my rye-spice is there, as it was in this one, I’m happy.  The WhistlePig shone in this department, but still managed to carry in some taste surprises.

I found the sipping part, when opened up with a few pieces of cracked ice, most delightful.  Rich, nutty, peppery and warming, the WhistlePig coats the mouth, but a lot softer than my high-end Templeton Rye, or even Wild Turkey’s Rye or Old Overholdt.  WhistlePig seems a thinner rye – the subtlety almost too apparent.  But…hold the phone!  Right when you feel a taste loss, a second finish comes up (this was confirmed by guests who shared).  The higher proof and pure rye taste hits you again with a flavor that takes its own sweet time exiting.  For a higher-proof whiskey, the bark that can oftentimes turn this drinker off, just wasn’t there.  I couldn’t find it; it was too smooth.

As swell as the WhistlePig is as a straight pour or over a few pieces of ice, the one-hundred proof and enormous shoulders of the straight rye, begged to be mixed in a cocktail.  My WhistlePig Manhattan, made with 2 ounces rye, 3/4 ounce sweet vermouth, and a couple dashes orange bitters, was as perfect a Manhattan as I’ve ever tasted.  Orange bitters teamed with the subtle citrus-orange note in the rye and caused me to drink the damn thing much too quickly.  A single old fashioned the next evening proved WhistlePig’s worth to me as a top-notch build in a rye cocktail.  I quickly corked the bottle and placed it out of site in my bar….  No need to get greedy; I want this one to last for a while.

I paid $69 for my bottle, which is a bit more than I’m used to spending on rye.  Still, as I mentioned at the start, as a treat to yourself, the WhistlePig rye is worth it.  A good rye is almost an essential in your home bar today.  Top-shelf whiskey cocktails, as long as whiskey is the main pour, are some of the best reasons to home bartend.  Premium cocktails in restaurants and bars can set you back some major cabbage.  Having a few excellent bottles of whiskey at home will satisfy that premium-whiskey tooth, and can be considered an occasional affordable luxury.  I say, “go for it!”  WhistlePig Straight Rye would be a great addition to the top-shelf of your home bar.  Just don’t let too many friends know you have it.

I love Irish Whiskey, and have since I first graduated from beer to spirits. I have enough of a selection of home-bar bottles of the Aqua Vitae to open my own Irish bar, I love it so. My favorite way to drink it is neat, just a finger width from the bottom of a heavy, whiskey glass, with a cold Guinness sitting behind it. Smoother than almost any other in the whiskey family, Irish goes down like a kiss, yet fills the mouth with indescribable flavor; flavors that very tremendously from style and region, yet still taste universally like Irish whiskey.  Jameson or Bushmills basic whiskeys are perfect places to start, but if you find yourself developing a taste for the dram, you can graduate to their 10 & up years aged product, or a more peated Connemara, or the pure Redbreast, the Knappogue Castle, Paddy, Tullamore Dew … I could go on and on. But I won’t….this is a collection of Irish Whiskey Cocktail Recipes, and for these, I’d stick with a basic bottle. No need to be using top-shelf whiskey, when you’re adding other flavors. I’ve only very recently started using my precious Irish in mixed cocktails, but the ones here are tried and tested and worth the loss. Irish Whiskey is a perfect drink to enjoy as the cold months end and the start of Spring creeps in. The flavor is earthy and deep and will remind you of the smell of the breeze as things start growing in the yard or in the woods behind your house. Enjoy an Irish whiskey neat, like I describe above, but also make room for one of these satisfying cocktails. I’m sure you’ll enjoy both.

Leprechaun Dancer

Celtic Cocktail

Wild Irish Rose

Cold Irish

Irish Milk-And-Maple Punch

Black Manhattan

Irish Trinity

A good Whiskey Sour is a wonderful thing. The tart and spice of the two main ingredients combine to give you a drink you’ll, at first, want to drink fast like a good lemonade. But, if you take your time with this one, the melting ice just makes the drink better and better with each minute that passes. I mention cold all the time on this page but cold and the ingredients of a Whiskey Sour truly combine to make the cocktail. Take your time with this one; swirl the ice around the glass as you drink it. When it’s time for a second, remember to make it in the same glass. Keep the leftover ice and the drink’s remains. Just build your second on top of your first. Add a few new cubes, and you’ll be good to go. I prefer rye in my Whiskey Sour, it’s spicier but feel free to use bourbon.

Here we go –

• 2 ounces Rye or Bourbon
• 1 ounce Lemon Juice
• 1 teaspoon Powdered Sugar

Shake ingredients in a shaker ‘til ice-cold. Strain drink into an old fashioned glass.
Sink an orange slice and a maraschino cherry into it.