WhistlePig Releases The Boss Hog V: The Spirit of Mauve

WhistlePig Boss Hog V: Spirit of Mauve
WhistlePig Boss Hog V: Spirit of Mauve.

WhistlePig has announced the release of The Boss Hog V: The Spirit of Mauve: a 13-year-old version of their limited edition rye whiskey.

Like all four previous editions of The Boss Hog, The Spirit of Mauve is a single barrel whiskey, bottled at barrel proof. But this fifth edition is a 13-year straight rye, finished in Calvados apple brandy

Mauve, the namesake pig from a growing canon of WhistlePig celebrity hogs, loved apples.

She’s also the former partner of another famous pig; Mauve’s lover, Mortimer, was the inspiration for The Black Prince II : The Spirit of Mortimer. He was given the honor after his untimely death in 2014. Mauve passed away this Valentine’s Day, presumably of a broken heart.

WhistlePig Boss Hog V: Spirit of Mauve
WhistlePig Boss Hog V: Spirit of Mauve.

Boss Hog IV: The Black Prince, took the title of World’s Best Whiskey at last year’s San Francisco World Spirits Competition. “While we didn’t get the whiskey done in time to get it entered into any competitions this year, it is my belief that Boss Hog V: The Spirit of Mauve is better even than Boss Hog IV: The Black Prince was,” says Master Distiller Dave Pickerell.

It’s been a busy year for Pickerell. In addition to a release of Farmstock Rye from WhistlePig this year, he’s also been the brains behind an upcoming Metallica whiskey release.

Each bottle of this year’s release is topped with a handcrafted Danforth pewter stopper in Mauve’s image, and packaged in a casket-inspired gift box. Bottles are available now for a suggested retail price of $500.

Caroline Paulus
Caroline Paulus is the Senior Editor for The Bourbon Review. She lives and writes in Lexington, Kentucky. Follow her on Instagram @misswhiskeyhistorian to keep up with her latest in bourbon news - and a few old finds, too.