(WhistlePig)
You probably know WhistlePig for their prized rye whiskeys, with some (like their Boss Hog) selling for nearly $20,000 on the secondary market. Last year, WhistlePig entered new territory with the release of their 21-year-old single malt, Béhôlden. And now they’re taking things one step farther and putting Scotland on notice.
The Vermont-based distillery just released the Badönkådonk—a single malt old enough to rent a car without an extra deposit. The accents in the word are purposefully absurd, being a sort of sendup of Scottish Gaelic words on whisky bottles—playing into their intention making a statement that rare single malt is also happening on this side of the pond, too.
“Named not for a ghost of 19th century distilling nor for an unphonetic hill, glen, or loch… nor for somebody walking said hill or glen… The Badönkådonk is an audacious advance on the next front in WhistlePig’s whiskey revolution,” reads their release notes.
In furtherance of their cross-pond coup, they paid John Cleese to do the announcement via a video mocking the very nature of paying celebrities for making announcements. It’s worth watching below on YouTube.
One of the release photos for the whisky even includes a visual reference to Monty Python and the Holy Grail in the form of two grail-like goblets next to the bottle. Here’s what Sir Lancelot (aka Cleese) had to say (or was paid to say) about the new release:
“I thought it was rather cheeky when I learned that some colonials were trying to ape the Scotches that have from the beginning of time been crafted in Scotchland… and with a name of such sublime ridiculousness—WhistlePig 25: The Badönkådonk! That doesn’t sound very Scotchish, does it?”
“But, when I tasted it, my whole world changed! My very DNA was instantly revised, my taste buds danced the bagpipe, and I instantly became spiritually advanced. You must try it. (Or I will send a small posse of highly trained Raccoons to tie you up and pour it into your cake-hole until you announce your arrival in heaven).”
So, there you have it. Try it or else you will be forced to visit the Ministry of Silly Walks after the racoons get done with you.
WhistlePig says it’s sure to convert loyal Scotch sippers, but it may also convert quite a few rare rye and bourbon sippers, too. After spending a quarter-century in new American Oak, it’s finished in Silver Oak California Cabernet barrels for extra richness.
(WhistlePig)
It’s bottled as a single-barrel expression to preserve the variations from barrel to barrel, at 91 proof or 45.5% ABV. WhistlePig 25: The Badönkådonk retails for $1,999 at WhistlePig and will be available in “very limited quantities.” In other words, get it before it hits the secondary market.