PiggyBack is WhistlePig’s line that is intended to bring higher-proof, well-aged whiskeys to bars and at-home cocktail enthusiasts. The strength, mash bills, and shape of the bottle were all chosen with bartenders in mind.
Dave Pickerell, longtime distiller and WhistlePig’s master distiller since 2007, passed away suddenly in November 2018. PiggyBack Rye was one of the last projects he worked on, and the first whiskey released by WhistlePig after his passing. The pig in WhistlePig’s logo traditionally wears a top hat, but wears a Stetson hat on this label, a trademark of Pickerell’s.
PiggyBack Rye was launched in 2019, followed by PiggyBack Bourbon in September 2022.
WhistlePig has also released ready-to-drink rye whiskey smash canned cocktails1BusinessWire – WhistlePig Launches PiggyBack Barrel Aged Rye Smash in Time for Tailgating Season using the PiggyBack brand name as well as non-alcoholic expressions for dry January (“rye January”) in 2022.2Whiskey Raiders – WhistlePig Begins new Series With Release of Nonalcoholic Rye Just in Time for Dry January
