Raj Bhakta is best known as the founder of Whistlepig Whiskey. But he also served in the Marines, rode an elephant across the Rio Grande while running for Congress, won a spot on The Apprentice with Donald Trump, recently purchased a college, and is reinventing the whiskey game (again). He's a patriot and creator of one-of-a-kind spirits — with a personality to match.
The son of immigrants, Raj grew up learning his father's hotel business before setting out on his own. After adventures in investment banking, reality TV, and politics, he saw an opening in high-end American whiskey — and he seized it. WhistlePig quickly became one of the premier craft whiskeys. After exiting in 2019, he secured one of the world's oldest stashes of Armagnac and launched his newest ventures: Hogsworth and Bhakta Spirits.
Raj recently acquired the now-defunct Green Mountain College in Vermont, where he plans to build a new university grounded in our Founding values, along with a world-class spirit library. We sample his newest whiskeys, joke about religion and politics, and learn from a great American entrepreneur.
00:00 Episode intro
01:44 Why Raj bought a college
03:32 Riding an elephant across Rio Grande
08:49 Origin story of WhistlePig
11:32 Growing up in America; joining Marines
18:32 Acquiring world's biggest stash of Armagnac
23:20 Building Hogsworth / how to blend whiskey
24:13 Catholicism vs Judaism
29:11 Working with Trump on The Apprentice
32:03 Bhakta Spirits & why drink Armagnac
39:40 Why Raj is building a new college
44:35 Advice for entrepreneurs
51:25 Bullying and adversity
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