Our new Patron Saint

A horse named Parole...gotta love the little fella

If ever there were a dark horse in thoroughbred racing, surely, it was our very own Parole. Born in 1873, the brown pony was owned by tobacco heir Pierre Lorillard and ridden by the inexperienced young stable hand William Barret, who was discovered on the streets of New York City. Although considered the best juvenile racing at age two, Parole was rarely expected to win in his early mature years. But win he did, all around the nation, and across the Pond too.

The English press labeled Parole the “Yankee Mule,” amongst some other choice names and descriptions including “light-necked, rough-coated, leggy and curby knocked”. Parole quickly triumphed in three races, becoming one of the few American horses ever to win prime English events. By the time he retired at 12, Parole had earned more money than any other racehorse in America and had inspired a feverish new interest in racing, spawning social halls, billiard parlors, and saloons in his name....including a NYC crafted "Parole Whiskey".

Parole continues his reach today, having captured the imagination of AvroKO, which owns a stone-stable estate in Tuxedo Park, the community that Lorillard founded in the late 1800s. AvroKO Hospitality's new restaurant, Saxon + Parole, pays tribute to two of Lorillard’s prize-winning thoroughbreds in both its name and its design, which also recalls the numerous stables that once populated Lower Manhattan. And thanks to a special production from AvroKO, chef Brad Farmerie, and renown barman Linden Pride, Parole is once again honored with his very own whiskey.