This the first review in a five part verticalish series on Wild Turkey bourbon comparing 5 of their relatively recent releases and one dusty against each other and my favorite Wild Turkey juice of all time: Moonshine Grill’s Russell’s Reserve pick.
We’re starting with good old Wild Turkey 101, skipping the 81 proof expression, and going up from there.
Wild Turkey 101
Age: 6-8 years according to the label
Abv: 101 proof
Color: A medium amber
Price: $21.99
Laser Code: LL/GJ250237
Neat
Nose: Slightly harsh with rye spice and caramel notes.
Taste: Caramel and rye spice notes dominate but there is a small note of young grain and some harshness as well.
Finish: Some vanilla comes into the finish but it is mostly spice and a bit of lingering heat.
On a rock
Nose: No more harshness with just caramel, vanilla and warm spice notes.
Taste: Vanilla and toffee notes with just a hint of spice and a nice mouthfeel.
Finish: Short, sweet and simple with mostly vanilla notes.
Conclusion
First off this was much better than drinking Wild Turkey 101 on a plane out of a plastic cup! That said I still wasn’t a huge fan of it neat. Adding a little ice saved it for me though. It’s definitely a solid bottle for the price but for me the difference between this and a ~$30 bottle, say McKenna 10 year, isn’t significant enough to justify going below that. That said I will happily drink the rest of this bottle on the rocks outside this summer.
This fell well short of the high bar set by The Moonshine “Cheesy Gold Foil” when tasted side by side but it did beat out at least one of it’s pricier Turkey brothers.
Quality
6 - a fine whiskey that does not standout in either direction
Value based on what I paid
Great - a good whiskey I’m still happy to drink
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