Wild Turkey 101

Review by: TOModera

You find things in the oddest of places. I’m in the UK at the moment, making my way to Scotland, and at a simple, almost hipstery bar, I find a bourbon I can’t buy in Canada, Wild Turkey 101. And because they didn’t have any other whisky I wanted to review more, I went for it.

Made in Lawrenceburg, Kentucky, this Bourbon is a marriage of 6, 7 and 8 year old Bourbons, all meshed together and left at a proper Abv. Couldn’t find too many specifics on the mash bill, save for Wild Turkey uses rye as its small grain and has 13% as part of it. I like rye, this should be fun. Let’s see if it lives up to the hype.

Distillery: Wild Turkey Distillery.

Bottler: Distillery Bottling.

Region: Kentucky.

ABV: 50.5%.

Age: A marriage of 6, 7 and 8 year old Bourbons.

Cask type: Virgin Cask.

Price: N/A in Ontario

Color: Amber.

Nose: Corn, butter, oak, barley, caramel, dried grass

Nice, smooth, corn-on-the-cob smell here, makes your mouth water quite a bit. Nothing too complex here.

Taste: Sweet corn, little heat, cardamon, paprika, pink rock candy, cream

There’s a lot of corn to get through. Like walking through a corn field, takes some time and you end up with some things smacking you in the face. Very sweet and creamy, though really sweet.

Finish: Fennel, butter, arugula, burn, fries, chili powder

Oh wow, my mouth is on fire. Had a hard time finding the earth flavour through the burn. Gave this one time to mellow and it just ended up with a Freedom Fries flavour, which I’m not too keen on.

Conclusion: Not bad, not bad at all. There’s a few buttery and sweet notes throughout, and this paired nicely with a Sunday Roast (review written before the roast came out), yet I feel like there’s some balance issues in the taste and finish to score it too highly. Also I’m a fucking philistine when it comes to Bourbon, but hell, you already knew that from reading my past reviews.

Final Score: 77.

Scoring Legend:

  • 95-100: As good as it gets. Jaw-dropping, eye-widening, unforgettable whisky.
  • 90-94: Sublime, a personal favorite in its category.
  • 85-89: Excellent, a standout dram.
  • 80-84: Quite good. Quality stuff.
  • 75-79: Decent whisky worth tasting.
  • 70-74: Meh. It’s definitely drinkable, but it can do better.
  • 60-69: Not so good. I might not turn down a glass if I needed a drink.
  • 50-59: Save it for mixing.
  • 0-49: Blech.

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