Review: American Spirit and Wild Turkey Master’s Keep Bottled-In-Bond

Wild Turkey’s latest addition to their Master’s Keep collection is a 17-year-old bottled-in-bond (BIB) bourbon. It follows the original 17-year-old Master’s Keep, Decades, Revival, and Cornerstone. A whiskey this old has Master Distiller Eddie Russell’s hands all over it. Though his dad Jimmy is still a co-Master Distiller, Eddie pretty much runs things at Wild Turkey. His preference for a bit more age on his whiskies comes through with every limited edition release from Wild Turkey.

Master’s Keep BIB was aged at the distillery’s Camp Nelson rick houses, a favorite spot among Wild Turkey fanatics. With this being a bottled-in-bond whiskey, it followed a strict set of regulations to keep it’s BIB designation. It has to be at least 4 years old, bottled at 100 proof, distilled by one distillery during one distilling season, and aged in a bonded warehouse. This is only Wild Turkey’s second bottled-in-bond release. The first was American Spirit, a 15-year-old bourbon released in 2007.

Complex and full of the Wild Turkey oomph, the nose is packed with notes of baking spices, dark toffee, toasted oak, dried tobacco leaves. Taste-wise, the whiskey kicks off with wave after wave of creamy vanilla pudding drizzled with caramel. Cinnamon and clove add a little zing, while dusty oak and cigar box appear in the back palate. The long finish has hints of dark chocolate, oak spice, and spearmint.

The complete Master’s Keep collection from Wild Turkey. From left to right, Bottled-In-Bond, Cornerstone, Revival, Decades, and Master’s Keep 17-year-old.

Master’s Keep Bottled-In-Bond has certainly earned its place among the top shelf Master’s Keep collection. Though this whiskey is oak-forward, it doesn’t allow the oak notes to overpower the palate. That’s tough to do at 17 years of age. Another masterful job by Eddie Russell!

Nowadays, I can’t drink Wild Turkey without thinking of David Jennings and his blog, Rare Bird 101. Recently, Jennings researched and collected all of his findings into his new book, American Spirit Wild Turkey: From Ripy to Russell. The book traces, with great detail, the birth of the distillery and brand we know today as Wild Turkey. The book also features a spread of reviews of, you guessed it, Wild Turkey products, from the core lineup and limited editions to exports and vintage bottlings. You can feel the love and respect when the author starts profiling the Russell family. He’s writing from the heart and it shows. This excellent book is easily recommended. The first printing of the book has now sold out, but is still available as an e-book.

Thanks to Campari for the Master’s Keep sample. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

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