Of all the Master’s Keep expressions to date, Voyage has proven itself the most difficult to cover. I’m not exactly sure why that is. There are factors that surely play a role, such as a noteworthy price increase for the series and the decision to go w…
Of all the Master’s Keep expressions to date, Voyage has proven itself the most difficult to cover. I’m not exactly sure why that is. There are factors that surely play a role, such as a noteworthy price increase for the series and the decision to go with a rum finish this year, but neither I’d […]
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Wild Turkey has announced the latest in their Master’s Keep line… with this expression called ‘Voyage’. This release is a 10-year-old bourbon finished with a secondary maturation period in Jamaican rum casks which previously held 14-year-old pot…
Wild Turkey has announced the latest in their Master's Keep line... with this expression called 'Voyage'. This release is a 10-year-old bourbon finished with a secondary maturation period in Jamaican rum casks which previously held 14-year-old pot still rum. Master’s Keep Voyage comes in at 106-proof (53% alcohol) and was crafted by Master Distiller Eddie Russell in partnership with Dr. Joy Spence, the Master Blender of Appleton Estate rum.
It will be available starting this month (July) and carries an MSRP of $275 for a 750ml bottle. Voyage contains the following tasting notes:Every year, we look forward to the release of Master's Keep as an opportunity to rethink what our bourbon can be. Creating Master's Keep Voyage in collaboration with Dr. Joy Spence was a real privilege, and I think our shared passion for telling a story through our spirits comes through in this one-of-a-kind whiskey.
Nose: Notes of vanilla, oak, and fruit give way to molasses, rum cake, and allspice
Taste: Sweet and creamy with notes of tropical and dried fruit, caramel and aged oak
Finish: A warm and long-lasting finish with chocolate, fruit and spice
My Take
I think it's weird when distilleries try to mix multiple liquors together. There is a reason some people like Rum and some people like Bourbon. They are distinct flavors with distinct profiles. In my view, trying to combine them is like combining coke and sprite. You'll get a beverage, but it's going to taste horrible. While I haven't tried this and can't comment directly on Voyage, I have tried way too many bourbons finished in secondary non-bourbon casks and, in my opinion, they are always worse than bourbon. For that reason, this is a release I'm going to give a hard pass.... especially at $275 a bottle.
What do you think? Drop a note in the comments below.
Source: Wild Turkey
The collapse of Washington’s Skagit Valley Malting last month left distillers and brewers alike searching for new suppliers of malted barley. The craft maltster had… Read More
The collapse of Washington’s Skagit Valley Malting last month left distillers and brewers alike searching for new suppliers of malted barley. The craft maltster had more than 270 customers when it closed unexpectedly, including Seattle’s Westland and Copperworks distilleries. We’ll talk with Copperworks co-founders Jason Perkins and Jeff Kanof this week on WhiskyCast In-Depth, along with Kate Bernot, who’s been covering the story for Good Beer Hunting. In the news, the Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame gets eight new inductees, while Woodford Reserve is teaming up with Kentucky farmers to develop the state as a rye-producing region. We’ll have all the week’s whisky news, tasting notes for whiskies from the U.S., Japan, and India, and much more on this week’s WhiskyCast.
Episode 1011: July 2, 2023
Links: Copperworks Distilling | Good Beer Hunting | Kentucky Bourbon Hall of Fame | Woodford Reserve | Glenmorangie | Edrington | Diageo | The Northern Times | The Glenwalk | Chivas Regal | Wild Turkey | Booker’s Bourbon | Compass Box | Bimber Distillery
Wild Turkey unveils Master’s Keep Voyage, a limited-edition craft bourbon perfected with time in Jamaican rum casks.
The post Press Release: Wild Turkey Master’s Keep Voyage appeared first on Rare Bird 101.
Wild Turkey unveils Master's Keep Voyage, a limited-edition craft bourbon perfected with time in Jamaican rum casks.
The post Press Release: Wild Turkey Master’s Keep Voyage appeared first on Rare Bird 101.
Last week, a TTB filing for Master’s Keep Voyage, a straight bourbon finished in ex Jamaican rum casks, appeared on the COLA registry. Almost immediately, reactions from the bourbon community were swift and divided, ranging from shouts of enthusiastic …
Last week, a TTB filing for Master’s Keep Voyage, a straight bourbon finished in ex Jamaican rum casks, appeared on the COLA registry. Almost immediately, reactions from the bourbon community were swift and divided, ranging from shouts of enthusiastic approval, to eyerolls, grumbles, and the neo-proverbial “jumped the shark” commentary. Look, I get it. Some […]
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WILD TURKEY® LAUNCHES MASTER’S KEEP UNFORGOTTEN – INSPIRED BY A DECADE-OLD MISTAKE Master’s Keep Unforgotten is a high proof, extra-aged variation of Wild Turkey Forgiven, a limited-edition whiskey blend originally released in 2010 LAWRENCEBURG, KY (Se…
WILD TURKEY® LAUNCHES MASTER’S KEEP UNFORGOTTEN – INSPIRED BY A DECADE-OLD MISTAKE Master’s Keep Unforgotten is a high proof, extra-aged variation of Wild Turkey Forgiven, a limited-edition whiskey blend originally released in 2010 LAWRENCEBURG, KY (September 28, 2022) — Wild Turkey Master’s Keep Unforgotten, the newest release in the annual limited-edition series, was inspired by […]
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I’ll begin this post with a short, but important statement. Like alcohol, tobacco should only be enjoyed by adults of legal age; moreover, it should be enjoyed responsibly and in moderation. Whiskey and cigars have shared an association for generations…
I’ll begin this post with a short, but important statement. Like alcohol, tobacco should only be enjoyed by adults of legal age; moreover, it should be enjoyed responsibly and in moderation. Whiskey and cigars have shared an association for generations. Wild Turkey’s Jimmy Russell often recounts that when he first hit the road to introduce […]
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Wild Turkey Master’s Keep One is the sixth entry in the MK line and employs something that keeps gaining steam in the industry, but hasn’t been seen in the rickhouses of Wild Turkey: toasted barrel finishing. Barrel finishing, on the whole, isn’t a super common thing at Wild Turkey, the Revival being the only recent, […]
The post Wild Turkey Master’s Keep One Review appeared first on The Whiskey Jug.
Wild Turkey Master’s Keep One is the sixth entry in the MK line and employs something that keeps gaining steam in the industry, but hasn’t been seen in the rickhouses of Wild Turkey: toasted barrel finishing. Barrel finishing, on the whole, isn’t a super common thing at Wild Turkey, the Revival being the only recent, modern, example to come out of the distillery. But toasted barrels… I thought WT was fairly immune to the trend train.
Michter’s is probably the most well-known when it comes to the “toasted’ game, but the category is littered with examples ranging from craft producers like Wilderness Trail to major producers like Jim Beam recently releasing a toaste Basil Hayden. It’s something I’ve always been a tad leery of. Not in a “this is complete BS and does nothing” kind of way, but in a “does this do enough to justify the extra wood use?” way.
That’s always the question when it comes to this kind of “double cask” straight bourbons. Was the end result worth the extra resources used to make it? Only way to find out is to pop the cork, pour a dram, get to drinking and review this Master’s Keep ONE.
Non-Chill Filtered | Natural Color
Style: Bourbon
Region: Kentucky, USA
Distiller: Wild Turkey
Mash Bill: 75% Corn, 13% Rye, 12% Malted Barley
Cask: New Charred Oak, Toasted Oak
Age: NAS (blend of 9-14 yo whiskey)
ABV: 50.5%
Batch: 01
Rickhouse: G
Wild Turkey Master’s Keep One Price: $175*
Wild Turkey Master’s Keep Bottled In Bond 17 Years
Wild Turkey Master’s Keep Cornerstone Rye
Wild Turkey Master’s Keep Revival
Wild Turkey Master’s Keep Decades
Wild Turkey Master’s Keep 17 Years
EYE
Mahogany
NOSE
Dried dark fruits, caramel, oak, leather, cinnamon, vanilla, marzipan with bits of chocolate and citrus peels.
Good heck, this aroma. It’s rich and moves through the nose like velvet.
PALATE
Caramel corn, dried apples, oak, dark chocolate, hazelnuts, vanilla, cinnamon and leather with touches of citrus peel.
I didn’t think the palate would beat the nose… but dang. I’m loving what’s happening here.
FINISH
Long -> Oak, caramel, vanilla, cinnamon fade out evenly and sweetly.
BALANCE, BODY and FEEL
Perfectly balanced, full-round body and a warm oily feel.
Master’s Keep One is the ONE. I was wondering if anything would supplant that original MK 17 yo as my favorite in the line, but here we are with a whiskey that takes everything I love about Wild Turkey and dials it up to 11. The Revival came oh so very close, it was a stunner, but this is just pure, beautiful, unbridled Wild Turkey deliciousness and sits at the top of my MK ranking.
Adding watery brings out a slight breadiness and some graham cracker-like sweetness across the whole experience, but it honestly doesn’t need it. It’s perfectly drinkable at their signature 101 proof and delivers a complex and engaging experience across the senses. This is a seriously good whiskey and if I could afford it I’d track down a case.
Here in CA, it’s just a couple bucks under $200 after tax and I have a tough time paying that for a single bottle of whiskey except as an x-mas or b-day present to myself. And I guess that’s what the Wild Turkey Master’s Keep One will have to be, one of my two yearly whiskey splurges; I’m sure you can guess which of the two it’s going to be.
SCORE: 5/5 (simply fantastic, can’t recommend enough ~ A/A+ | 94-99)
*Disclosure: The bottle for this bourbon review was graciously sent to me by the company without obligation. The views, opinions, and tasting notes are 100% my own.
Summary
This. Is. Wild Turkey. It is everything fans love about this whiskey, I’m in love with it.
The post Wild Turkey Master’s Keep One Review appeared first on The Whiskey Jug.
After months of waiting, it’s finally here … Master’s Keep One. We’ve all heard the arguments: “toasted-barrel finishes are gimmicks,” “Wild Turkey must be running out of ideas,” etc. In all honesty, toasted-barrel finishes excite me as much as two fin…
After months of waiting, it’s finally here … Master’s Keep One. We’ve all heard the arguments: “toasted-barrel finishes are gimmicks,” “Wild Turkey must be running out of ideas,” etc. In all honesty, toasted-barrel finishes excite me as much as two fingers of Woodford Reserve. That’s not a dig on Woodford Reserve; it’s a fact. Yet, […]
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Thanks in large part to /r/bourbon, I am very big Wild Turkey fan. Wild Turkey 101 has been my house bourbon for years now and I’ve been on more barrel picks of Wild Turkey more than any other whiskey. That’s partly due to Wild Turkey having more avail…
Thanks in large part to /r/bourbon, I am very big Wild Turkey fan. Wild Turkey 101 has been my house bourbon for years now and I've been on more barrel picks of Wild Turkey more than any other whiskey. That's partly due to Wild Turkey having more availability but it's also because I know I can almost always find a winner or two on a trip there. While my love of their regular offerings is quite high, I've had varying experiences with their limited release Master's Keep series. The first 17 year was good but not outstanding. Decades was good but a high price for what it was. I loved Revival - probably my favorite of them all. Cornerstone was a disappointment as I didn't think it was much better than the regular Single Barrel Rye. All in all that's a bit of a mixed bag when you are talking about bottles that are nearing the $200 price mark so I entered into this latest release with tempered expectations.
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey; Aged 17 years; 50% ABV; $175
Nose: Dusty bourbon funk, butterscotch, woody vanilla sweets. It's sweet, oaky, and slightly funky. The heat level is pretty low yet it still has plenty of depth.
Taste: The flavor profile is compact and dense - dusty old bourbon, dark red fruits, burnt caramelized sugars like toffee, and lots of syrupy/sugary oak. Again like the nose the heat is very well tamed. It's not quite as viscous or dense as some of the best dusty bourbons I've had but the calling cards of a great older bourbon with a balance of sweet and oak are all there.
Thoughts: I've loved this from the moment I opened and I still do here today. This is the closest I've come to tasting modern turkey that drinks like dusty turkey. Given that is 17 years old and bottled in bond that means all of it was made before Wild Turkey upped their entry proof from 107 to 110 and I think that certainly shows in the quality here. I didn't get to try a lot of new releases in 2020 but for me, this was the best one I was able to get my hands on last year. $175 is a lot to pay for a bourbon but I'd buy this again if I saw it on the shelves.
Rating: B+
Note that price is not considered when assigning a rating.
