Wild Turkey Master’s Keep Triumph Rye Whiskey Review

Of all the major Kentucky whiskey producers, Wild Turkey has perhaps had the most unconventional attitude toward rye over the course of its existence. Long associated with bourbon, the company has actually produced rye whiskey almost as long … but in its earlier days, Wild Turkey sold sourced, mature rye it was picking up from Maryland, Pennsylvania and Illinois. Even after the company’s production was centralized in Kentucky in the 1970s, rye whiskey was just never really an integral part of the Wild Turkey identity–certainly part in least to the fact that Master Distiller Jimmy Russell was never much of a rye whiskey fan. It was just a minor part of the Wild Turkey story, which is what makes the evolution to the newly released Master’s Keep Triumph Rye Whiskey such an interesting one.

Ultimately, it was the incoming influence of the second and third generation of Russells that built Wild Turkey into a legitimate rye whiskey producer. In the 2000s, Jimmy’s son and current co-Master Distiller Eddie Russell first went to bat for rye by putting his name on Russell’s Reserve 6-Year-Old Rye in 2007, followed by Russell’s Reserve Single Barrel Rye in 2015. This evolved into the first limited edition rye release in the form of 2019’s Master’s Keep Cornerstone Rye, which coincidentally enough was also around the time that Wild Turkey limited release began to be hunted by bourbon collectors with the same intensity as bottles from the likes of Buffalo Trace. The interest in rye has only grown stronger due to the newer influence of Eddie’s son Bruce Russell, who is reportedly even more passionate about rye whiskey than his father. And given that Bruce Russell is now clearly on the road to being the next Master Distiller, as evidenced by last year’s Wild Turkey Generations release, his preferences loom large as a potential preview of how the company will continue to treat the rye demographic in the future.

Master’s Keep Triumph has an easy selling point for whiskey geeks: It’s the oldest age-stated rye released by Wild Turkey to date, at 10 years. It’s easier to find comparable age stated ryes these days on package store shelves than it once was, but anything with a double digit age statement is still a relative rarity from Wild Turkey–particularly in the form of rye whiskey. Note that as always, the “10 years” denotes the youngest whiskey in the blend, as portions of this release are reported to be up to 12 years of age. It weighs in at 52% ABV (104 proof), with a high MSRP of $275, unfortunately indicative of the modern era of the Campari-owned distillery’s very expensive limited edition releases.

So with that said, let’s get to tasting this Wild Turkey rye as it ventures out into uncharted waters.

On the nose, I’m immediately enjoying the interplay here between fruity, herbal and vanilla-type notes. There’s plenty of herbaceous, slightly grassy, rye, joined by a lighter floral vanilla, charred oak and pepper grinder, but also a fruitiness that puts me in mind of fresh figs and a little dried fruit as well. As it sits in the glass, I find the overtly charred woodiness softens and transitions into something more evocative of coffee roast and toastier oak impressions, with more baking spice coming to the front. Overall, it’s a lovely combination of sweet and spice.

On the palate, the same holds true. I expect that some whiskey geeks will tag this as having a definite “bourye” feel to it, as the sweetness and oak character are certainly evocative of a bourbon/rye blend. I’m getting plenty of fruit and baking spice here, with lots of dark fruitiness, slightly vinous currant and red licorice up front immediately, along with dark honey sweetness, espresso roast and a big charge of spicy oak. It has a complex spiciness that starts out more on the herbal end, with greener rye spice, fennel and pepper, and then transitions to sweeter, toasty baking spice notes of cardamom, cola and brown sugar. The oak brings both char and mild roasty astringency, and also savory notes of maturity with flashes of tobacco.

My immediate impression here: This is really interesting stuff, appreciably complex and layered in its flavors. It’s easily the most mature-tasting modern rye release I’ve sampled from Wild Turkey to date, and a great indication of how the distillery’s treatment of rye whiskey has been quietly maturing over the last decade under the watchful eye of Eddie and Bruce Russell. It’s a great indicator that Wild Turkey has a promising future ahead of it as a standout producer of Kentucky straight rye whiskey. Fans of rye whiskey and the distillery will both want to go out of their way to add it to their collections, even though the price point will likely sting.

Distillery: Wild Turkey (Campari)
City: Lawrenceburg, KY
Style: Kentucky straight rye whiskey
ABV: 52% (104 proof)
Availability: Limited, 750 ml bottles, $275 MSRP

Jim Vorel is a Paste staff writer and resident beer and liquor geek. You can follow him on Twitter for more drink writing.