Wild Turkey To Release Master’s Keep Bourbon

By Richard Thomas

When Eddie Russell succeeded his father in January, the legendary Jimmy Russell, as Master Distiller at Wild Turkey, the question on the lips of many in American whiskey circles is what would be the younger Russell’s first release now that fully held the reins at the Lawrenceburg, Kentucky distillery. The answer is Wild Turkey Master’s Keep, a 17 year old bourbon.

Eddie Russell, who started with Wild Turkey in 1981, had put his fingerprints on a number of Wild Turkey products, such as the even more aged bourbon Wild Turkey Diamond Edition, even before taking the helm. So it was with Master’s Keep, which starts in 1997, long before the current bourbon boom. Wild Turkey had a surplus back then, and tasked with finding additional storage space, Russell arranged to put some of the excess in another distillery’s stone warehouses.

Who the other distiller was and how long the bourbon stayed there remain undisclosed, but the barrels eventually came back to Wild Turkey. Barreled at the customary 107 proof, the bourbon was at 89 proof by the time it was dumped almost two decades later, and was bottled at 86.8 proof. The overall story is of a bourbon that promises to stand at least somewhat outside the traditional Wild Turkey flavor profile. Master’s Keep will retail for $150.

Wild Turkey Master’s Keep is part of a series of new releases from the distillery this year, including two new Russell’s Reserve whiskeys. The first is Russell’s Reserve 1998, a bourbon almost as old as Master’s Keep, and the second Russell’s Reserve Single Barrel Rye.