Wild Turkey Bourbon 101

September 2017 I’m not a fan of 101

Wild Turkey 101 is one of the distillery’s basic, affordable expressions, but I came away quite impressed. The name isn’t particularly creative but denotes the proof, kind of like Weller Antique 107. At over 50%, this bourbon is like prime-era Manny Pacquiao, with a lot of knockout power for its weight class. Although this bourbon lacks an age statement, it does not feel particularly young to me, and has the complexity of a good 8-10 years in the barrel. What begins as a fruit-forward experience, with orange citrus and cherry flavors that would do amazing work in a Godfather or Old Fashioned, transitions after a few sips into a creamy, vanilla-laden sundae treat. Throughout, those sweet flavors are balanced out by some char, heat, and spice. The primary flaw is a little too much spirit-y aroma. I’d slot this somewhere between Buffalo Trace and Eagle Rare 10, which is a great place to be in the affordable bourbon category! Since it's $7-10 cheaper than Eagle Rare, that may make it my No. 1 bourbon of choice for $25.