Wild Turkey Forgiven

Nose is a light butterscotch carmel. Flavor follows suit - light body with that same sweetness and a cinnamon / baking spice bite of front. The up front caramel sweetness turns more into a rye flavor near the end, with a white pepper / black tea tang going into the finish

Not typically being a Wild Turkey fan, I was surprised to find a deightful nose and the palate was initially quite nice. Had a strong berries n’ cream vibe with a very silky mouth feel; oak was a light accent in the background. The downside is the finish: an industrial medicinal “taint” crept in… fortunately the finish is short, but unfortunately the “taint” is still enough of a reason to not buy a bottle.

The same day that I found out that Wild Turkey is releasing their “Unforgotten,” I decided I would review this one—entirely by coincidence. The Unforgotten is an to the discontinued Forgiven, which is a combination blend of a straight bourbon and a straight rye. This concoction is marketed as an accident gone well, hence the name. This was a rare find, so without further ado, I’ll be weighing in on whether or not this error was indeed forgivable. This is from Batch No. 303. Nose: Vanilla and mint. Rye spice and black pepper. Caramel. Fudge. Dusty corn. Peach sweet tea. Clove, nutmeg, and oak. Palate: More of the peach sweet tea. Baked apple. Vanilla and caramel. Pumpernickel. Coca and tobacco smoke. Walnut, almond, and pistachio. Black licorice. Dried apricot. Rye spice, ginger, clove, nutmeg, and oak. Finish: Pistachio, walnut, vanilla, caramel, and cocoa. Peach sweet tea. Apple slices. Dill, rye spice, clove, nutmeg, black pepper, cinnamon,and oak. Moderate-length. Despite this being a bourbon-dominant blend, I would say that the rye is equally-present in the flavor. In fact, the rye notes exceed the bourbon ones in the nose. It’s a solid amalgamation of quality whiskey. In terms of VFM, I’d say this is right on the money. I grabbed this several years after it was already discontinued, so $63 was a steal as far as I was concerned at the time. And it met my expectations, so I’d so this was a buy worth the trouble in hindsight. 3.75/5. All is Forgiven. Well done, WT.