Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit Single Barrel Bourbon

Pleasant, smooth

Don’t remember the heavy details but tried this a couple years ago.

Nose: dried fruit, grass, tea, toasted nuts Taste: herbal, candy fruit, sweet

I believe this was a 2000 bottle. Barrel #16 Proof: 101

I'm on my second Glencairn glass (neat, of course) of Wild Turkey Kentucky Spirit right now. My current thoughts are essentially the same as my note from 7/7/22; the only difference is the "dusty" element seems a little more prominent, and thus I'm knocking it down a quarter point. Because of the similarity, I'll repeat my previous note here: Wild Turkey's Kentucky Spirit is a single-barrel release, bottled at 101 proof. This one was bottled on 4/30/2020 from barrel 1448, stored in Warehouse A, on rick 37. Clear mahogany color. Vanilla, roasted marshmallow, milk chocolate, orange oil, Red Delicious apple skins, and a musty/dusty (though not unpleasant) undernote. Palate has tobacco and leather, in addition to some welcome--and expected--heat, finishing with char, oak, and vanilla. Kentucky Spirit is a model of restraint. It doesn't need to be showy. It's neither hazmat-strength nor the watery bourbon minimum of 80 proof. It isn't young and aggressive; neither is it too old and overcome with woody tannins (the #4 "alligator" char used by Wild Turkey helps). It is polished and smooth. There is no age statement on the bottle, but WT's website states that it is aged 8 years. Postscript With all due respect, I continue to find wide variance in Stephanie Moreno's Distiller reviews (see my reviews on Compass Box Hedonism and Glendronach Allardice 18 Year). Her note is worth repeating here: "The nose hits you with a big hit of oak along with sweet caramel and vanilla notes. There's also a touch of orange peel and dried herbs to be found as well. Moving on the the taste, you'll find butterscotch candies mixed with peppery oak flavors, apple skins and baking spices. The mouthfeel is on the thin side and the length of the finish is average. Could stand to be a bit more complex." Five different olfactory descriptors. Four different palate notes. And ending with "could stand to be a bit more complex"? for a score of 84? Logically inconsistent. To be fair, Kentucky Spirit is a single-barrel bourbon, which means there will be variance from barrel to barrel. That does not, however, mean that a review should be intemperate. N.B. All spirits tasted neat in separate Glencairn glasses.

I enjoyed it. I prefer RR 10 SB and Wild Breed over this.

Strong sweet note on front then a spice/oak finish. Not bad, not sure if warrants higher price than Rare Breed. Rather have rare breed.