Bourbon Reviews:




Bottling NameWild Turkey Tradition
Bottled ByAustin Nichols Distilling Co. Lawrenceburg,KY
TypeKentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Alcohol content101 Proof
Availability US: Not Available Japan: No Longer Available Duty Free: Unknown Europe: Unknown
Views (since 20080612) 19661
Bottling Info



Review from Mike (BourbonEnthusiast Review ID 2156, Created:20130219153631)
Purchased at:Sigman Bottle Shop
Purchased for:$98
Info on this bottle:14 Years Old
Nose:Lots of nuts and leather, some orange, some cinnamon, a dose of char and oak, some vanilla, and a goodly skosh of rye grain topped off with tannins. Distinctly Wild Turkey, but it shows its age.
Taste:Subtle yet thick and honey like sweetness that has been brunted by the tannins. The oak and char are there and the characteristic WT rye bite has been subdued by the tannins, just like the sweetness. This really thick and viscous bourbon plays off beautifully against the dryness of the long while in the barrel, making for a kind of flat but very complex set of flavors. A cerebral bourbon that would go very well with a thick pan seared prime steak.
Finish:Medium length with a moderated WT bite.......... delicate in its complexity.
Overall:A barely bourbon bourbon....... such are the effects of 14 years in the barrel. Luckily for it, it found a palate well attuned to ultra aged and dry bourbons. I have not had this bourbon in a long while and suspect that it is not a bourbon for everyone. It is not one I want every day, but boy at times it is just a superb bourbon. I am glad I have some......... and have seen it on the shelves of some liquor stores........... underappreciated, says me!!

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Review from Mike (BourbonEnthusiast Review ID 1837, Created:20100521174624)
Purchased at:
Nose:Slow to open.............not a bad omen............knowing, as I do, that this is a 14 YO bourbon. Subtle vanilla, rye, leather, and oak. No hint that this is a 101 proof bourbon. Nose deep in the glass discloses no alcohol.........how can this be? Woody, dry............how can 50% alcohol hide in plain site? Special bourbon this is..........fooling the nose completely is no easy task............is Tradition fooling the nose? Where is the alcohol?? What does this bode for the taste? My nose is right on top of this bourbon, and there is no alcohol burn??? Now some orange, some nutmeg, more dry oak. TOTALLY UNIQUE!
Taste:Dry sweetness, many flavors amalgamated into an intense and tightly complex mystery elixiir that is and is not bourbon. Subdued sweetness that seems to come as much from the rye as from the corn. The oak dominates this bourbon but does not 'own' it. Subtlety 'owns' it. The palate searchs for easy answers (it is this, it is that) and finds none. It is Wild Turkey bourbon, but it is not slavishly devoted to that profile. It has echoes of the rich creeaminess, and that wonderful bite moderated by the oak dryness. Intriguing, interesting, fascinating, amazing, puzzling................
Finish:Lengthly, dry, spicy...................??
Overall:Yes...............the most unusual bourbon in a great while. A puzzle never to be solved. Is that a good thing...........of course it is? A mystery, an enigma. Only you can say whether it is a great bourbon as far as you are concerned. For me, there is no doubt............it is better than any palate likely to taste it.

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Review from bunghole (BourbonEnthusiast Review ID 1792, Created:20100118171525, Updated:20100118171935)
Purchased at:Gift from Mike of Georgia
Purchased for:Brotherhood.
Nose:I always like to look at the color, and also the viscosity of the coating action in the glass first. Not nearly as dark as I thought it would be, but still a magnificent deep mahogany hued amber. Viscosity is nothing short of amazing, and defies gravity with slow and thick sheeting action before the individual legs descend.
The nose is tightly complex as you might expect. Sweet spice notes of Rosemary and Tyme. Orange Zest. Candy tones of vanillia; caramel, and toffee. Oak and char are surprisingly subdued for a bourbon of this age.
Taste:This is the good stuff to be sure. Everything from the nose carries through with a well orchestrated symphonic brilliance. Again the oak is subdued, but the char does step up a notch in a good way.
Finish:Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! Ohhhhhhhhhhh! Yessssssssssssssss! Loooooooooooooooooooong! Semi-Dry with increasing oakeness, but still nicely sweet. There is a late arrival in the finish that I just couldn't put a finger on, until in a flash of epiphany it came to me. NUTMEG! This is one of the very best and most astounding finishes I've ever enountered. Just AWESOME!
Overall:I cannot praise this bourbon highly enough. Every nuance is a finely polished facet of a precious jewel. Probably the very best Wild Turkey expression I have ever tasted, but I'd have to do a blind comparison with the original release of 10 year old Russell's Reserve which just slayed me with bourbonic goodness. Jimmy Russell has outdone himself this time. Buy all that you can, as I don't see how this batch of barrels could ever be duplicated. It's magic, so don't miss out.

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Review from Mike (BourbonEnthusiast Review ID 1768, Created:20091130180845, Updated:20091130180953)
Purchased at:Sigman Bottle Shop, Conyers, GA
Purchased for:$97.26 including tax
Info on this bottle:Aged 14 Years
Nose:A few moments in the glass offer caramel, vanilla, nutmeg, leather, and nuts. A few more minutes and an earthy, grainy aroma wafts up. After the passage of yet more time there is char, rye, citrus, coffee, and a smidge of chocolate. An attention getting nose is this Tradition...........and Wild Turkey all the way.
Taste:Thick upfront caramel, vannila, sweetness softened by some oaky drying tannins. This makes for more delicacy and sophistication than I recall in any other Wild Turkey whiskey. The cinnamony/peppery spice then comes on with a rush, offering a serious contrast to the previous somewhat delicate entry.
Finish:Long, with a lingering soft sweetness and final demonstration by the spice
Overall:A variation on the Wild Turkey theme (some softening of the sweetness by the time in the barrel), the age shows, but does not overwhelm the whiskey. The rush of spice is itself moderated in the finish............again by the time in the barrel.............very interesting and complex whiskey.

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Review from Dump Bucket (BourbonEnthusiast Review ID 1542, Created:20090420231419)
Purchased at:Japan
Purchased for:Too Much... but I would buy another
Info on this bottle:From Japan
Nose:Deeper than most WTs. There is a hint of maple right up front with a well balanced rye, oak, and leather combo. There is more sugar in this WT nose than the others??? almost like a cane field??? I am not sure the age on this, but I would put it at 12-15 yrs
Taste:Soft wild turkey feel, with more tannins and some additional sweetness. The rye comes from the back of the pallet forward and then stands up and announces it is here??? the burn is slow and plateau just right
Finish:Rye, sweet and then a blend of the WT spice, oak and leather in three part harmony???.
Overall:I believe there is more robustness in this WT than most. And not in a bad way, just more of the WT spice than in most of the WTs I have had. I nice change in there lineup???

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