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Seelbach’s – one of the earliest online spirits retailers – is back at it again with another release of Private Reserve bourbon. Over the years, their Private Reserve label has given us a few finished bourbons and a couple 15-year-old straight bourbons that were released in small 375ml flask bottles. The latter appeared to be sourced from Barton due to the 74/18/8 mash bill that their website claimed it used.
This year, Seelbach’s ups their game by seemingly reimagining their unfinished bourbon line by using their 750ml bottle for packaging. The label receives an update as well with a goldish hue. Superficial changes aside, the label also wears the wording “Kentucky Straight Bourbon.” Previous iterations neglected to put the state of origin on the front. Odd.
About that Gold Label…
The biggest bombshell on the website’s description was the mash bill. It was listed as 75/13/12. The buzz turned into a roar that this particular release was actually Wild Turkey bourbon. The frenzy resulted in all bottles being sold out almost immediately when it went up for sale a couple weeks later. Part of the speculation as to why Seelbach’s chose the gold colored label for the bottle was to draw parallels to the very popular “Cheesy Gold Foil” Wild Turkey’s of yesteryear.

But was this actually Wild Turkey in the bottle? After all, Wild Turkey is one of the most elusive distilleries for Non-Distiller Producers to get their hands on. Only a few have ever been successful (Single Cask Nation and Rare Character come to mind). It all seemed so suspicious.
The wildest Wild Turkey story you’ll ever hear
For the last 5 years – ever since the release of a pair of strange Four Gate Foundation bottles – I’ve been intrigued by a story about Wild Turkey contract distilling a bunch of bourbon for an unknown customer. The rumor was that it was made for the brand Duke Bourbon (founded by Ethan Wayne, the youngest son of John Wayne). Something happened where the deal fell apart and the Duke brand eventually went with another distiller altogether. That’s why there are excess barrels floating around out there.
But where the story takes a really strange turn is that Wild Turkey didn’t actually make that bourbon in the first place – they had Buffalo Trace make it. I’ve heard whispers of the same story for the release of Campari’s (notice I’m not saying “Wild Turkey’s”) Old Ripy Bourbon in 2017.
There was obviously a lot of Non-Disclosure Agreements protecting the information behind what exactly took place back then. But as the years have gone on, the story has become more exposed. What we know so far is that Wild Turkey approached Buffalo Trace to produce bourbon for them sometime around 2008. The reason why is unclear. The two most dominant theories I’m tracking are: 1.) Wild Turkey’s still was running at full capacity and Buffalo Trace had excess capacity on their stills or 2.) Wild Turkey was gearing up for the decommissioning of their old stillhouse and the building of their new one (this occurred from 2010 to 2011) – so they needed help from outside sources to keep providing a flow of distillate.

The rumors then go on to say that the bourbon that was made by Buffalo Trace used grains supplied by Wild Turkey and kept the ratio of their original recipe (75/13/12) the same. But where things start to get interesting is that Buffalo Trace would use their own yeast and barreled the bourbon at their own entry proof – 125 instead of Wild Turkey’s standard 115. This probably explains why the barrel proof of this bottle is still so high all these years later. It’s rare to see any Wild Turkey product above 120 proof.

This whole thing seemed kind of wild to me, but it would go a long way in explaining many of these rumors. It would also explain why Eddie Russell seemed so offended whenever he was asked about sourced barrels of Wild Turkey. He would often reply with a line like “it’s not Wild Turkey unless it comes in a Wild Turkey bottle.”
Earlier this month, these images came out from the brand OKI that finally seemed to give enthusiasts the concrete evidence they had been seeking.

What this image shows us is bourbon belonging to DSP-KY-67 (Wild Turkey’s Distilled Spirits Producer number) was “MFG By” (distilled and filled by) DSP-KY-113 (Buffalo Trace’s DSP number) on 08 H 26 which would be August 26, 2008.
So take these stories with a grain of salt, but I’m pretty convinced we have our answers in front of us. There will be a reason why this bourbon won’t exactly taste like Wild Turkey or Buffalo Trace. But it’s heritage from being made by the most desirable distillery in Kentucky still means a lot. That by itself should grab your attention. Suddenly, the $299.99 price tag doesn’t look so bad either (well, to certain people at least). So how does this taste? Thanks to my friend over at Mostly Peaceful Bourbon, I get to find out. I sampled this neat in a glencairn.
Tasting Notes
Nose: The nose opens up to two dominant notes: rich oak and melted Heath bar. Then comes the chocolate cherry cordials and other assorted candied fruits. There’s even a bit of berry compote in here, too. This bourbon wears its age well as I’m getting a distinct note of furniture polish. I have also found vanilla candle and butterscotch pudding scents within, but they’re both pretty faint.
Palate: Seasoned oak is accompanied by a little bit of bitter oak. The palate tastes extremely aged (upwards of 18 years) even though this is “just” a 15-year-old product. A little bit of dusty funk is accompanied by fennel, burnt orange peel and lemon candies. Scorched caramel, charred barrel staves and leather upholstery add more tannins. As the session goes on, I’m finding that the rye in the mash bill starts to reveal itself with clover honey, black tea leaves, cinnamon and clove. There’s even a small amount of herbal flavors that keep dipping in and out. Each sip is loaded with flavor.
Finish: The finish acts like it wants to become dry, but there’s just enough sweetness to pull it back from the edge. The vanilla and cinnamon stick notes combine with sticky toffee to add sweetness and help the finish from becoming one-dimensional. But the finish still has plenty of oak, dried tobacco, cocoa powder, leaf and leather which are all still acutely dominant, so lovers of tannins will be happy with this bottle. These flavors last for a very long amount of time.
Score: 8.5/10
With all of the talk about Wild Turkey and this bottle, they share almost zero similarities. This tastes closer to a lackluster George T. Stagg release (mixed with a little bit of Old Grand Dad 114) or maybe an elite bottle of older Barton bourbon. But there’s simply nothing inside that recalls any of Wild Turkey’s signature profile.

Still, with the DNA this bottle contains, it pretty much guarantees not to disappoint. Looking back on my time I spent with it, I’m kicking myself for not landing a bottle of my own back when it went on sale. $300 is tough to justify, but the execution erases all doubt. The rarity of the liquid inside and the person (people?) who selected the liquid should be applauded. Seelbach’s did their homework and everyone who bought one made the right choice – you definitely got what you paid for.
Final Thoughts
The story, heritage and flavor of this release add up to a bottle that delivers what it should. Time will tell if other producers (like OKI and more that will be revealed in the future) will be able to offer a similar experience for a better value. But I’m guessing each NDP that sources these barrels will all be around the same price. That will keep it out of arms reach for a lot of buyers, but that’s the world of brown spirits at the moment.
Taken into context, I’d argue that if you’re unable to get your hands on a bottle of Buffalo Trace Antique Collection, Birthday Bourbon, Four Roses Small Batch LE or any of the other limited time offerings available, that obtainable releases like this should be seen as a great consolation prize. Not everything needs to have the prestige of those brands to be good and Seelbach’s Private Release is proof of that.
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Andrew
Wednesday 8th of January 2025
Jim Jeam & Wild Turkey Mashbill. This is Most likely Jim Beam because it's sold in 275 + gallon Toats to Brokers.
If you see from the information on their website it states Bottle Count: 1303 bottles that is 912,100ml that is about 240 Gallons. That is about the size of Toats sold by Jim Beam to Brokers to small Bottlers / Distilleries.
Might as well buy a 15 Year Knob Creek. Or anything 15 Year from Suntory Beam that is under $200.
Mike & Mike
Wednesday 8th of January 2025
No, this is not Beam totes nor does it taste like Beam. It's been pretty widely documented that this is the first of many "Buffalo Turkey" whiskies out there right now. The Beam totes have shifted from 15-years old to 10/11 years old and are marked with the mash bill "79/13/8"
Buster
Sunday 20th of October 2024
Is this the same rumored WT in Disco 11?
Mike & Mike
Sunday 20th of October 2024
No, actually. Those barrels were purportedly distilled at Wild Turkey. They were likely the result of the initial runs of distillate on the new still in an attempt to dial it in.