Wild Turkey Master’s Keep One Bourbon Review

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Wild Turkey One is widely considered one of the low points of the Master’s Keep line of whiskies. I felt like many reviewers held back with their opinions when it first came out. But the low opinions were out in full force throughout many online communities. The overall consensus seemed to be that One was very good, but lacked any sort of “stand out” characteristic. In a nutshell, it was boring – and very overpriced.

The toasted barrel trend was in full swing in 2021 (when this bottle came out) and One felt like an attempt to cash in on the craze. I don’t know if any of the Russell’s publicly acknowledged it, but it seems almost too coincidental to rule out it being the reason this product was created in the first place. The proof was also somewhat low – coming in at 101 proof and with no age statement. More on that in a minute.

Peeling back Wild Turkey Master’s Keep One layers

The story behind One starts with an exercise in blending together the distinct taste preferences of father and son. Eddie Russell selected two groups of barrels aged 9 and 10 years (Jimmy’s preferred age range) before selecting a group of 14-year-old barrels that appealed to him. As a side note, Breaking Bourbon’s review claims that Jimmy Russell picked out the 14-year-old barrels for this release; but that’s contrary to what the inside of the box says. The barrels were batched together and filled into newly toasted and charred barrels for additional maturation.

While we don’t know the warehouses the barrels were picked from, we do know that they completed their secondary barrel finishing in Warehouse G on Tyrone (main) campus. Once the aging process was finished, the barrels were dumped and proofed down to 101 for bottling.

Toasted or “Double Barreled?”

A lot of enthusiasts seem to focus on the word “Toasted” that this release uses throughout. I believe a more accurate description should just be “Double Barreled.” A true toasted barrel finish looks like what Michter’s does for their Toasted Barrel Bourbon, Rye and Sour Mash Whiskey releases. The secondary barrel only receives a toasted treatment. The inside of the barrel looks similar to the outside except that it’s slightly darker in hue. The flavors that a toasted barrel imparts are mainly “toasted vanilla marshmallow.” Producers can’t allow the whiskey to get finished for too long because the whiskey’s profile will begin to be smothered by that one note.

Almost everyone else in the industry uses a toasted and charred barrel for their double barreling. This involves charring the inside of the barrel after it goes through the toasting process. I find that these kinds of barrels have noticeably less vanilla flavor and more chocolate and caramelized sugar notes. The charring process allows the whiskey to rest/mature for a much longer time without completely covering up the base profile of the whiskey.

Wild Turkey already uses a heavy char barrel to age their bourbon in which is partly why their bourbon has such a heavy, robust profile. Adding this secondary barrel finish should only increase that experience. But will lowering the proof to 101 reduce the effect? I’m ready to find out. I sampled this neat in a glencairn.

Tasting Notes

Nose: In an odd way, almost every kind of note I find on the nose feels like its been toasted. I find caramel, orange peel and toffee – all with a toasted element. There’s a strong Creme Brulee scent as well. The baking spices like cinnamon, peppercorns and allspice seem to have lost their edge because of the sweet, toasted layer over top of them. The 14-year-old barrels do seem to impart some seasoned and toasted oak notes as well as some barrel char. This is a very well-rounded nose that I could smell all day, but it’s not terribly complex.

Palate: The first few sips taste a bit astringent to me, but maybe that’s just my taste buds getting used to it. This gradually gives way to some fruit flavors like toasted citrus peel, cherry and apricot. There is a licorice note that hints to the high-rye nature of the bourbon underneath. I am finding a lot of tannic notes with each sip – like seasoned oak, barrel char and stale tobacco leaf. Sweetness is more subdued on my tongue. I can find some vanilla and caramel notes, but they’re not as strong as I thought. The heat and spice levels are also less impactful than I was expecting. Oddly, chocolate and char notes are not found anywhere. I was fully expecting them to be here after my experiences with other double-barreled bourbons.

Finish: The finish has a slight bitter note that remains throughout, but it’s not enough to take away from the experience. Instead, I find lingering notes of citrus (lemon and orange) as well as burnt sugar. There is brown baking spice notes like ground cinnamon, clove and anise. The oak becomes a touch dryer and matches the tobacco note. While it’s not my favorite finish, it’s also not as terrible as I might be describing it.

Score: 7.8/10

After chewing over my experience with “One,” I’d have to agree with the enthusiasts who rank this far down on their list of favorite Master’s Keep releases. This is still a very good Wild Turkey product at heart and even one that I would enjoy sipping on over competitors like Woodford Reserve Double Oaked or Old Forester 1910. But as far as uniqueness and boldness are concerned, it’s lacking.

I’d argue that Rare Breed hands-down beats One for value when multi-aged barrel blends of Wild Turkey are concerned. The proof increase makes up for the lack of a few special notes that come from secondary barrel maturation. Plus, there’s over $100 difference in price between the two. Enthusiasts that are more focused on value than drinking through a vertical flight won’t be missing out.

Final Thoughts

Wild Turkey isn’t a brand that takes too many risks for new products or labels. If you want proof for that statement, just look at the fact they’ve kept the same two mash bills over the past five decades. They occasionally do something interesting with sherry finishing (or flavoring) or rum finishing but those are limited time releases. WTMK One is the only new product that actually had the ability to be a regular part of the lineup if they had let it (I also feel that way with Cornerstone or Triumph).

Unfortunately, “One” was put inside of a $175 bottle and released just once. It’s a shame because this is a far better product to sip on than the misguided Longbranch which still takes up too much real estate on liquor store shelves. It’s unlikely that we’ll ever see a true double-barreled release from Wild Turkey again, but with this new era that feels like a bourbon glut is coming; never say never.