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BOTM, 7/08: Wild Turkey American Spirit


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This month's selection is the recent limited release - Wild Turkey American Spirit. Released in the USA, Australia and Japan, many of the retail stocks are now depleted.

What is your opinion?

:893drillsergeant-thSound Off:893drillsergeant-th

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Very enjoyable...so much I emptied it last night! Well maybe I'll dig for a spare. This really got better the longer the bottle was open.

Tony

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I have purchased and drank a bottle of AS. I liked it so much that I replinished the bottle with another. I found the premium bottling of WT to be surprising tasteful and pleasing. At the price, it is not a go to drink, but a great special occasion pour. I am looking forward to a special occasion to pry open the cork. An excellent pour.

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Is there any rhyme or reason to all of the Wild Turkey brands?

I look at the following brands and immediately understand the marketing message.

Rye

101

8 yr.

12 yr.

17 yr.

Sherry Signature

But for the following, I trouble figuring out or remember what they are.

American Spirit 15 yr

Kentucky Spirit

Russell Reserve 10 yr

Russell Reserve Rye

Rare Breed

Master Distiller Selection 14 yr.

Tribute 15 yr.

How does know what to look for? (edit: I realise that most of these are on there website, but MDS14 and T15 are not)

Is AS15 and MSD14 really worth 3 times the price of Rare Breed?

Anyone want to sponsor a tasting between 17 yr, T15, MDS 14 and AS 15? I will be more than happy to attend and supply proper glassware.

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There are only three bottles of Master Distillers Selection 14 YO available in Japan. At 90 bucks, I could buy a bottle of 12 YO and Rare Breed and still have change.

I am very tempted to buy . . . .

Anyone have this before? Is it that much better that 12 YO?

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I finished my first bottle on the weekend. When I first opened it, I found it to be very similar to a Kentucky Spirit I have open. In saying that, it is a very good bottle of KS.

I am very glad I have enough American Spirit to see me through a long time!

Scott

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Is there any rhyme or reason to all of the Wild Turkey brands?

How does know what to look for? (edit: I realise that most of these are on there website, but MDS14 and T15 are not)

There's plenty more than what you have listed, Attila.......and I think it really comes down to marketing.

They have done a few exclusive releases for DFS Galleria now and older bottlings that are no longer available.

Is AS15 and MSD14 really worth 3 times the price of Rare Breed?

Probably not. The current Rare Breed is fantastic bourbon at a great price. The others are just limited release so WT think they can get the big bucks, and they have no trouble selling them.

Anyone want to sponsor a tasting between 17 yr, T15, MDS 14 and AS 15? I will be more than happy to attend and supply proper glassware.

If you can find a WT17 at a decent price and you can get MDS14 for $90, I will definitely sponsor a tasting...if you feel like coming to Australia!

:toast:

Scott

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We recently did an informal tasting of Tribute, AS and KS. I preferred the AS over the other two, but it is important to note all were excellent. I felt the AS was very well balanced, had an excellent and long finish and a very nice back end sweetness. Tribute, also very good was a bit dryer to the palate and a bit tighter. By far the KS was the best value but as expected had less concentration of flavor, a bit less viscous mouth feel, shorter finish and less complexity.

For the price KS is a tough bottle bourbon to find fault with. For something special AS won't disappoint and IMO will command even a higher premium over the next year or two.

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This one catches me on a cash-strapped month. So unless I find a bar where I can get a pour (not likely) I will be missing out on the WTAS... for now.

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Okay, I will get the MDS 15 and tell you guys my impression in the next couple of days. I am trying to imagine a bourbon experience toping the one I recently had with WTRB and having a difficult time of it.

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This month's selection is the recent limited release - Wild Turkey American Spirit.

<cough>

Shouldn't that be BOTM, 7/08?

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I picked this for Vbt #120. My tasting notes are here.

I like WT AS well enough, but I can't say I like it any better than Rare Breed. They are different (although you can tell that they're different expressions of the same whiskey), but I don't consider one better than the other. With the AS costing almost three times the RB, I suspect I won't be buying another bottle.

The next time I'm willing to spend $90+ on a bourbon it will probably be Pappy 20.

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<cough>

Shouldn't that be BOTM, 7/08?

You caught me out.... I wondered if anyone would notice :lol:

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I've been bunkering these as my wallet and availability will allow.

I'm a big WT fan and this is the best expression of theirs I've had the opportunity to taste.

Additionally, I'd put this in my top choices of all bourbons...One of my all time favorites!

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I'm jealous of all of you! I've never even seen a bottle of AS. If I see one I'll buy it, but by then, we'll probably be on a different botm. I do enjoy reading this thread as it teaches me what to look for while traveling. Keep up the good work.

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My budget is tight but I did manage to acquire one bottle of AS, Still waiting for the proper occasion to open it.

Perhaps a good pour to enjoy at the raising of my timber frame house this fall.

Bill

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I'm jealous of all of you! I've never even seen a bottle of AS. If I see one I'll buy it, but by then, we'll probably be on a different botm. I do enjoy reading this thread as it teaches me what to look for while traveling. Keep up the good work.

I've only seen one AS on the shelf and that was at Red Dot, US 127 Frankfort ($89.99)... I might have gone back to get it, but on the same trip the folks at BT told me about the GTS in Lexington, so I went there and bought the Stagg ($60.99) instead.

-Joe

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In light of the fact that I accidentally came into possession of three bottles of WTAS this month, I was hoping for a more robust discussion of this bourbon. Why not the 85 responses JB got?

That being said, b/c of the price, I havent opened any of my bottles this month.

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I was hoping for a more robust discussion of this bourbon. Why not the 85 responses JB got?

Accessibility, which is a function of two other factors, the first being availability: the number of bottles of JB exceeds the number of bottles of WTAS by several orders of magnitude.

The other factor:

That being said, b/c of the price, I havent opened any of my bottles this month.

Many can't/won't spend the amount asked for it.

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while looking to find some russels reserve 101, I came across a second bottle of as, In my mind, I thought it would be easier to open if I had a back up but when I got home and opened the box I realized that is not the case.

as much as I want to taste it I find myself needing a bit of an occasion to open one of these.

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while looking to find some russels reserve 101, I came across a second bottle of as, In my mind, I thought it would be easier to open if I had a back up but when I got home and opened the box I realized that is not the case.

as much as I want to taste it I find myself needing a bit of an occasion to open one of these.

I know what you mean.

I have several bottles that I have not tried and I want to, but I to want it to be a special oocasion.

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I know what you mean.

I have several bottles that I have not tried and I want to, but I to want it to be a special oocasion.

You guys are embarrassing...:blush: (of course, I can still buy both off the shelf:grin: -- if'n I want to!)

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I just went and poured it, because I could...and, because the bottle is shaped like an anchor, and everyone needs an anchor (especially if, like I am, you are going to face 2nd-graders in the morning!).

Cinnamon-y nose (and still a bit of that manure-ish-ness I originally noted):

http://www.straightbourbon.com/forums/showpost.php?p=99152&postcount=1

Dry-leather opening on the palate. Roll it around, the cinnamon comes along, and turns to cinnamon-sugar.

Very good finish, because it has length and doesn't justify the opening dry-ness.

Overall, even today, I hold by my original tasting notes -- I nailed this sucker! I still get now what I got then.

That said, the overall impression is positive, without being the best Wild Turkey I ever et.

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Tim talked me into opening this tonight! Or should I say he said Tony go open an American Spirit, so I did and we chatted about the notes. I still agree with his first notes and these. Great stuff until you try it side by side with the Tribute! WTAS is Tribute in reverse and I quoted that from Tim!

Cheers!

Tony

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until you try it side by side with the Tribute! WTAS is Tribute in reverse

I am very interested to hear what you mean by this.

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