‘Tis the season … for “best of” whiskey lists. Very soon, Fred Minnick will host his annual “Top 100 American Whiskeys” blind tasting. What will come out on top? It’s anyone’s guess, though there are three Turkeys currently gracing his list: Rare Breed, Master’s Keep Voyage, and Wild Turkey Generations. With that in mind, it seemed appropriate to include one of Fred’s Russell’s Reserve Single Barrel selections in my “12 Rickhouses of Turkey” series. And which did I opt for? A 2022 bottling from the 5th floor of Tyrone’s rickhouse S.
As mentioned in my recent Tyrone Q review, Wild Turkey occasionally relocates barrels from one rickhouse to another. There are a range of reasons for doing this, such as not keeping all of a particular stock in one place, lest it all be lost in the event of calamity. But in the case of rickhouse S, a relatively newer construction, barrels were at one time moved to fill the rickhouse with something other than young whiskey. I recall asking Eddie Russell about this when we selected a TYS Russell’s Reserve back in 2020 for Russell’s Renegades. As we were working through the samples, we came across an S barrel with some Camp Nelson qualities. He remarked that it likely started its maturation process at Camp Nelson, but was moved to S at a later date.
Seeing as this Fred Minnick and Seelbach’s collaboration has a barrel number of 20-0830, it was pulled for the single-barrel program in 2020, meaning it was possibly relocated to TYS at some point in time. Given its (spoiler) Camp Nelson attributes, it’s pretty obvious. That said, I’ve never claimed to be a whiskey expert and I could always be wrong. The ultimate test involves finding a Tyrone S barrel with a 20- prefix. But for the time being, you’ll have my tasting notes as a reference.
Russell’s Reserve Single Barrel Bourbon
Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Proof: 110
Age: 10 years, 6 months
Misc.: Selected by Fred Minnick & Seelbach’s; barrel 20-0830, Tyrone S, 5th floor; distilled and bottled by the Wild Turkey Distilling Co., Lawrenceburg, KY
Tasted neat in a Glencairn after a few minutes rest …
Color: copper
Nose: vanilla pudding, woody spice, cedar-esque charred oak, gingerbread cookies, savory orange, nutmeg
Taste: caramel toffee, nutty trail mix, baked brown sugar, well-balanced oak, barrel-aged cream soda, hints of applewood
Finish: pushing long w/ semi-sweet vanilla, fizzy cola, peppery oak char, sweet earthy spice, ginger beer, leather, faint clove
Impression: Having tasted a variety of 2020 Tyrone S barrels over the last three years, I can say with confidence that this nose is essentially par for course. Many (if not most) of the same notes you find on an eight- or nine-year-old TYS selection can be found in Fred Minnick’s 10.5-year. Yet, when the bourbon hits your palate the benefit of additional aging is undeniable. The oak is nearly perfect and there’s a dense richness I can only describe as barrel-aged cream soda. As for the finish, it’s right where it needs to be – long enough to decipher and appreciate its complexity, but trailing off just before you’re fully satisfied (leaving you thirsty for more in the process).
While the chances of finding a Russell’s Reserve Single Barrel Bourbon from Tyrone S today are fairly slim, I wouldn’t rule it out as an impossibility. For what it’s worth, this barrel was bottled in June 2022 (which wasn’t that long ago). Given past delays in distribution – particularly in west-coast states like California – it wouldn’t surprise me to see a TYS selection suddenly appear at a random retailer. But even if that never happens, the bourbon community is an amazing place. Given the right friends and connections miracles can happen (and often do). If that falls through, try a 2021 Camp Nelson A Russell’s Reserve or 2022 Camp Nelson C Kentucky Spirit, as I’ve found distinctive profile similarities to Tyrone S selections. Worst-case scenario, you end up with some damn fine Turkey.
dj
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