It’s always appropriate to have turkey around Thanksgiving, particularly if it is Wild Turkey Master’s Keep. This year’s release, Unforgotten, is a blend of a thirteen year old bourbon and a nine year old rye that was then married together in used rye casks. It is 105 proof and, as all Master’s Keep releases, is non-chill filtered. I paid $150 for this release, which is a little less expensive than so prior releases of Master’s Keep I have purchased.

The color on the whiskey is a medium amber; I tend to think this may have been proofed down a little bit. On the swirl is a thin film but with some nice thick legs inside the sheet of film. On the nose is sweet caramel and herbal notes; the rye whiskey element of this blend seems to dominate. On the palate, there are caramel sweet green apples, and the herbal notes are more muted. The apple notes are similar to what I picked up on Master’s Keep One from last year. That’s one of the great things about Wild Turkey’s limited releases; a lot of bourbons will give you cherry notes, but on various releases of Wild Turkey I have gotten grapefruit, apple, and peach. I suppose their mashbill ends up being very versatile when it comes to fruit flavor profiles, and I like that. On the finish, green apple pie with a dusting of cinnamon on the crust mingles with herbal notes and a hint of oak. Mouthfeel is very rich. This whiskey is so very balanced; it has a sweetness that is not too sweet as it is cut just right with herbal and oak notes.

I continue to be impressed with Wild Turkey’s limited releases and still think they should not chill filter another drop of their wonderful whiskies.