Distillery: Wild Turkey Distilling Company
Region: Lawrenceburg, Kentucky
Aging: 15 Years
ABV: 58.6%
Proof: 117.2
Mash Bill: 75% Corn, 13% Rye, 12% Malted Barley
Non-Chill Filtered: Yes
MSRP Price: $90
Russell’s Reserve 13 Year Batch 2 Bourbon Tasting Notes
Appearance: Dark Amber
Nose: Caramel, vanilla, toasted oak, light fruits, citrus, brown sugar, backing spice, rye spice, oaky tannic spice, light floral notes, earthy, leather, tobacco
Palate: Rich caramel, dark sweetness, toasted oak, smooth vanilla, baking spice, rye spice, cinnamon spice, sugar toast, grassy notes, earthy, leather, tobacco, oaky tannic spice
Finish: Long rich finish with a full mouthfeel – leaves you with bold spice, caramel, and earthy tobacco
Is Russell’s Reserve 13 Year Batch 2 an Approachable Whiskey?
Russell’s Reserve 13 Year is an extremely approachable whiskey.
It has all the flavors you could want in a bourbon with nearly zero downside.
If this bottle weren’t extremely hard to find, I would recommend it to everyone.
Is Russell’s Reserve 13 Year Batch 2 Complex?
Russell’s Reserve 13 Year is very complex and has many layers of flavors.
It starts with all of the classic bourbon flavors you would expect from being aged for 13 years – rich caramel, vanilla, toasted oak, and oaky spice.
In addition to those flavors, my favorite part of this particular batch of Russell’s Reserve 13 is the beautiful earthy, leather, and tobacco notes.
It creates a very unique flavor profile and is the reason that I enjoy this particular batch of Russell’s Reserve 13 Year over others.
As with all of the batches of Russell’s Reserve 13 Year, it also has its classic bold spice layer of flavors that cover everything from rye spice, pepper, baking spice, hints of cinnamon spice, and a very nice oaky tannic spice that isn’t overpowering.
I was lucky enough to visit the Wild Turkey distillery and even though their warehouse was under construction, they still had a temporary tasting location where I got to taste the Russell’s Reserve 13 Batch 2, Russell’s Reserve Single Rickhouse Camp Nelson C, and the W.B. Saffell whiskey with the awesome bartender Bo Garrett.
He shared all kinds of cool stories about spending time with Eddie Russell and got into some cool details about the yeast strains and how they affect flavors and impact the Wild Turkey whiskeys.
Is Russell’s Reserve 13 Year Batch 2 priced accurately to its quality?
Russell’s Reserve 13 Year Batch 2 was released at an MSRP price of just $90.
At that price, it was an absolute steal.
However, you’d probably have to camp out in lines at stores to buy it and that is exactly what I had to do to get this bottle.
Wild Turkey has boosted the price up by 66% and the newest releases of Russell’s Reserve 13 are now selling for $150 MSRP and the quality has not warranted the increase to me.
They’re still delicious whiskeys and $150 isn’t a horrible price for them, but I have a feeling Wild Turkey will be pushing their prices higher and higher until they find a cap.
I was extremely disappointed that they released the Wild Turkey Generations bottle at a whopping $400 MSRP price.
I was very excited to purchase that bottle and when I saw the price tag, I just felt like they are trying to take advantage of their customers and the bourbon hype phase we are in.
Conclusion for Russell’s Reserve 13 Year Batch 2
Russell’s Reserve 13 Batch 2 is absolutely worth its price tag at MSRP.
Even if you had to spend double to get this bottle for $180-220 I would say it is worth it for this particular batch.
It is one of my favorite bourbons and still holds strong flavor-wise against new competitors like Jack Daniel’s 12 Year ($85 MSRP), Elijah Craig Barrel Proof 11-13 Year ($75), and Stagg ($100).
If you find Russell’s Reserve 13 Batch 2 at a decent price, definitely snag it up.
*Update: The Russell’s Reserve 15 Year has been released so check out that review as well.
Let Us Know What You Think
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Thanks for reading and cheers!
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