Distillery: Wild Turkey Distilling Company
Region: Lawrenceburg, Kentucky
Aging: 15 Years
ABV: 57.4%
Proof: 117.2
Mash Bill: 75% Corn, 13% Rye, 12% Malted Barley
Non-Chill Filtered: Yes
MSRP Price: $250
Russell’s Reserve 15 Year Bourbon Tasting Notes
Appearance: Dark Amber
Nose: Caramel, brown sugar, oaky tannic spice, baking spice, fruit, citrus, oak (but not overpowering), leather, tobacco, earthy, grassy vegetal notes, significant fruit, cherry, vanilla
Palate: Oaky tannic spice with hints of cinnamon, rye spice, rich caramel, vanilla, dark fruit, leather, tobacco, well-balanced charred oak, grassy earthy note, bold heavy spice
Finish: Long rich finish, full mouthfeel – leaves you with a rich bold spice flavor that is still somehow quite smooth, very enjoyable oak, caramel brown sugar, and a lingering pipe tobacco note on the tail end
Is Russell’s Reserve 15 Year an Approachable Whiskey?
Russell’s Reserve 15 Year is a whiskey I would reserve for experienced whiskey drinkers.
While it is smooth enough for anyone to enjoy, the complex layers of flavor warrant reserving this one for special occasions (especially for the price tag).
Is Russell’s Reserve 15 Year Complex?
Russell’s Reserve 15 Year is one of the most complex whiskey’s I have tasted.
At first, it seemed to be right in line with much of the Russell’s Reserve flavor profile, but as I sat with the pour it started to open up and reveal more layers of flavor.
Right off the bat, the nose is full of extremely well-balanced flavors that you can only get from a well-aged bourbon.
It has all of the classic Russell’s Reserve flavor characteristics like caramel, vanilla, oak, and extremely rich spice, but then piles on 3-4 additional layers of flavor that you won’t get in any Russell’s bottles aged less than 13 years.
The most significant flavor that I enjoyed most in the Russell’s Reserve 15 Year is a distinct dark fruit almost cherry note that I don’t often find in Russell’s Reserve products.
While it’s not the same fruit flavor, it reminds me of the distinctiveness of the fruit strain I often find in Pappy Van Winkle 15 Year and Pappy Van Winkle 20 Year.
It’s one of those fruit flavors that are quite memorable but delicate enough that it doesn’t overpower the rest of the flavors in the profile.
In addition to the lovely strain of fruit flavors, Russell’s Reserve 15 is packed with earthy, leathery, tobacco notes as well as hints of grassy, vegetal flavors.
So to put it lightly, Russell’s Reserve 15 Year is extremely complex and is on par with its competitors like the Jim Beam Lineage 15 Year and the Jack Daniel’s 12 Year.
Is Russell’s Reserve 15 Year priced accurately to its quality?
Here is the real debate: Is Russell’s Reserve 15 Year worth its price tag?
My answer is no, not really.
I do think that Russell’s Reserve 15 Year is the best whiskey released by Russell’s Reserve, but when I think about the price tag… I think the jump in price from the Russell’s Reserve 13 Year is just way too significant.
I understand that this bottle may be a one-time limited release so it has a high level of “collectibility”, but it is really hard to justify the $250 price tag especially when I’m seeing Wild Turkey charge $400 for Wild Turkey Generations.
I was looking forward to Wild Turkey Generations for quite a while because I love the Jim Beam Lineage bourbon.
I first tasted it with my Dad when we got to do a private tasting with Fred and Freddie Noe and Lineage is their 15-year offering and their first father and son collaboration project.
So when I saw Wild Turkey was going to release a similar “Generations” whiskey to pay tribute to their generational whiskey heritage, I was quite excited to compare the two.
However, when I saw Wild Turkey trying to gouge everyone for a $400 MSRP price tag, I just couldn’t justify the cost and completely passed on the bottle.
I feel like Wild Turkey is pushing its limits and seeing just how much they can charge us without push back.
So should you buy a bottle of Russell’s Reserve 15 Year at the MSPR price of $250?
To most people, my answer would be no.
To true whiskey enthusiasts looking for one of the top-tier bourbons on the market, I don’t think you would be disappointed spending the $250, but this bottle should probably have been released in the $150-175 range.
Conclusion for Russell’s Reserve 15 Year
Russell’s Reserve 15 Year is one of the most complex bourbons I have tasted in quite a while.
I definitely think it is better than any Russell’s Reserve 13 Year (including Batch 2 which is my favorite).
If this bottle had been released at the $150 price point, I would have given this a glowing endorsement and categorized it as an absolute must-buy.
With the price point of $250, it gets docked a bit and is one that I recommend only for the highest-level whiskey enthusiasts who don’t care about price points and want to drink the highest quality whiskeys on the market.
For everyone else, I would either stick with Russell’s Reserve 13-Year which is now already pushed up to $150 (200% increase in just 3 years), or keep an eye out for the wonderfully priced Jack Daniel’s 12-Year at $90, Elijah Craig Barrel Proof at $75, or Stagg for less than $100.
Let Us Know What You Think
I hope you enjoyed this tasting experience with me.
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Thanks for reading and cheers!
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