Tasting notes

nose

caramel, honey and vanilla with mint, crème brûlée, bubblegum, grain and baking spice over oak

palate

rye spice and mint with apple, oatmeal and a buttery texture, then oak

finish

medium; hot cinnamon spice gives way to woody oak and fades to a dry aftertaste

Mash bill

51% rye, 37% corn, 12% malted barley. Rye sits just over the legal minimum for a rye whiskey, and the large share of corn gives it a sweeter, rounder body that leans toward bourbon. The malted barley converts the starches in the mash, as it does in the house bourbon.

Awards

• 92 Points — Ultimate Spirits Challenge 2020
• Gold — Beverage Tasting Institute 2020
• Double Gold — San Francisco World Spirits Competition 2021

Why it's craft

101 Rye is a straight rye at the same 101 proof as the house bourbon, aged at least four years in barrels with the No. 4 "alligator" char. Wild Turkey distills it in Lawrenceburg alongside its bourbon, with its own yeast strain and a lower barrel-entry proof. Master distillers Jimmy and Eddie Russell, father and son, have more than a century at the distillery between them; Campari Group owns it.