Wild Turkey Master’s Keep Beacon
Mike Rosen

Bourbon

December 31, 2025

The last release in the Master’s Keep collection, Beacon, is described by Wild Turkey as “a bold tribute to the distillery’s storied heritage while shining a light on the road ahead. Crafted by Master Distiller Eddie Russell and Associate Master Blender Bruce Russell, this limited-edition 118-proof release is a blend of two distinct, hand-selected bourbons.” Master’s Keep Beacon is a blend of 10 and 16-year-old bourbons, each hand-selected to reflect key moments in the distillery’s history. Eddie’s selection, a 16-year-old bourbon distilled between 2007 and 2008, was pulled from some of the last remaining barrels laid down in the original Wild Turkey distillery, just before the distillery’s major expansion in 2011. Bruce’s 10-year-old selection, distilled in 2015, is among the first he produced alongside Eddie and Jimmy Russell when he joined the family business. Let’s get to it!

Taken: Neat in a Glencairn glass, rested for about 15 minutes.

Distillery: Wild Turkey Distilling Co., Lawrenceburg, KY.

Proof: 118. Non-chill filtered.

Age: A blend of 10 & 18 year old bourbons.

Mash bill: 75% Corn/13% Rye/12% Malted Barley.

Retail Price: $300.00.

Appearance: Dark caramel.

Nose

Chocolate-covered cherries, orange slices, butterscotch, herbal tea, peppermint, nutmeg, vanilla beans, stone fruit, toasted almonds, floral, and cinnamon spice. The balance is excellent and features a lot of classic Wild Turkey flavors, especially the oak, with some nice floral and a surprising, subtle peppermint. I could smell this whiskey all night.

Palate

With an excellent, viscous mouthfeel, the palate matches the nose with toffee, Luxardo cherries, chocolate, butterscotch, orange citrus, peaches, and toasted almonds. White pepper spice covers the palate and continues long into the finish.

Finish

Spice lingers, tingling the palate with chocolate, cherries, cola, vanilla, toasted oak, delicate peppermint, leather, and tobacco. This very long finish lingers with spice, cherries, and mature, musty oak, showing Beacon’s older age.

Conclusion

Wild Turkey Master’s Keep Beacon is no doubt one of the best bourbons I’ve had this year. Overall, this incredible flavor profile delivers what I expected from a well-aged Wild Turkey limited release, with a couple of twists. One was the peppermint note, and the other was the spice. The peppermint is subtle yet consistent in every pour I’ve had, but I don’t recall finding it in a Wild Turkey bourbon before. It’s an interesting flavor I like, typically found in rye, but just a pop works well in Beacon. The white pepper spice also works well, but I was expecting a softer cinnamon spice, like Russell’s Reserve; instead, the spice is more like Rare Breed.

Compared to Russell’s Reserve 15 Year, Beacon has some overlapping notes of chocolate, cherries, toffee, butterscotch, and orange peel, but differs in its herbal notes and spice. Russell’s Reserve 15 has much deeper, darker cherry and chocolate flavors, and a more oak-forward finish. Though Beacon’s elevated herbal notes give it more complexity, in a side-by-side comparison, I preferred Russell’s Reserve 15’s profile just slightly more. Still, I can easily see how others could prefer Beacon, including myself on any given day. Both are incredible, and I realize at this point, I’m splitting hairs.

Beacon is a perfect end to the decades-long Master’s Keep collection. Though it’s the end of an era, we’ll likely see a new series next year featuring some of Wild Turkey’s best whiskey, and I look forward to it. Cheers, and happy new year!

Rating: 9.8/10.

1 | Disgusting | So bad I poured it out.
2 | Poor | I wouldn’t consume by choice.
3 | Bad | Multiple flaws.
4 | Sub-par | Not bad, but better exists.
5 | Good | Good, just fine.
6 | Very Good | A cut above.
7 | Great | Well above average.
8 | Excellent | Really quite exceptional.
9 | Incredible | An all-time favorite.
10 | Perfect | Perfect.

You May Also Like…