Review #653 - New Riff Red Turkey Wheat (2025)

The original Red Turkey Wheat bourbon from New Riff arrived in 2021; now, in 2025, the distillery has revived the bottling. Like the original, this year's Red Turkey Wheat comes with a 5 year age statement, and it carries the bottled-in-bond designation, meaning it's bottled at a strength of 50% ABV (100 proof).

Red Turkey wheat is a wheat variety grown in the winter; it's an heirloom variety which was popular back in the 1800s. It makes up 25% of the mashbill of this bourbon; 70% is corn (it's usually 65% in New Riff's standard bourbon mashbill), and the final 5% is malted barley.

New Riff Red Turkey Wheat (2025)

USA - Bourbon

Price: USD 60 (2025)

Age Statement: 5 Years

Strength: 50% ABV

Details: Not chill filtered; bottled 2025

Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 3 times over 1 month; bottles at 100%, 90%, and 80% fill levels at times of review. Tasted in a nosing glass each time, rested 15+ minutes

Nose: Soft brown sugar, light vanilla, a bit of sweet cherry - some classic wheated bourbon notes show up, leaning light and sweet. Orange peel and some licorice add a sharper side, but we also get lavender and floral notes. Little hints of plum, oak, and peanut butter are accent notes.

Palate: Oak is stronger up front - leather, a bit of pepper, some tannins. Behind that, we get dark fruits of plum, raisin, and prune, maybe some cherry. Cinnamon and wood spice are strong, and there are softer flavors of molasses, butterscotch, and vanilla. It's a medium thickness mouthfeel.

Finish: Sweeter floral notes build, some hay and light honey; the oak is a bit drying and spicy, but not too much. Orange oil and raisin add fruity flavor, and we get some brown sugar, freshly baked bread, and acidic red fruit (cranberry?) in the aftertaste. It's a medium length finish.

Final Note: A really solid wheater - this has a nice range of flavors. We really enjoy that dark red fruit note that some New Riff bottles seem to be developing over time, and that flavor is on full display here; there are some sugary baking notes, and a nice, light floral flavor coming from that wheat grain. The mouthfeel and length of finish are decent - nothing to write home about, but solid at that strength of 50% ABV.

Value is quite good, as the cost of this bottle is very reasonable. The previous version from 2021 was more expensive on the secondary market after its release because the production run was more limited; this time, it seems that New Riff has created quite a large batch, and it's easier to find. At $60, we like this wheated bourbon more than most of its competition in the same price range.

Our Average Rating: 7.0 / 10

In the current whisky landscape of increasing prices and variable quality, we've added a value rating to our reviews that relates to the score and the available pricing of each whisky. This roughly equates to a 0-10 scale; no reviews so far have exceeded a score of 10, although it is technically possible for the formula to produce a value rating higher than 10 with a high enough score and low enough price.

Value Rating: 7.15

About Us: We're a husband and wife review team living in the Midwest United States. Generally, our reviews and tasting notes will be a compilation of both of our experiences with a whisky over several tasting sessions.