Wild Turkey Bourbon Flying High with New Brand Packaging

Wild Turkey has debuted a new look for its bourbon and rye whiskeys. While making no changes to the spirits in the bottle, Wild Turkey has designed new packaging for its global family of products that better reflects the core values of the historic brand. A detailed new turkey illustration, found on every expression and most prominently displayed on Wild Turkey 101 (see larger image below), depicts a spirited bird that is authentic, proud, and bold – characteristics that have always defined the conviction at the heart of the Wild Turkey brand.

“While sticking with our traditional recipe and authentic values, we are excited to present new global packaging for Wild Turkey. Proudly and prominently featuring our turkey brand icon, this new premium look is the result of in-depth research, consulting with our distillery, and listening to bartenders and consumers,” said Melanie Batchelor, global vice president for spirits at Gruppo Campari.

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She added, “With this new, proud, and striking design, our packaging for Wild Turkey will now stand out amongst the competition as well as our award-winning liquid has done for decades.”

The change of packaging comes on the heels of recent attention for the Wild Turkey from brand owner Gruppo Campari and its efforts to further popularize the iconic bird worldwide. To date, the company has invested more than $100 million to thoroughly modernize and expand the Wild Turkey distillery experience, including the construction of a new visitor center and packaging facility.

The new look for the entire range of bourbon and rye whiskies also reflects Eddie Russell’s recent promotion to Master Distiller. The packaging now makes it clear to consumers that Wild Turkey Bourbon (originally named Wild Turkey 81) is Eddie’s creation, while his father and living legend Jimmy Russell is the creator of Wild Turkey 101. Eddie’s signature is front and center on Wild Turkey Bourbon, while Jimmy’s is prominently placed on Wild Turkey 101.

Wild Turkey’s Master Distiller Eddie Russell noted, “We wanted the new packaging to capture the hard work, craftsmanship, and heart that goes into making Wild Turkey. My father and I have been making whiskey the same way for over 60 years. From hand selecting the grain, to bottling the liquid, and everything in between, we make sure our product is made the right way – the traditional way – at every single stage. We’re proud of our whiskey, and we’re glad to have packaging that embodies that.”

New Wild Turkey Icon Designed by Artist Julie Rhodes

The most striking feature of the new packaging is the true-to-life illustration of the turkey found on every bottle in the range. Professional wildlife artist Julie Rhodes was commissioned to draw the icon. Working closely with the National Wild Turkey Federation, Julie took great care to make her work as realistic as possible, painstakingly finishing a small section at a time before moving on to the next. What resulted is an incredibly realistic depiction of a spirited bird (the original national symbol recommended by Benjamin Franklin) that is regal, bold and proud – a perfect icon for an exceptional bourbon.

New packaging for the following expressions will be rolled out starting in November of 2015:

Wild Turkey 101, Signed by Master Distillery Jimmy Russell
Wild Turkey Bourbon (formerly known as Wild Turkey 81), Signed by Master Distiller Eddie Russell
Wild Turkey Bourbon (formally known as Wild Turkey 86.8, for Australia only)
Wild Turkey Rye, Signed by Master Distiller Eddie Russell
Wild Turkey 101 Rye, Signed by Master Distillery Jimmy Russell

In 2016, Wild Turkey will evolve the packaging for the remaining expressions in the range, including Kentucky Spirit® and Rare Breed®.