Wild Turkey has debuted a new look for its premium bourbon and rye whiskey range, keeping the award-winning liquid the same. The new packaging for its global family of products 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, depicts a spirited bird that is authentic, proud and bold — characteristics that Wild Turkey says have always been at the heart of the brand.  
 
“While sticking with our traditional recipe and authentic values, we are excited to present new global packaging for Wild Turkey,” says Melanie Batchelor, global vice president for spirits at Gruppo Campari. “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. 
 
She adds, “With the explosion in interest we’ve seen in the bourbon and rye categories, driven by classic cocktail trends, we’ve seized the opportunity for bold premiumization. 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 positive attention for the Wild Turkey brand stemming from critical and commercial success of its super premium limited-time offerings including Forgiven, Diamond, and Master’s Keep, and is the latest example of Gruppo Campari’s efforts to further popularize the brand 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 is designed to make it clear to consumers that Wild Turkey Bourbon (originally named Wild Turkey 81) is Eddie’s creation, while his father 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.
Eddie Russell notes, “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.”
 
In addition to its range of bourbon products, packaging for Wild Turkey’s rye expressions has also been updated. The new look features rich green colors and a premium split label design —- a nod to the superior quality and character of the whiskey. 
Although labels for each expression of Wild Turkey differ, they do share some common aspects that create uniformity across the range:
  • Strip Stamp: Comprised of deep, rich colors and accented with gold foiled writing, the strip stamps at the neck of the bottle now denote what type of whiskey is inside each bottle, and most contain the phrase “Crafted with Conviction.”
  • Glass: Below the strip stamp on every bottle, a circular Wild Turkey marking is embossed in the glass. Near the bottom of every bottle, also embossed in the glass, are the words “BOLD. GENUINE. TRUE.”
  • Label: 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, Rhodes 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 started rolling out in November: Wild Turkey Bourbon (formerly known as Wild Turkey 81), Wild Turkey 101, Wild Turkey Bourbon (formally known as Wild Turkey 86.8, for Australia only), Wild Turkey Rye, Wild Turkey 101 Rye, and Wild Turkey 101 8 Year Old (Japan only). 
 
In 2016, Wild Turkey will evolve the packaging for the remaining expressions in the range including Kentucky Spirit and Rare Breed.