LAWRENCEBURG, Ky. — Russell’s Reserve is exploring a different side of its bourbon with Single Rickhouse 2026 – Camp Nelson D, a limited release distinguished by an unexpected rye-like spice profile drawn from one of the Camp Nelson property’s highest-elevation warehouses.
The fifth edition in the Single Rickhouse Collection is non-chill filtered and bottled at a barrel proof of 120.8. It is available for a limited time at select U.S. retailers and the Wild Turkey Distillery Visitor Center, with a suggested retail price of $300 per 750-milliliter bottle.
The collection explores whiskey “terroir” — how a rickhouse’s location and aging environment can influence a bourbon’s character even when its recipe and foundational production methods remain consistent. For the 2026 edition, Camp Nelson D’s elevation, airflow and exposed position helped produce what Russell’s Reserve describes as the collection’s most distinctive profile yet.
Built in 1946, Camp Nelson D is one of five historic rickhouses still standing on the Camp Nelson property. It sits on the western side of the campus, apart from surrounding warehouses, at the highest elevation of any rickhouse featured in the collection to date.
Its elevated, exposed, west-facing position creates strong, consistent airflow, providing an aging environment the collection had not previously explored.
For Master Distiller Eddie Russell, the warehouse also carries personal significance. The release arrives as he celebrates 45 years at Wild Turkey Distilling Co., bringing him back to a building where he worked early in his career.
“Camp Nelson D was the first rickhouse I ever worked in at Camp Nelson when I started as a union employee 45 years ago, so coming back to it for this release meant a lot to me,” Russell said. “We set out looking for those sweeter notes we know and love, but the rye spice notes immediately stood out. It’s the most different Single Rickhouse release we’ve created, proving how every rickhouse can shape whiskey.”
That discovery guided the barrel-selection process. As Russell and his team tasted through Camp Nelson D, they selected barrels from floors one, three, four, five and six — drawing from more floors than any previous Single Rickhouse release.
The selections allowed the team to balance fruit-forward sweetness with the bold spice that became the final blend’s defining characteristic. Barrels from the first floor, a location the team does not typically draw from for these releases, contributed an earthy element.
“We don’t typically draw from the first floor,” Russell said. “But some of the barrels we tasted down there contributed an earthy character that helped build the spicy, rye-like profile we found ourselves chasing. Once we realized what was developing, we leaned into it. This is the first Single Rickhouse release where, tasted blind, you’d bet it was a rye.”
Despite that rye-like character, Camp Nelson D is a bourbon. The distinction reflects the collection’s central theme: the maturation environment can reveal different characteristics in whiskey made with consistent fundamentals.
According to the distillery’s tasting notes, the bourbon opens with aromas of baked fruit, apple, baking spices and vanilla. The palate brings cinnamon, clove, stone fruit and rye bread, followed by a medium-length finish featuring rye spice, pepper, cinnamon and spicy oak.
At 120.8 proof, or 60.4% alcohol by volume, the release presents those flavors at barrel strength. Its non-chill-filtered presentation is intended to preserve the character developed during maturation.
Camp Nelson D adds a new chapter to the Single Rickhouse Collection while highlighting Russell’s approach to barrel selection: following the flavors found in the warehouse, even when they lead in an unexpected direction.
Consumers can sign up for purchase updates through the Russell’s Reserve newsletter at RussellsReserve.com.
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