I do think of mother's milks as the typical woody strat tone. i've played quite alot with a friend's strat having these and its a good balanced set.
Personally I have sinner, slow hand, sultan sets, '69 sets, with an irish tour neck and full set to come.
My own preference from strat tones is not the classic one I suppose, since i prefer them to be a bit warmer and more open to overdrive. (uli roth, ritchie blackmore)
I think we can safely rule the sinner set out of this one, it has some subtlety, but its more of a fire breather.
From the rest, I've never gone wrong with the Slowhand Strat in any situation. It is warmer and middier than a normal strat tone, but it sounds good and stratty when clean. But I think it might not be right for you based on what I've read in this thread - might be a bit too weighty.
The Sultans have A2 magnets, and 42 gauge wire. Cleans are instantly Knopfler (which may or may not be your thing) and they load up really well with drive in the way that 42 gauge pickups often do.
The'69 set is very classic strat when clean, but I don't like it so much driven. Does a good Hendrix though.
I would primarily put Irish Tours in a rosewood board strat, but people say they are good with maple too. They are brighter, and a bit less output that slow hands. It could be the sound you want, they are edgey and electric.
The set which I have less experience with (The Apaches) may actually be the one you want, since they often come up as being versatile and handling a bit of gain well.
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