Spirits · Loretto, Kentucky
The Maker's Mark Distillery
A Kentucky wheated bourbon, sealed by hand in its famous red wax.
- Founded
- 1953
- Founded by
- Bill Samuels Sr., Margie Samuels
- Based in
- Loretto, Kentucky
Their story
Maker's Mark began in 1953, when Bill Samuels Sr. bought the old Burks' Distillery in Loretto, Kentucky, and set out to make a softer bourbon. His wife, Margie Samuels, named the whiskey, drew its label, and came up with the idea of dipping each bottle in red wax, which became its signature.
The first whiskey was bottled in 1958. The family sold the distillery in 1981, and it passed through several owners over the following decades. Today it belongs to Suntory Global Spirits, formerly Beam Suntory, and still operates in Loretto.
How it's made
Maker's Mark uses red winter wheat instead of rye in its mash, alongside corn and malted barley, which gives the bourbon a softer, rounder profile. The whiskey is aged in charred oak barrels in Loretto, and every bottle is still finished with a hand-dipped red wax seal.
Our featured pick
No. 46: French Oaked Wheated Bourbon (750ML)
$55.00
Made from fully matured Maker’s Mark, with additional aging inside barrels containing seared French oak staves creating bolder, vanilla and caramel notes.
Shop The Maker's Mark Distillery
3 in stock
Why we carry them
We reach for Maker's Mark when someone wants a gentle introduction to bourbon. It also mixes well in an Old Fashioned or a whiskey sour.
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