Maker's Mark Bourbon

Cumplidor, me pareció que se le nota por demás el alcohol. Al haber sido mi primer bourbon siempre le voy a guardar un cariño especial ja.

Continuing to work through whiskies in my collection that I’ve not yet reviewed—and I cannot believe that I’ve yet to review Maker’s Mark! Perhaps because Maker’s is the Everyman of the bourbon world. It’s not showy or ostentatious, but it gets the job done, like a utility infielder (in baseball terms), or a backup quarterback (in football terms), or a sixth man (in basketball terms), or a Ford F-150 (in pickup truck terms). It’s an iconic, omnipresent benchmark: so much so that I used it as a touchstone today in my previous review (Noah’s Mill) to double check if all of the rye elements I was getting in the NM were correct. One sip of the Maker’s Mark confirmed it. Color is a clear Pantone 138. There’s a lot of classic bourbon elements on the nose: caramel apple, cola (vanilla Coke), chocolate-covered cherries, caramel, snickerdoodle cookies, oak, and a little mint. Fruity palate shows apple cider doughnuts, vanilla, and cinnamon spice. The finish is smooth, with a nice blend of oak, char and vanilla. Straightforward and unpretentious. About ten years ago, Maker’s was considering lowering the proof from 90 to 84. As I’ve written several times, this is entirely an economic decision. More dilution equals more inventory to sell. Many drinkers use Maker’s for cocktails, so apparently management’s thought was that people wouldn’t notice or care. But notice and care they did. There was something of a public backlash among bourbon drinkers, and the decision to dilute was ditched, and Maker’s Mark remains 90 proof to this day. While there’s no magical flavor profile with 90 proof (Maker’s does offer a Cask Strength expression, as well as numerous oak-stave expressions that have a higher proof), the fact that they didn’t bow to the economic altar shows that they have a pride in their product. I respect that. And the hand-dipped red-wax bottles? Also iconic. And unnecessary. And not without cost. But they do it anyway. That, and the shape of the bottle, are probably the single-most recognizable visual-shelf elements of any bourbon out there (Blanton’s round bottle ranks highly as well, but buyers hardly ever actually see that on the shelf these days). Maker’s doesn’t have a “wow” factor. It’s not high-octane. But it’s good, and relatively inexpensive, and widely available. It can serve as a daily sipper neat, or imbibed on the rocks, or used in cocktails. No bourbon enthusiast’s collection can be complete without Maker’s Mark, and the same can be said for Maker’s 46 and several of their barrel-stave offerings. Would I buy it again? Hell yes I would. Maker’s Mark is an icon. It’s a staple. It is quintessential wheated bourbon. It’s a must-have in your portfolio. Maker’s Mark is part of the Beam Suntory portfolio. NAS. 90 proof. 3.75 on the Distiller scale. N.B.: All spirits tasted neat in a Glencairn glass.