Benji-Robert
Maker's Mark 46 French Oaked
Bourbon — Kentucky, USA
Reviewed
January 30, 2021 (edited June 9, 2021)
It's like a 4.5 if you get it cheap. How did I never try this until now??! OH, because I always picked up bernheims in the past instead of this and was more than A LITTLE familiar with regular makers...
..MISTAKE.
This is a Kentucky straight bourbon whisky barrel finished with the barrel containing 10 french oak staves. '46' refers to the designation this profile was given among barrel experimentation. The makers wheat bill is there but tastes mildly more balanced, if only a touch.
Nose:
PAST the cherry syrup and AMAZINGLY tantalizing oaky wood*, you nose fudge, old glasses formerly containing burgundy, marzipan/gingerbread cookie
*its up-front and unapologetic but is so well placed I truly believe this took 45, then 46 attempts at strategic wood placement to get ultimately balanced against the best of the Kentucky notes. Stand-out enjoyable if you like well-done wood
Palate:
Somewhere between the olfactory and tongue is this great saltwater taffy, butterscotch, fig, allspice/clove statement that makes the whole thing work like a well-polished work. The details and nuance here are just as much the N/P themselves (standout) as it is the interaction... ...again, fantastic. On the end of a only-as-oily-as-it-should-be-and-not-an-inch-more tasting, you get brought back to the hints of the delicious KY regulars you didnt get in the open--whispers of cinnamon and leather fade into a silky wheater mouth
Mouth:
Short but on par with the big boys. The 'justtttt oily enough' thing is really killer when you get a glass of it just right.
This one takes neat, water, and ice fantastically. I recommend neat or ice sphere after destroying the bottl--i mean 'testing' for the ideal sip.
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@Grumpious its bourbon that successfully tries to steal that dessert scotch market but without straying from Kentucky roots. someone else's review nailed it: "if you like sweet bourbon this is a must" the sweetness of makers profile feels perfectly suited for fancy toasted stave experiments, and it is. I just worked 4 doubles in a row and am going to crush the half a bottle of this stuff I stashed today. dessert all day today.
Great review, and when I first rated this, that "amazingly" oaky profile was a little too dominate, however 4 months later with a little time, that bottle is now such a decadent treat. Even better at the price you mention!
@Benji-Robert This is $40 around me, and I splurge on it every couple months. If it was $26 I'd drink it every night. That wood note you describe its fantastic!
bump it up to 4.5 if you can get it for $25.99+tax like I can. it drinks like it belongs with the $40-50 shelf.