Whiskey Review: Makers Mark 46

American Whiskey is nothing to scoff at! I don’t think it has the class and appeal of fine Scotches, but there is a grace that cannot be overlooked. There are several American distilleries that have done a really good job of reviving premium American whiskey. Makers Mark is one of those distilleries. They have excelled in marketing their small batch whiskey and capitalizing on the growing whiskey momentum. Their launch of Makers 46 is a perfect example of this.

Makers 46 is the first new product offering for the Makers Distillery, ever. For years they only offered their traditional Makers Mark Bourbon. The 46 uses the traditional small batch bourbon but they insert oak staves into the bourbon. This adds a very noticeable oak sweetness of honey and vanilla. It makes the normally bitey bourbon much smoother and noticeably sweeter. It is fascinating and adds a kick start of oak taste without having the whiskey age in oak casks for years. There is a drawback to this "short cut". This oak stave method is effective but it loses that subtleness. The Makers 46 is very bold in its taste, almost too oaky sweet even. The finish and complexity is dampened a little. It is almost rum like in its sweetness. I like the taste don’t get me wrong, but it is very bold and surprising. Other than that, the new Makers is very interesting and definitely worth buying! It is unique and a needed innovation for the Makers Distillery. Here are my tasting notes:

Color: straw, dirty gold
Nose: sugary like a caramel, and light citrus
Body: light and watery, thin
Palate: vanilla and caramel overwhelmed here, pleasant
Finish: smokey and smooth but very short lived,

Another big win for Makers is their awesome Ambassadors programs. Why not train your most loyal drinkers to spread word of mouth for your company?! It is basically free other than the informational materials sent to the ambassadors and the email campaign. I was invited to be an ambassador by a friend, and I am now an ambassador myself. It is a great word of mouth campaign that builds the brand and ultimately sales! Anyway, the new whiskey was not so subtle, very interesting, sweet, and easy to drink! I give the NEW Makers Mark 46 a respectable 7 of 10.

Question for YOU: Do you like the Makers 46 over the original?