The Maker’s Mark brand was a vision before it became a bourbon. It started with a ceremonial burning of their old family recipe – and from this Bill Samuels, Sr. worked to create a bourbon without the burn. He started the current distillery in 1952, and his wife Margie created the name Maker’s Mark and the bottle design the following year.

Never bitter or sharp, Maker's Mark is made with soft red winter wheat (instead of the usual rye) for a one-of-a-kind, full-flavored bourbon that's smooth and balanced. It's the red winter wheat that imparts the front-of-palate sweetness that's quintessentially Maker's. Every barrel is rotated by hand and the bourbon is aged to taste, not time in their solar-powered warehouses. Each and every bottle of Maker's is still hand-dipped in their signature red wax at the distillery in Loretto, KY, just like Bill Sr. wanted.

The Samuels family chose Star Hill Farm for its pristine water source, a spring-fed, limestone-filtered lake ideal for making bourbon. The limestone shelf where the distillery is located is key to crafting the unique taste of Maker’s Mark – the only distillery with its own water source and watershed. The pure calcium- and magnesium-rich water surrounding the distillery makes better drinking water and a better sour mash in which yeast can flourish.