Maker's Mark -- anyone else come back to it?

bammann45

bammann45

Joined
Oct 29, 2005
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After circling around many of the more snooty bourbons, such as Bookers, Bakers, Bakers, Eagle, Pappy Van Winkle, Rare Breed, Evan Williams, Woodford etc. I find that I've come back to Makers Mark when I need a drink at the end of the work day. It even seems to have edge out Knob Creek as my evening bourbon on the rocks....

Anyone else find themselves not just ordering it when that's all the bar has good-bourbon-wise....

And any other fine bourbon rec's?
 
Visited Makers Mark this summer, great place. Dipped my own bottle, put my finger in a mash barrel, go to their site and become an embassador. And go visit them, they are right in bourbon country you can go see many disstilleries or just one.

Cheers!
 
Try George Dickle #12. It makes a nice trade off with Maker's from time to time.
 
Two others you may definitely want to sample:

Old Rip Van Winkle ( I have a friend who is a Maker's fanatic, who belives this is the best)

Wild Turkey Reserve
 
Maker's isn't too bad, but when I want a bourbon, I often like the rye in Knob Creek.

I find myself going to the Scotch most of the time though :)
 
Granted I haven't tried all of the higher end Bourbons, but I like Maker's Mark.

But Wild Turkey Reserve and Evan Williams are on my list to try.
 
Thanks for the recs all. I am particularly intriqued by George Dickle #12 -- haven't heard of it...
 
For the money, it's really hard to beat Evan Williams. And yep, I come back to the Mark when I can afford it. :thumbup:
 
I find Maker's a bit on the sweet side though I drink it from time to time along with several of the others named above.

I find that Elijah Craig is both a good bourbon and a good value.
 
If you can find a place that buy's Eagle Rare by the barrel it's a steal.

My boss opened up our last bottle of George T Stagg yesterday. I can still taste the excellence.
 
I have to back Blues up on the Elijah Craig. They make a single barrel 18yo that is about the same price as Blanton's. It's actually the oldest single barrel you can buy. I was in Louisville on business a couple of weeks ago and got to take a tour of Heaven Hill Distillery which is where Evan Williams and Elijah Craig are made. What an awesome day. A customer of mine actually knows the family that owns the distillery and we got a personal tour. We got to taste everything from moonshine up to 23yo Evan Williams that goes for about $350 a bottle. The most incredible thing we did was taste 5yo bourbon straight out of the barrel. They uncorked one, poured it out and let us hold our hand underneath to taste it. Unreal! Its amazing how good that stuff is before they cut it down with water. One good piece of advice they gave us. They say to only mix your bourbon with distilled water and use only ice made with distilled water. The additives like chlorine, flouride etc taint the flavor of the bourbon. Next time you have a chance mix a drink with tap and then distilled water. Pretty amazing difference. I'm trying to resize some pics of our trip. I'll post them if I can get them right.

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Straight from the Barrel

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23yo bottle sells for $350 and is only available at the distillery.

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Diagram shows how to read the markings on a bourbon barrel.

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This is a pic of a few of the buildings that house the bourbon barrels. Pretty amazing.

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This is a shot straight up inside one of those buildings.

All in all a pretty good day.
 
I consider Maker's Mark one of my 'bread and butter' whiskeys....reasonably priced, goes down pretty good too.
 
Tried some Noah's Mill today, 115 proof. thick brown sugar and cinnimon taste. most excelent.

tomorrow, Thomas Handy Sazerac Rye.

also, the only problem I have with makers mark is that next to the "snooty", high proof, un-waterd down bourbons (Noah's Mill, Stagg, Hirsch Reserve) it tastes like the smell the garbage truck leaves as it drives by, but sweeter. (though that goes for most 90 proof whiskeys)
 
I was discussing it today with a coworker. Makers mark is like the american cheese of bourbon. It's not quite kraft singles (beam, actually no, more like ten high, or old granddad) but it's not havarti, or even chedder. lot's of people think that it's chedder, but that has more to do with brand perception than actual quality (and that wax crap on the bottle). There are much better values in the bourbon world than Makers Mark.

750ml Makers Mark 24.99
750ml Woodford Reserve 27.99
750ml Eagle Rare 10 22.99
750ml Elijah Craig 12 18.99

(prices reflect UPNY pricing)

Hmmm....

and bourbon is the best value in the whiskey world right now.

Related bourbon information 75% of the Woodford Reserve blend is bulk bourbon.:eek: (it does have a nice looking bottle though). Which is fine if you are a "I don't care because I think it tastes the same" person. Know what you are drinking.
 
Interesting perspective on the Mark. Now, I pay ~17.00 for Makers at Trader Joes for a 1/5th -- hence I come back to it. I've never found the flavor to be "american cheese" Its on the lighter side but is still interesting...

Now, dollars aside, the best bourbon I've ever had was Pappy Van Winkle 20.
But it is tough to find... and $$$$$

I LOVE those pics. Thanks for posting em. I've never been to a whiskey distillery but I am an avid fan. Keep em coming.
 
bammann45 said:
Now, dollars aside, the best bourbon I've ever had was Pappy Van Winkle 20.
But it is tough to find... and $$$$$
Click to expand...

or nearly impossible. Van Winkle has been having trouble sourcing bourbon for some of their lines.

I didn't mean to sound like a snob in my above post. In the bourbon world, there are still quality bargins to be had (as there are in most types of liquor except single malt and tequila). There are distilleries that will do better quality than makers mark, or wild turkey, or evan williams, for the same price. in the same vein, there are some really great special reserves from Beam, Evan Williams, and Heavens Hill, that Buffalo Trace will do for half the price.
I pay ~17.00 for Makers at Trader Joes for a 1/5th
Click to expand...

Competition and the buying power of Trader Joe's makes that price artificially low. but more power to you.

The liquor laws in NY are designed to prevent chains. While it does make for slightly higher prices (due to smaller orders). it does allow for more smaller distributors, and therefore, more odd and interesting things on the shelves
 
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