Maker's Mark 46 Kentucky Bourbon Whisky, 70cl

Product Information

The palate is rich and creamy with notes of oak, dark chocolate, and cinnamon. It’s not as deep as the nose would indicate, but it’s still soft and well-balanced. The “46” designation represents the culmination of countless experiments, with experiment No. 46 ultimately achieving the desired flavour profile. These two brands were never meant to compete side-by-side. They are positioned in separate price segments to appeal to customers within entirely different demographics. Not as dry as Maker’s and with lots of caramel and dessert notes mixed with wood that slowly fades with a long finish. Easy drinking with cinnamon and fruity sweetness; it is lovely. However, when you put the Maker’s 46 next to it, you can immediately taste what the extra time in the wood did to the whiskey.

I’m ashamed that I don’t give them their due but then bottles like this remind me how ashamed I should be. They’re a consistently reliable sip every time and I always forget about them. Maker’s Mark though, cought my eye again at the age of 25, its Red Wax seal, its intriguing bottle design. The most significant differences between these two brands are their flavoring grains. So we’ll focus on the use of traditional spicy rye grain versus soft, red winter wheat. Rich and sweet with heaps of plump maraschino cherries, oak, vanilla and caramel. There are hints of honey and buttery cinnamon toast.Full of vanilla, followed by sweet cherries and fresh red fruit. Cinnamon and toasted oak. A few drops of water brings butterscotch and warming nutmeg. Delicious and very easy drinking. Maker’s 46 gets it’s name from the profile number of the seared French oak staves that are added during the extra aging. The profile number corresponds to the charring rate and temperature development in the staves which can bring out different flavors and characteristics in the wood. Those characteristics can in turn change the flavor of the whisky aged in it which becomes very noticeable when tasting Maker’s Mark and Maker’s 46 side by side. The extra aging and the double wood really transforms this whisky into something uniquely tasty. Although they are from different pricing segments, there is a lot to be learned by pouring a couple fingers of bourbon and putting them side-by-side for a blind taste comparison: Original recipe vs. wheat bourbon being foremost. The nose is rich with standard Maker’s notes like vanilla, caramel, and oak, but with a faint hint of dark chocolate.

Also Read: Woodford Reserve Double Oaked Bourbon Review and Tasting Notes for the Maker’s Mark 46 Bourbon Allow me to pre face this review by saying that I am most certainly not a whiskey connoisseur. I won’t begin to pretend I could tell you every single nuance detail about this whisky’s flavor, Nor will I flatter myself by trying to make it sound like my palate the most refined and well trained. Description: In the glass, Maker’s Mark has an amber-honey complexion. 90-proof bottling strength gives it strong ‘legs’ that run down the glass when the liquid is swirled. The Maker’s 46 is creamier and more decadent with bolder cherry and toasted oak notes, more spices with added complexity and an oilier mouthfeel. The complexity continues on the finish. A fantastic glass of bourbon. Caramel and toasted wood moving along with vanilla ice cream, under ripe citrus, sweet grains, roasted corn, cinnamon and a host of sweet dessert notes. Much more depth of flavor than the traditional Maker’s Mark.The Maker’s Mark 46 bourbon is aged longer than the standard Maker’s Mark, so the wood has a longer time to impact on the bourbon.

But not Maker’s. They continued to drag their feet until it became obvious that they had to do something more to stay relevant. Maker’s reluctantly enters the cask strength market This is a story of two brands that today fall under the same ownership umbrella. It gives us the perfect opportunity to look at the industry’s history — and enjoy a brief economics lesson. Those barrels were then rolled into their giant limestone cave and left to rest for about 9 weeks. If you’ve been to their distillery, you’ve seen what I’m talking about – It looks like a mini-NORAD bunker on the side of a hill. There’s a hint of Chai spice that I think deserves to be mentioned separately of the rest. Fruit notes are hard to find but probably would be exposed with some added water (or just buy a bottle of standard Maker’s 46). Maker’s Mark has managed to release some equally great bourbons since that initial release, mostly in the form of their Wood Finishing Series which started in 2019 and ended in 2023. When Maker’s Mark RC6 came out it was a great reminder of just how important the company's wood stave finishing process plays in the final flavor profile. However, while interesting to enjoy as a fan of Maker’s Mark, it left a lot to be desired for consumers who were looking for big bold high proof wheated bourbons.In 2014, Beam Inc. was acquired by Suntory. The U.S. holding company Beam Suntory was formed to oversee the North American portfolio. I recently held a whiskey tasting on a yacht for 500+ advertising professionals and it was featuring the two whisk(e)y giants Bourbon and Scotch. For the Scotch I wanted to showcase a peated and un-peated whisky so I featured Ardbeg 10 and Glenmorangie 10. For the bourbon I wanted a traditional bourbon and a wheated bourbon so I went with Evan Williams 2004 Vintage Single Barrel and this, Maker’s 46. Other Maker’s Mark expressions — including Maker’s 46 — use additional wood staves in finishing barrels to offer additional flavor notes. These staves are placed inside the barrel and run across the diameter of the cask. Toasted French oak staves give Maker’s 46 a unique finish. Other types of wood staves are used in the Private Select single barrel program, in which customers can create their own expressions using combinations of these staves for a one-of-a-kind barrel. Price Point & Value

Finish: Oak is dominate but tobacco pops up. The tannins are quite nice to find in a bourbon that is this inexpensive. Vanilla latte, cinnamon and toasted caramel round out this moderately long finish.Starting at the nose, the initial wafts coming from the two glasses are pretty similar. Both have cherries, vanilla and oak. After a while, the Maker’s 46 shows a bolder, creamy wooden note on the nose. Looking at the Maker’s Mark, the vanilla and cherries continue on the palate.