Maker's Mark

In 1953, Bill Samuels Sr. bought an old distillery in Loretto, Kentucky, and burned his family's 170-year-old bourbon recipe. He wanted something softer, without the bitter edge that many bourbons had back then. To find a new mash bill, he baked loaves of bread using different grain recipes and tasted each one. The loaf made with red winter wheat instead of rye won, and that recipe became Maker's Mark. The wheat gives the bourbon a softer, sweeter character than rye-based whiskies usually have. His wife, Margie, named the brand and designed the bottle, including the red wax seal that is still applied by hand at the distillery. The building is now a National Historic Landmark, a rare honor for a working bourbon distillery.