Located at Star Hill Farm in Loretto, Kentucky, USA, Maker's Mark is a renowned bourbon maker, now one of the brands of spirits giant Beam Suntory. It is now one of the brands of spirits giant Beam Suntory.
Meg's history is closely linked to that of the Samuels family, who in 1953 began exploring ways to create a bourbon that would suit their tastes and that they could share with their friends, and so Meg was born. The founder, Bill Samuels Sr., was a craftsman by trade, and his ability to perceive complex, nuanced flavours has been used to enhance the quality of Meigs. Bill's wife, Margie Samuels, designed the packaging for her husband's handcrafted bourbons, including the shape of the bottle, the style of the label, and the iconic red wax seal on the top.
When the next generation of the family, Bill Samuels Jr. took the helm, Meigs jumped from Kentucky favourite to one of America's icons. In addition, he introduced the use of oak-strip maceration in the distilling process, an innovation that created a new flavour profile for Meigs Bourbon and laid the groundwork for even more diverse and innovative expressions to come. Meg's legacy was passed on to Little Bill's son, Rob Samuels. As the General Manager and 8th generation distiller, Rob has made it his mission to promote the distillery's sustainability and culture, ensuring that the traditional distilling recipes are adhered to, while meeting the needs of an ever-growing market.
The limestone of Star Hill Farm, where the distillery is located, is the key to Meg's unique flavour. Meg has its own dedicated water source, and the limestone filters out iron from the water, preventing unpleasant iron flavours from developing in the finished wine. The water is rich in calcium and magnesium, making it an excellent source of drinking and brewing water, which helps the yeasts work better. Star Hill Farm is also home to a wide range of flora and fauna, and this richness of ecological resources helps to protect and nourish the water.
To make his favourite whiskey, Bill Samuels Sr. searched his kitchen for a recipe. He made bread from a variety of grains and cereals in different ratios, thus eliminating the tedious and time-consuming steps of distillation and aging, and quickly testing the ratios of the ingredients used to make his bourbon. In addition, Old Bill used red winter wheat instead of the usual rye, giving Meagher's bourbon a sweet, mellow and smooth flavour.
It's worth noting that for more than 60 years, Meg has been using the same strain of yeast, a family heirloom that is guarded by Meg and used in every whisky we make. During the distillation process, Meg's bourbon is double distilled in copper column stills to remove most of the impurities, creating a more refined bourbon. The barrels used to age the spirit are also very specific - the barrel maker must dry new American white oak outdoors for nine months and then leave it for several more months to remove the wood's bitter tannins. During the aging process, to ensure the consistency of the wine, each of Meg's barrels is manually rotated to ensure that each barrel is kept in a different part of the cellar for a certain period of time, and thus exposed to different temperatures. At Meigs, the maturation time is not fixed, but is determined by a team of professional tasters who conduct several tastings to determine the final ageing time. Today, Meigs still insists on hand-sealing each bottle of Meigs Bourbon by dipping the top of the bottle into melted wax to create its signature red wax seal.
This bourbon is made with corn, wheat and barley malt. This high proportion of corn results in a nose that smells a little like candies, and a long-lasting sweet finish in the mouth. The soft, clean and gentle flavours tend towards a slightly firmer, more full-flavoured whisky. The charred barrel notes are also evident as the wine was matured in new charred oak barrels. Only American oak is used for bourbon storage. The wood flavour of raw barrels becomes softer and blended with the bourbon flavour, and is often bought by other distilleries to store their own wines to add more flavour.
