Maker's Mark
Type: Distillery and brand
Maker's Mark is a Kentucky bourbon brand made at Star Hill Farm in Loretto, where Bill Samuels Sr. and Margie Samuels developed a new whiskey and its distinctive bottle presentation. Soft red winter wheat in place of rye, hand-rotated barrels and Margie's dripping red wax are central to the producer's account of what makes it different.[1][2]
At a glance
| Field | Verified record |
|---|---|
| Distillery | Maker's Mark Distillery, Star Hill Farm, Loretto, Marion County, Kentucky.[7][1] |
| Brand's founders | Bill Samuels Sr. and Margie Samuels, according to the producer.[7][2] |
| Modern production timeline | Site purchased on 1 October 1953; distilling began in 1954; first release in May 1958.[9] |
| Legal form | Maker's Mark Distillery, PBC, according to the producer.[2] |
| Owner group | Suntory Global Spirits, which lists Maker's Mark among its brands; checked November 2026.[14] |
| Exact legal owner, effective date and ultimate parent | Not reliably established from the supplied record. |
| Grain distinction | Soft red winter wheat in place of rye, according to the producer.[1] |
| Age statements | The producer says the range has no age statements.[2] |
| Water | A spring-fed limestone lake on Star Hill Farm, according to the producer.[1] |
| Historic designation | Listed as Burks' Distillery on the National Register of Historic Places on 31 December 1974; designated a National Historic Landmark on 16 January 1980.[10][11] |
What Maker's Mark is known for
Maker's Mark brings together a grain choice, a recognisable presentation and a particularly visible founding partnership. The producer identifies wheat rather than rye as its distinguishing grain choice, while its account credits Margie Samuels with the name, bottle and dripping red wax. Those are separate contributions: one concerns the whiskey, the others how people recognise it.[1]
The spelling belongs to that identity too. Maker's Mark uses “Whisky” in its product names, without the “e” customary in American whiskey writing. VinePair reports that this was a deliberate acknowledgement of the family's Scottish and Irish roots, rather than an accidental departure from convention.[5]
The business also separates its office address from its production location. A trade interview with Rob Samuels places the corporate office in Louisville and production in Loretto. For understanding where Maker's Mark is made, Star Hill Farm is the relevant place, not the office address.[9]
A distillery site older than the brand
The Samuels venture belongs to the twentieth century, but the site's industrial history reaches much further back. The Kentucky Historical Society's marker records that Charles Burks erected a water-powered grist mill in September 1805. It describes distilling on the site during the early nineteenth century, with activity continuing until Burks died in 1831.[3]
Verdict: Disputed. In a trade interview, Bill Samuels Jr. placed the beginnings of the distillery in early 1804, whereas the state historical marker anchors the mill's establishment to September 1805. These accounts should remain distinct rather than being compressed into one apparently certain founding date.[3][8]
George R. Burks restarted the distillery in 1889 and built the present plant, according to the historical marker. The limestone walls of the early mill support the present stillhouse. That surviving fabric gives the site a connection to its earlier working life beyond the modern brand's name.[3]
Production and site timeline
| Date | Recorded event |
|---|---|
| September 1805 | Charles Burks built the water-powered grist mill.[3] |
| 1889 | George R. Burks restarted the distillery and built the present plant.[3] |
| 1 October 1953 | The Samuels family purchased the site, according to the trade interview.[9] |
| 1954 | Production began for the Samuels venture.[8][9] |
| May 1958 | First release; Keeneland bought the first case, according to the trade account.[9] |
| 31 December 1974 | Burks' Distillery entered the National Register of Historic Places.[10] |
| 16 January 1980 | National Historic Landmark designation followed.[11] |
The purchase, start of production and first release are different milestones. The venture's start date is Disputed: the producer's own pages differ between 1952 and 1953. The dated purchase and production events above should not be treated as resolving that disagreement.[7][2][1][9]
Bill and Margie's fresh start
The producer presents Maker's Mark as a deliberate break with an inherited recipe. In its telling, Bill Samuels Sr. burned the old family recipe, then used baked loaves of bread to explore grain choices. The sheet's verdict on the bread tests is Documented; the account is the producer's, not a tasting conducted for this article.[1][2]
Margie's contribution was equally concrete. The producer credits her with devising the name, designing the bottle and creating its dripping red wax presentation; the sheet's verdict is Documented. Its history dates the first finished bottle, dipped by hand, to 1958.[1]
Story box: A new recipe and a recognisable bottle
| Field | Record |
|---|---|
| Founding story | Bill Samuels Sr. and Margie Samuels founded the brand, according to the producer. The site purchase was on 1 October 1953, with production beginning in 1954.[2][9] |
| Key person | Margie Samuels created the name, bottle and dripping red wax, according to the producer.[1] |
| Documented record | The producer records bread-based recipe tests and the first finished, hand-dipped bottle in 1958.[1] |
| Claim and verdict | Documented: Bill Samuels Sr. burned the family's old recipe to begin afresh.[2][5] |
| What the record shows | The producer and the cited trade account record the recipe-burning story.[2][5] |
| Evidence gap | The account here rests on those published histories, not a contemporary record supplied with the sheet.[2][5] |
| Earliest known source | Not established from the sources checked. |
| Last checked | Exact day not established from the supplied record. |
Story sources and claim mapping: founding partnership and recipe burning: producer's history; purchase and production dates: Rob Samuels interview; Margie's contribution, bread tests and first bottle: producer's story; published account of the recipe burning: VinePair.
Grain, water and warehouse practice
The producer identifies soft red winter wheat as the grain used in place of rye and a spring-fed limestone lake on Star Hill Farm as its water source. These are specific production choices, not substitutes for a complete published mash bill. The verified record does not supply grain percentages.[1]
Warehouse handling is another part of the producer's explanation: barrels are hand-rotated within the warehouses. That is a description of its working practice, rather than evidence that every barrel develops identically or that a particular flavour follows automatically from rotation.[1]
A 2019 trade interview described three identical still sets, with the second added in the early 2000s and the third around 2015. Separately, a 2010 report described a third expansion beginning that year, following a second expansion in 2002. Expansion projects and the installation of still sets are related but distinct dates.[9][4]
From the original to Maker's Mark 46
The producer calls Maker's Mark 46, introduced in 2010, its first new major expression since 1958. Its account describes the use of ten seared French oak staves, making wood treatment central to the expression's identity.[1][2]
The number is not an age statement. Drinks International reports that “46” came from Independent Stave's profile number and identifies the staves' origin as the Vosges. This is a useful distinction when reading the name: it refers to a wood profile, not forty-six years of maturation.[4]
The producer's history dates Private Selection to 2015 and names Maker's Mark 101, Cask Strength, Cellar Aged and the Wood Finishing Series elsewhere in its material. It also records Star Hill Farm Whisky in 2025. These names describe an expanded portfolio, not an independently verified list of current availability.[1][7][2]
Ownership and family leadership
Maker's Mark is not still family owned. The business was sold to Hiram Walker and Sons in 1981, according to the trade account. Suntory Global Spirits lists Maker's Mark among its brands following the group's 2024 rebranding.[5][14]
The intervening corporate record needs careful wording. A 2005 Fortune Brands filing records an agreement to acquire Maker's Mark from the Pernod Ricard group after its purchase of Allied Domecq. That document describes an agreed transaction subject to review, not a verified completion date.[12]
Family leadership continued after the sale. Bill Samuels Jr. led the company from 1975 to 2011, and the producer records Rob Samuels taking over in 2011. Leadership and ownership are different relationships, which explains how the Samuels family can remain prominent in the story without owning the business.[8][1]
The proof change that did not last
In February 2013, Maker's Mark reduced its original whiskey from 45% ABV (90 US proof) to 42% ABV (84 US proof) in response to demand. Following protests, it reversed the decision within days and restored the original strength. NPR's contemporary report records the reversal.[15]
Verdict: Documented. The reduction did not become permanent: the sequence was reduction, objections and restoration. That episode belongs to the brand's history, rather than describing every later bottling bearing the Maker's Mark name.[15]
Where to go next
- Jim Beam: another American distillery and brand profile.
- Woodford Reserve: continue exploring Kentucky distillery identities.
- W.L. Weller: read another brand profile alongside Maker's Mark.
Sources
- Maker's Mark. Our Story. Producer's account, undated edition supplied in the fact sheet; checked November 2026. https://www.makersmark.com/story
- Maker's Mark. Perfectly Unreasonable. Producer's account, undated edition supplied in the fact sheet; checked November 2026. https://www.makersmark.com/en-us/perfectly-unreasonable
- Kentucky Historical Society. Historical Marker: Old Grist Mill Distillery. Undated marker record; checked November 2026. https://history.ky.gov/markers/old-grist-mill-distillery
- Drinks International. Maker's Mark to launch new bourbon. 2010 report, as dated in the fact sheet; checked November 2026. https://drinksint.com/makers-mark-to-launch-new-bourbon/
- VinePair. Why Maker's Mark spells whisky without an e. Publication date not supplied in the fact sheet; checked November 2026. https://vinepair.com/articles/makers-mark-whisky-spelling/
- Maker's Mark. llms.txt brand summary. Producer's account, version supplied in the fact sheet; checked November 2026. https://www.makersmark.com/llms.txt
- The Whiskey Wash. Interview with Bill Samuels Jr. Publication date not supplied in the fact sheet; checked November 2026. https://thewhiskeywash.com/bourbon/makers-mark-interview-bill-samuels-jr/
- Leaders Magazine. Interview with Rob Samuels. January 2019; checked November 2026. https://www.leadersmag.com/issues/2019.1_Jan/Wine%20and%20Spirits/LEADERS-Rob-Samuels-Makers-Mark.html
- National Park Service. NPGallery: Burks' Distillery, NRIS 74000893. Record dated 31 December 1974; checked November 2026. https://npgallery.nps.gov/AssetDetail/NRIS/74000893
- National Park Service. National Historic Landmarks list. May 2026 edition; checked November 2026. https://www.nps.gov/subjects/nationalregister/upload/National-Historic-Landmarks_20260522.xlsx
- US Securities and Exchange Commission. Fortune Brands Form 8-K. August 2005; checked November 2026. https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/789073/000119312505154648/d8k.htm
- Suntory Global Spirits. Beam Suntory Rebrands as Suntory Global Spirits. Company statement, 2024; checked November 2026. https://www.suntoryglobalspirits.com/news/beam-suntory-rebrands-suntory-global-spirits
- NPR. Maker's Mark reverses proof decision, transcript. February 2013; checked November 2026. https://www.npr.org/transcripts/172336340
This article is desk research based on verified fact sheet TOP-A285, distinguishing producer histories, trade accounts, corporate filings and official historic-site records.
Last checked: November 2026