Click here for a copy of the report.

After the two year period was complete we blended most of the whiskey into our inventory but saved two barrels as "Reserve stock." We presented this unique opportunity to Ace Spirits who selected one of the two barrels.

This Hybrid barrel contains American oak, French Oak, and Eastern European Oak from Slovakia. All were charred and toasted at medium (#3) levels.

Our experience from tasting the different barrels was that the American Oak, our standard, had the highest vanillin development resulting in a more typical American sweet profile, The French and Eastern Euro Oaks were significantly drier and much higher in tannin levels. And the Hybrid did the best job of introducing more tannin, but balancing with the vanillin profile. Way higher oak flavors, but not to the point of eliminating the vanilla content compared to American Oak.

This particular barrel Hybrid 1, was one of two filled on 8/9/11. The barrel was dumped and bottled just prior to shipping to Ace Spirits in May 2015."">

- Lance Mayhew, Oregon Culinary Institute">

blog post for more detail! Stave Configuration: (0-P2, 0-CU, 10-46, 0-MO, 0-SP) Maker's 46 is created by taking fully matured Maker's Mark bourbon and placing it in a barrel with ten charred wooden staves in it to create more wood influence, more caramel, more... YUM. The whisky is then aged in these modified barrels for an additional three months to maximize the flavor impact of the staves. We love Maker's 46 and so when the opportunity arose to create our own private barrel, we jumped at it. in 2017, the folks at Maker's worked with Independent Stave (one of the largest cooperages in the world) to create a total of five different stave types that would create different flavor profiles in the whisky: Baked American Pure 2 (P2) Seared French Cuvee (CU) Maker's 46 (46) Roasted French Mocha (MO) Toasted French Spice (SP) By arranging these staves in different configurations, you could develop up to 1,001 different whisky variants. After several attempts, we found the recipe that suited our palate. Rich, vanilla and caramel with just enough mocha and spice to color the highs and the lows. Then I got to thinking… OK, we got this awesome Private Select chosen, would it be possible to make a barrel using ONLY the Maker’s 46 staves? Since it was to be bottled at barrel proof, this would essentially be Maker’s Mark 46 Cask Strength Bourbon!!!??? The answer was yes. In fact, if you wanted this bottle you could get it only at Maker’s Mark- a distillery only release made at the direction of Bill Samuels Jr. himself! In the fall of 2017 we paid a visit to Maker's Mark to create our very own Maker's 46 Private Select Barrel. Let's back up a bit first. Maker's 46 is created by taking fully matured Maker's Mark bourbon and placing it in a barrel with ten charred wooden staves in it to create more wood influence, more caramel, more... YUM. The whisky is then aged in these modified barrels for an additional three months to maximize the flavor impact of the staves. We love Maker's 46 and so when the opportunity arose to create our own private barrel, we jumped at it. Basically, the folks at Maker's worked with Independent Stave (one of the largest cooperages in the world) to create a total of five different stave types that would create different flavor profiles in the whisky: Baked American Pure 2 Seared French Cuvee Maker's 46 Roasted French Mocha Toasted French Spice Samples aged in barrels with exclusively one stave type were blended to approximate the final product. French Spice was very sharp and tannic, French Cuvee was very rich and round. By calculating the percentages to blend in based on the number of staves of each type, we would go through the process of determining (what I would consider to be) the best stave configuration. The first attempt produced a rich, round, but very flat whisky. The next didn't offer much improvement. Only through inserting some mocha and spice- flavors which on their own were completely outside of my wheelhouse, did the whisky become balanced and truly memorable. On the fifth iteration, the whisky was finMaker's Mark Private Selection Processally perfect. Rich, vanilla and caramel with just enough mocha and spice to color the highs and the lows. Then I got to thinking... OK, we got this awesome Private Select chosen, would it be possible to make a barrel using ONLY the Maker's 46 staves? Since it was to be bottled at barrel proof, this would essentially be Maker's Mark Cask Strength!!!??? The answer was yes. In fact, this had been done only once before- as a distillery only release at the direction of Bill Samuels Jr. himself! I'm pleased to offer you, for the first time outside of the distillery, Maker's Mark Cask Strength!">

blog post for more detail! SPECIAL TWO PACK AT A SPECIAL PRICE! Maker's 46 is created by taking fully matured Maker's Mark bourbon and placing it in a barrel with ten charred wooden staves in it to create more wood influence, more caramel, more... YUM. The whisky is then aged in these modified barrels for an additional three months to maximize the flavor impact of the staves. We love Maker's 46 and so when the opportunity arose to create our own private barrel, we jumped at it. in 2017, the folks at Maker's worked with Independent Stave (one of the largest cooperages in the world) to create a total of five different stave types that would create different flavor profiles in the whisky: Baked American Pure 2 (P2) Seared French Cuvee (CU) Maker's 46 (46) Roasted French Mocha (MO) Toasted French Spice (SP) By arranging these staves in different configurations, you could develop up to XXX different whisky variants. After several attempts, we found the recipe that suited our palate. Rich, vanilla and caramel with just enough mocha and spice to color the highs and the lows. Then I got to thinking… OK, we got this awesome Private Select chosen, would it be possible to make a barrel using ONLY the Maker’s 46 staves? Since it was to be bottled at barrel proof, this would essentially be Maker’s Mark 46 Cask Strength Bourbon!!!??? The answer was yes. In fact, if you wanted this bottle you could get it only at Maker’s Mark- a distillery only release made at the direction of Bill Samuels Jr. himself!">

blog post for more detail! Stave Configuration: (2-P2, 4-CU, 2-46, 1-MO, 1-SP) Maker's 46 is created by taking fully matured Maker's Mark bourbon and placing it in a barrel with ten charred wooden staves in it to create more wood influence, more caramel, more... YUM. The whisky is then aged in these modified barrels for an additional three months to maximize the flavor impact of the staves. We love Maker's 46 and so when the opportunity arose to create our own private barrel, we jumped at it. in 2017, the folks at Maker's worked with Independent Stave (one of the largest cooperages in the world) to create a total of five different stave types that would create different flavor profiles in the whisky: Baked American Pure 2 (P2) Seared French Cuvee (CU) Maker's 46 (46) Roasted French Mocha (MO) Toasted French Spice (SP) By arranging these staves in different configurations, you could develop up to 1,001 different whisky variants. After several attempts, we found the recipe that suited our palate. Rich, vanilla and caramel with just enough mocha and spice to color the highs and the lows.">

Highlighted by light aromas of dried mango, cocoa, fruit and spiced peach. Flavors of honey, oak and tobacco dance on the pallet. The finish is balanced and dry, with a lingering tingle.">