Fans of Maker's Mark will be excited to learn there's a new product on the market, but only for a limited time. Last month, the distillery known for its distinctive red waxed bottles released a single-stave finished bourbon that will only be available at the distillery and some select locations in Kentucky. It's the first time in the distillery's history that it has offered a bourbon in such limited quantities.
The limited release bourbon, known as Seared Bu 1-3, was born out of the success of the distillery's popular Private Select program in which a combination of barrel staves is used to finish cask-strength Maker's Mark to produce distinctive expressions of traditional Maker's Mark bourbon. (FYI, "finished bourbon" means that an additional measure, such as inserting barrel staves into the barrel, is used to provide additional flavor to the bourbon once the bourbon has otherwise matured).
These limited release bottles were produced when the distillery experimented with different staves to produce some unique expressions of Maker's Mark before deciding these staves didn't complement the others in the program. So the distillery is making the experimental bourbons they produced available through this limited release.
The tasting notes include a dark, rich and creamy mouthfeel with notes of toffee and honey, according to the distillery. Maker's Mark made around 1,400 bottles available at a suggested retail price of $39.99 per 375ml bottle.