Maker's Mark is a small-batch bourbon whiskey that is distilled in Loretto, Kentucky, by Beam Suntory. It is sold in distinctively squarish bottles, which are sealed with red wax, and bottled at 90 U.S. proof (45% alcohol by volume). The distillery offers tours, and is part of the American Whiskey Trail and the Kentucky Bourbon Trail.
History
Production of Maker's Mark started in 1954, after its originator, T. William "Bill" Samuels Sr., purchased the distillery known as "Burks' Distillery" in Loretto, Kentucky for $35,000 on October 1, 1953.
The first bottle of Maker's Mark was bottled in 1958 and featured the brand's distinctive dipped red wax seal. Maker's Mark holds a U.S. trademark (serial number 73526578) on the wax seal of their bottles.
In the 1960s and 1970s, Maker's Mark was widely marketed with the tag line, "It tastes expensive ... and is."
The distillery was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on December 31, 1974, and designated a National Historic Landmark on December 16, 1980, listed as "Burks' Distillery". It was the first distillery in America to be so recognized where the landmark buildings were in active use for distilling.