Table Of Contents
The Details
| Rating | 95 2023 Top 50 |
| Style |
Bourbon American Whiskey Whiskey |
| Produced In |
Kentucky United States |
| ABV | 57.85% |
| Availability | Year Round |
| Price | $150.00 |
| Reviewed By | |
| Review Updated | 2023-12-19 |
Maker's Mark Cellar Aged Review
Over a decade into the Bourbon Boom, Maker’s Mark has continued to serve up expressions to please the general public and whiskey nerds alike. Maker’s 46, Maker’s Cask Strength, Maker’s DNA, the Wood Finishing Series, and a stave-finished Single Barrel Select program teased at deeper expressions of their famed wheated bourbon.
But while those releases teased the limits of Maker’s classic flavor, the brand firmly resisted hopping on the bandwagon of age-stated, high-end releases. Normal Maker’s Mark releases hover between four and eight years. Distillery reps say beyond that, the whiskey simply wasn’t good enough — too tannic and astringent — to warrant a premium price tag. I’ve tried normal Maker’s Mark aged for 10+ years, and there’s certainly truth to their concern.
Even that infamous resistance, it turns out, was temporary. Launching in Sep. 2023, Maker’s Mark Cellar Aged is the oldest bourbon to sport the famous logo and red top wax.
A blend of 11 and 12 year-old whiskey, the barrels used in Cellar Aged were matured for around six years in traditional Maker’s Mark warehouses. (Interestingly, Maker’s is the largest producer to regularly rotate its barrels to different tiers in warehouses while aging.) Those barrels were then moved into a special cellar partially cut into a limestone hill, which was originally built to finish Maker’s 46 casks.
According to the brand, that new aging environment slows charred oak’s influence on the whiskey, and the addition five to six years imparted depth without veering into over-oaked territory. It was then bottled at cask strength, just over 115 proof. Interestingly, the brand has already gone on record stating Cellar Aged will be an annual release; many competitors wait to assess public reception before graduating their oldest stuff from one-time to the yearly lineup.
VinePair had early access to review and rate Maker’s Mark Cellar Aged. Let’s see if the brand’s complex approach to old bourbon paid off.
Maker’s Mark Cellar Aged: Stats and Availability
Maker’s Mark Cellar Aged is made from the distillery’s traditional mash bill of 70 percent corn, 16 percent soft red winter wheat, and 14 percent malted barley. It’s a blend of 11-year (13 percent) and 12-year (87 percent) bourbon, bottled at cask strength, in this case 115.7 proof.
The expression carries a suggested retail price of $150. Brand reps have stated there will be approximately 20,000 bottles released in the United States, with around 10,000 additional bottles dropping globally.
Maker’s Mark Cellar Aged Review
Nose
As with all of VinePair’s whiskey reviews, this was tasted in a Glencairn glass and rested for at least five minutes.
A bit of foreshadowing: The nose here is something special.
It’s richer, deeper, and more pungent than any Maker’s Mark expression I’ve smelled outside of some Private Barrel Select bottles. The fragrance is fruity with a heavy berry component, and there’s a unique and fascinating thread of mulberry throughout.
This is a wheated bourbon, but even at first sniff, it’s not lacking in strength and spice. Paired with the berry is a heavy tannic note which plays well in the nostrils without burning or irritation; it’s like you’re getting the full, unadulterated, no-punches-pulled influence of the charred oak and rich wood sugars. Like Maker’s has explained regarding the hesitancy to release older stuff, this is where some 10+ year wheated bourbon runs into trouble: it smells great, but if it’s not tempered on the palate, you can end up with an astringent mess.
There’s also a fine minty note and a touch of rosemary. The aromas hit from multiple angles, largely in harmony, resulting in the best nosing Maker’s Mark I’ve held in a glass.
Taste
Rich, dark caramel and silky gourmet chocolate immediately hit the tip of the tongue and start moving backward through the mouth. There’s a nuttiness, too. It would be like biting into a chocolate bar after eating butter pecan ice cream, except the oak influence keeps ample spice present and accounted for.
The fruit is present but slightly dulled compared to the nose; it’s baked berry, baked apple, and dried apricot lingering a layer (or two) below the initial creamy sweetness. Fruit cooked over a campfire, anyone?
There’s spice on the upper palate, which gradually transitions into cooling mint at the very back of the tongue. That’s coupled with brown sugar toward the back of the midpalate, and the whole package is carried by a viscous mouthfeel in line with the proof.
Guess what it doesn’t have? Drying, overpowering astringency. Maker’s Mark clearly worked to find the nexus of age and drinkability that wouldn’t turn this expression into an oaky soup. At that, the distillery has succeeded with grace.
Finish
The finish leans toward the sweet, with those richer flavors gradually giving way to maple syrup. It’s long without feeling clingy, steadily dissipating without a discernible flatline. I wish the finish maintained close to the same complexity as the midpalate, though I find such a continuation one of the rarest feats in American whiskey.
Maker’s Mark Cellar Aged Rating
95/100
Recap
Maker’s Mark fans have clamored for years for older, age-stated whiskey. I’m happy to report the wait was very much worth it. The Loretto-based distillery has taken its distillate to new heights, and Cellar Aged should immediately become the gem in the Maker’s Mark lineup.
With a nearly-flawless first release, we’ll be waiting patiently to see how the Cellar Aged program develops. If it can take the brand’s bourbon to even greater heights, Cellar Aged will be something to look forward to indeed.
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