MAKER’S MAGIC

By Dianne Boate and Robert Meyer

Mr. Bill Samuels, Jr.
President, Maker’s Mark Distillery
Loretto, Kentucky

Dear Mr. Samuels:

We met briefly a couple of years ago when you hosted a Maker’s Mark event here in San Francisco at the Waterfront restaurant on the Embarcadero. It was a dark and stormy night which did not stop anyone from showing up to drink their favorite bourbon. You would probably remember my friend Velma more than me, because she Tennessee-sweet-talked you out of your Kentucky red-waxed-covered top hat. I was quiet, not drinking, not a fan of any whiskey, The Odd Girl Out when it comes to bourbon.

My partner and I are celebrating a year of doing a column called LIBATIONS for Bay Crossings, and have covered vodka, vermouth, sparkling wine, sake, and Guatemalan rum, things we like to drink. Was I in for several surprises when we decided to do a two-part article about whiskey in general and Maker’s Mark in particular.

The first surprise was the fascinating history of bourbon in this country from Revolutionary times to Prohibition and beyond. Who knew that George Washington (a whiskey distiller himself) had Congress authorize a tax on whiskey that made folks so furious a Whiskey Rebellion was born? And that it caused a migration of distillers into the wilderness of what was to become Kentucky? Not only were these Irish and Scottish immigrants escaping the tax man, they found gold in the pure iron free water they were used to back home to make good whiskey. You must be proud that your great-great-great- great grandfather was one of them.

Between the first surprise and the second, one day I let my mind wander back to my childhood to my earliest memory of bourbon. This was after the War, in Eureka, California.

Since we lived out of town in a dairy farming community called Elk River, the commute home from my father’s jewelry store usually included a stop half way, in a small business district called Bucksport. The big deal there was the grocery story and restaurant and bar in one building. Usually after the shopping, into the bar. I was 8 years old and had to sit on a bar stool with my parents, bored beyond belief. A jukebox can only go so far. I longed to drive away and escape but did not learn to drive until I was 10. So I sat and hated it. Principle reason? The smell of the place. Just like steak houses in New York and other places, where the meat smell invades the wood, years of spilled alcoholic beverages will steep itself into a whole atmosphere already ripe with cigarettes and whiskey (no wild, wild women.) That these stops kindled regular arguments and fights between my parents put paid to my liking beer or bourbon, their drinks of choice. When you are a kid, unpleasant circumstances can color everything in the picture.

The second surprise was learning that your father decided against his own product and dramatically burned the only recipe that was the family secret formula for 170 years. His idea of baking breads with different grain combinations was sheer genius for it told him in the end that the culprit of the bitter taste he did not like in bourbon was rye grain.

How interesting that throughout the history of bourbon making a lot of people would use just anything to create the beverage. “Five Fingers of Red Eye” was probably no joking matter! And after Prohibition ended folks were so eager to get back into business they did not take much care in producing the product. I think this is responsible for the evil smell I experienced as a child, and can only wonder what if……., had your father’s vision-come-true of Maker’s Mark been on the scene at the time.
The third surprise is when I finally became brave enough to try Maker’s Mark; I actually liked it, and in getting over my prejudice have begun to truly enjoy your product. I even invented a Maker’s Mark drink and here it is: I took my favorite proportions to make margaritas and used 2 parts Maker’s Mark, 1 part lemon juice, and one part Triple Sec, over ice – delicious!

Your book, MY AUTOBIOGRAPHY, is a great read because it explains clearly why Maker’s Mark is so popular. Your choices of grains that are hand- picked, high-quality corn and winter wheat have a great deal to do with the taste people love. Your care and attention to every detail of production shines right out through every bottle.
I did some personal research, and made a call to my friend: “Syndi, why do you like Maker’s Mark?
“So smooth,” she replied, “and just a hint of sweet. We did our own taste test, making Manhattans with about three bourbons and Maker’s Mark was the clear winner!”

To my cousin in Port Townsend, Washington: “Aggie, I have one simple question – Why do you like Maker’s Mark?
“I just love the taste of it! In fact, we have become Maker’s Mark ambassadors and go to every event held in Seattle. Bill Samuels comes himself! He is the neatest guy! He wears a top hat covered in red wax, just like the bottles! We went into the Royal Hawaiian on our vacation recently. I asked the bartender what the house whiskey was. When he said it was Maker’s Mark, I could only say “I’ll have a double.