Maker's Mark to reduce alcohol content
 

If you like to enjoy your Maker's Mark with a little water, then there's good news. You won't need to add your own water anymore because the distillery will do it for you. The Kentucky distillery behind Maker's Mark is taking some of the alcohol out of their product, going from 90 proof to 84 proof. "Fact is, demand for our bourbon is exceeding our ability to make it," wrote Maker's Mark executives Rob Samuels and Bill Samuels Jr. in an email to clients.

It's really a pretty ingenious way to deal with supply and demand. If you water down your bourbon, you can make more bottles to sell, and when you've lowered the alcohol content of your bourbon, nobody will buy it anymore. Problem solved!

http://now.msn.com/makers-mark-waters-down-bourbon

I'll still drink it on regular basis.

You don't mess with a winning recipe.

A response to customer feedback from the Chair


A lot of people took the time to share their thoughts regarding our recent announcement. We always appreciate open and honest conversation about Maker’s Mark and we’ve gotten plenty of feedback, both supportive and otherwise. Because there are so many comments, it’s hard for an old guy like me to respond, particularly 140 characters at a time. Now that I’ve had time to compose my thoughts, please allow me to try to answer most of the questions we’re hearing.

And by the way, I asked Rob if I could write this response since many people have wondered if I’m on board with the decision to lower the alcohol-by-volume (ABV) level. I am, and here’s why.

First, it’s important to understand that our primary focus now and for the past 50 years hasn’t changed. It’s product quality and consistency, batch-to-batch, year-to-year, with the primary measure of that consistency being the unique Maker’s Mark taste profile. That’s all that truly matters in the end.

Since we’re a one-brand company that’s never purchased bourbon from other distillers when supplies are short, forecasting is very difficult. Over the years, our one variable that helps us avoid market shortages has been the age of the whisky in the Maker’s bottle. That range is between five years nine months and seven years. Because Maker’s Mark is aged to taste, Dad never put a specific age statement on the bottle. It wasn’t the age that mattered; it was the taste, the quality and the consistency.

Some people are asking why we didn’t just raise the price if demand is an issue. We don’t want to price Maker’s Mark out of reach. Dad’s intention when he created this brand was to make good-tasting bourbon accessible and to bring more fans into the fold, not to make it exclusive. And, with regard to the price, the value of Maker’s Mark isn’t set by alcohol volume. It’s about the quality of the recipe and ingredients that go into it, all the handcrafting that goes into the production and how it tastes.

Some of you have questioned how we reduce the alcohol content. The fact is, other than barrel-strength bourbons, all bourbons are cut with water to achieve the desired proof for bottling. This is a natural step in the bourbon-making process. Maker’s Mark has always been made this way and will continue to be made this way.

As we looked at potential solutions to address the shortage, we agreed again that the most important thing was whether it tastes the same. The distillery made up different batches that Rob and I tested every evening over the course of a month. Every batch at 42% ABV had the same taste profile that we’ve always had. Then, we validated our own tastings with structured consumer research and the Tasting Panel at the distillery, who all agreed: there’s no difference in the taste.

For those of you who have questioned if the supply problem is real, I can assure you that it is. While not every part of the country has seen shortages yet, many have, and the demand is continuing to grow at a pace we’ve never before experienced. While we are investing today to expand capacity for the future, by producing 42% ABV Maker’s Mark we’ll be able to better meet our ongoing supply issues without compromising the taste.

Ultimately, all I can ask is that you reserve judgment until you actually taste the whisky, like I did. If you can make it down to the distillery, we’re doing tastings every day with the 42% ABV whisky to give you a first-hand opportunity to try it for yourself. If you can’t make it to the distillery, please give it a try when it gets to your city. And please write me back at that point. I want to hear what you think.

In the meantime, I can’t thank you enough for taking the time to write. It shows that you care about Maker’s Mark, and that’s what we’ve been striving for over the past 50 years. I hope you’ll give us the chance to continue earning that devotion and allow us to prove that we didn’t screw up your whisky. All the best.

Sincerely,

Bill Samuels, Jr.
Chairman Emeritus
Ambassador-at-Large

They must be going for a "New Coke/Return to Classic" thing of some kind. If not this would be one of the stupidest moves I've ever heard of.

Well **** them.

Welp, time to boycott those stupid assholes. That is down right stupid.

Just spend the extra and enjoy it...

http://www.themacallan.com/media/406...-home-cara.jpg

i'm not sure that "it tastes the same watered down" is a slogan I'd be proud of...

They need to raise the price.. Not water down their product.. Seems like the wrong approach to supply and demand.

Exactly...

hey gang,

we're going to charge the same price for a product with more water in it...because we care

Booze snoobs, is this really going to make that much of a difference?

Would you even know if they hadn't announced it?

**** no

You can't steal video off the interwebs that will give you any knowledge about quality booze.

Just stay out of this one...

I admit to being completely clueless about booze...therefore I am asking.

Educate me, drunkard.

No, they wouldn't.

and if people are drinking to get drunk, they can always switch to something with more Alcohol in it.

1) Freeze the glass - don't add water to a good (expensive) drink.

2) Learn blends. Malts. How many malts? Filters. Age. All plays in to the taste of the drink.

3) Play stupid and taste for free. You're in shape - find a gay bartender and ask him what the difference is. You won't have much difficulty selling yourself as a legitimate opportunity.

If you feel guilty remind yourself that women do this every single day and get drunk for free (I don't know what the kids call it now but it use to be "milking a man.")

If it tastes the same, which is a substantial if, then I don't see the problem. You aren't paying for the alcohol level. You're paying for the (in the case of Maker's, overrated) flavor profile.

One fewer brand to have to choose from.

It's the best of the middle area.

It's like buying a Sony/Pioneer receiver...

Would you be happier if they raised the price of the same product? This was strictly a business decision. They could've raised the price and less people could enjoy their product, or do what they have chosen to do and up their supply by cutting their bourbon with more water while still maintaining the same taste.

I thought the owner did an excellent job of explaining this decision and how upfront the company is being concerning this decision is refreshing. In the end, if the taste is the same, who gives a shit? If your drinking Maker's Mark to get drunk, you are wasting your money. Go buy something cheaper like Old Crow if all you want to do is get wasted.

I'm not interested in drinking. I just want to know if you can REALLY tell the difference between 84 proof and 90 proof, especially when you're shitfaced.

It sounds like drunkard elitism.

Makers is out in a lot of places. I need to see if Costco still has any batches left.

I always liked Makers with a few drops of water in it...

One could always switch the Buffalo Trace if this pissed them off enough, it's better anyway.

You'll find a lot of that.

I love a good scotch and I've kinda developed some of the drunkard elitism as well when it comes to scotches and red wines. Bourbons I don't drink enough of to really get riled up about, but I certainly recognize the breed.

I do think it's absurd that so many people are 'swearing off' Maker's Mark without even trying the new batch and I do think there's an excellent chance they'd have never known the difference had they not been told.

When a company changes its formula, they face customer backlash. It's not snobbery. It's comfort, and faith in the product. This isn't shrinking the bottle by a few ounces, this is screwing with the drink itself. You've built up your brand by talking about its greatness, and you risk pissing away all of the accumulated goodwill and loyalty by changing what you claimed was great.

Coca Cola learned that.

I don't have to worry about it as I'm not a huge fan of Makers Mark anyway. I enjoy bourbon, and I'm always trying different ones. I'm supposed to love Makers, but when I drink it, it's just meh. I like Knob Creek a whole ton better. Hell, I like Evan Williams better than Makers.

So...this news means precisely dick to me. Except when I go over to the old man's place, he is a Maker's guy.

And one would think that those loyal customers that are subjecting you to such backlash would at least...I dunno...try it before flipping their shit.

And I see no way that Maker's doesn't make a 'premium' version that they do raise the price on so that folks that insist they can take the difference will have a way to spend more money on stuff that tastes the same.

It's just an odd rush to judgment with so many people already writing Makers off altogether without even seeing what they're going to produce.

Hey! Makers Mark!

know how I know yer gay?

Why would tasting it be necessary? Again, you've spent years pimping your product based upon its formula, and then you changed the formula.


It's not a rush to judgment at all. It's leaving a brand that's no longer exactly that brand, and a company that cannot be trusted. Again, Coca Cola learned this. New Coke tested better with people than old Coke in blind tests, but people refused to accept it. Don't blame the people. Blame the company for pissing on customer loyalty to the product itself after the company has tried to build up precisely that. A company can sometimes get away with the "new, improved taste" type of move with lesser known products, but even that tends to fail.

This sort of move isn't a guaranteed failure, but it carries a high risk. For me, as someone who's not a devout drinker of the product, I now know how they are willing to treat their customers, so there's no reason for me to patronize that company when there are so many alternatives.

This is about as dumb as companies selling pre mixed antifreeze

FFS quit bringing up Coca Cola in your argument. They completely changed the taste of their product and even renamed it New Coke. Maker's is simply cutting their bourbon with more water which is going to lower the alcohol content as a percentage by volume. They are being very upfront about this and are taking action to make this change temporary. If you take the company at their word, the taste is the same.

Now I ask you, in what way is this the company "pissing on customer loyalty?"

I bet you won't hardly notice the taste or how drunk you get. Look at all these dumb drunks getting pissed over nothing.

Sorry, but if there were a thread about how Cali Kush isn't gonna be as dank, you guys would rip us "stoopid pothead's" apart.

LMAO... life will never be the same after the Great Maker's Mark failure of 2013. Whoa is me.....

So far we have suggestions for a scotch and a rye bourbon as alternatives. WHERE ARE YOU BOOZE SNOBS?????

Put two of them side by side and you won't notice a difference in taste or how gooned you're getting. But, when they tell you that a product you pay good money for is being watered down, you feel cheated.
Do what Wild Turkey did. Let the shelves run bare for a bit, build up your stock, build up the hype then release the hounds.
I'll stay with the Eagle Rare for now. Very nice.
Anyone here into Basil Hayden's? A guy a work swears by it.

Marky-Mark is doing what?
Posted via Mobile Device

"More Water, Same Great Price!"

- Maker's Mark


the slogans write themselves

"We'll piss in it and you'll still buy it"

"When we said it was special, we were just kidding"

fyi, this is the ad copy still up on their website as of 1 minute ago:

I love Makers, but as far as an every day drink, I generally won't spring for more than Jim Beam.

I'll stick with Amish Pitchfork for special occasions and Minotaur Hoof as my house bourbon anyway.

That's not what I was saying, and you know it.

We have whole threads for that!

How have they 'wronged' their customers? They've chosen to freeze the price point and try to produce a product that presents the same drinking experience without resorting to just jacking their prices up.

You're welcome to throw a bitch fit if you'd like, but don't call it something it's not. If you're going to stamp your feet and claim it's because they've 'wronged' their loyal drinkers without even trying it to see if they're still giving you the same experience, it's nothing more than a temper tantrum.

And it's nothing like 'new coke'. New coke failed because they made it taste like generic Pepsi. They were openly and obviously stating that they were trying to change their flavor to appeal to a new crowd and pissing on their loyal drinkers in the process. Maker's is doing the exact opposite, they're trying desperately to make sure that the taste is the same and they're trying to do so in a manner that prevents them from pricing some of their loyal drinkers out of the market.

I honestly think they should be applauded for taking the more gutsy approach and trying to please everyone by keeping the price the same while maintaining the same profile.

They would probably get less shit if they just raised the price.

Of course they would. That would have been by far and away the easier way to do it.

And they don't want to do that because they don't want to run off some of their loyal drinkers. They've taken a far bolder approach and are hoping to make it a temporary change only. They're trying to do the right thing here by remaining accessible to their fans.

Basically they're showing uncommon honesty in being completely transparent about their product.

And they're getting shit on for it.

Might as well lie, change the formula AND jack up the price a few bucks a bottle...because hardly anyone would notice.

I'm pretty sure they have to disclose their proof, so the change would be obvious. Not disclosing it ahead of time would've been a colossal **** up.

DJ's left nut owns this thread.

Meh. I drink Maker's regularly because my buddies love the stuff. I keep Buffalo Trace or Builett in my house, so I don't care too much.

I need to obtain Buffalo Trace that everyone keeps talking about.

It's pretty good for it's price point. Roughly $25 for a 750. Give it a go, I doubt you'll be unsatisfied.

Where do I get it in St. Joe? Does Hyvee have it?

I'm sure they have it there.

I need to give Buffalo Trace a try as well... I normally just stick with Makers and Bulleit (rye).

This coincides perfectly with me scaling back on the Maker's Mark to almost none. While I've loved it over the years, last year I had...let's say...a couple 'incidents' involving Maker's Mark and I don't want to push the envelope any further than I already have. I don't know if it was the fact that I lost 25 lbs, or that I don't drink nearly as often as I used to (I drink Maker's about once every couple months now), but I fear if I keep drinking the amount of Maker's that I used to be able to drink when I went out, that someday I'm not going to come home.

So, it's been a good run Maker's Mark, but from now on I'll just have a few beers and some ganja and count my blessings that I never killed myself or anybody else.

Is this a problem with Makers or is it a personal one?

Personal. The only problem with Maker's Mark is that it tastes too damn good.

People are so finicky on the internet.

Am I the only one who finds it ironic that a Pats fan is bitching about a company "shitting" on its base, the same poster who was genuinely interested in showing at least a semblance of loyalty to *****?

Tell me you contributed to the SOC movement.

Haven't had the need to go back to Makers Mark since I found Trace.

I've got a couple of bottles. It's pretty damn nice sippin juice.

I don't drink.

Can you even tell the difference?

There are several who missed this part.

No, your posts from last offseason indicated you were drunk off your ass for months.

LMAO How is this even remotely close to the same thing?

:LOL: That was weed.

A lot of butthurt over 3%.

It is about the principle of the matter!

Next thing you know, I will only be able to get half a gun with half my alcohol and that doesn't sound like a lot of fun in the back woods! This whole scenario sounds like a slippery slop and goes against my rights protected under the Constitution. Next thing you know they will be banning paper towels!

/DC conspiracy theory.

By the sound of this thread you would expect all of CP drinks their bourbon neat.

While its not preferable to dilute it, I think the point is if they raise the price there will still be supply issues which may drive the price up more and that would be by the distributor or store owner which is $ they wont see.

This way they can make about 7% more product, which I imagine is substantial.

They could cut their price 7% to make amends I suppose.

Got some Old Weller Antique, it's 107 proof tonight. Shit is the bomb son!

JC, I don't drink it, but I'm mad as hell! I don't know why, but I'm mad as hell. ****ers!

At Sam's Club, they have Buffalo Trace for under $20, which is about where it should be. It's above average, but not great. I gladly pay a little extra for Maker's.

Buffalo Trace tastes better than Maker's to me.

Jack Daniel's has dropped their proof twice in the last 9 years.
Also, the Fed taxes on proof. After 80 the numbers go through the roof.

Don't buy the cabin fever maple whiskey. Its gross. Idk why but the damn clerk talked me into buying some the other day.

Really, with BO in office, you'd think it's therapy....

BO mentioned a while back his favorite whiskey was something from Asia.
Suntory perhaps.. The point is, whiskey producers are penalized to produce full flavor/ proof products in this country.

LMAO

The funny thing is, I doubt if anybody will be able to tell the difference anyway.

Seconded.