Domain: Maker's Mark

Taylor William Samuels Senior began his career at the family distillery T.W. Samuels in the 1930s. In 1936, when his father Lesley Samuels died, he took over and became director of the distillery until 1942, when he sold it and its brands to Country Distillers Products. Although dreaming of retirement, he decided to begin creating a new bourbon which he had come up with the idea for during his time at T.W. Samuels. With the help of Hap Motlow from Jack Daniel’s, Ed Shapira from Heaven Hill and Julian Van Winkle, he created a wheated bourbon that met his needs. He bought land in Loretto (Kentucky) in 1953 and began production the next year. His wife Margie created the brand Maker’s Mark, and the first bottle was released in 1958.