Star Hill Farm is the first non-Bourbon made at Maker’s Mark Distillery. It is called Star Hill Farm because that is the official name of the distillery, named for the original Samuels property just in Bardstown, Kentucky. The brand does not look like a Maker’s Mark bottle, with no dripping red wax and a different shape to the bottle. In fact, there is a single reference to Maker’s Mark in the labeling and it is on the neck label of the bottle. The glass is made from recycled glass and the label is made from recycled paper from the scraps of Maker’s Mark labels. There are two mash bills in the whiskey. The first is a 100% malted wheat and the second is 70% wheat and 30% malted barley. This whiskey is Rob Samuels’ legacy whiskey, as he wants to create a whiskey he can leave his mark on. The whiskey is to stand on its own and not ride on the coattails of Maker’s Mark. We picked up some bottles at the distillery the other day and Matt and I sat down to taste it. Here are our tasting notes.
Star Hill Farm Wheat Whiskey
Proof: 114.7
Age: No Age Statement, but it is a marriage of seven and eight year old whiskey.
Nose:
- Mike: Caramel, apples, raisins, cinnamon and oak wood.
- Matt: Vanilla, raisins, cinnamon and oak wood.
Taste:
- Mike: Caramel, apples, raisins, banana bread, cinnamon, nutmeg and oak wood. Tasted with a dried cranberry and the spice becomes a white pepper. Tasted with a pecan and chocolate and allspice come out in the flavor.
- Matt: Vanilla, raisins, cinnamon and oak wood. The dried cranberry enhanced the raisin and cinnamon. The pecan made the vanilla a rich marshmallow flavor.
Finish:
- Mike: Medium long with oak wood, cinnamon and lingering caramel. The dried cranberry added white pepper to the finish. The pecan made the finish long and sweet with oak wood, chocolate and lingering raisin notes.
- Matt: Medium long with oak and fresh baked, hot bread. The dried cranberry added cinnamon spice to the finish. The pecan made the finish long and spicy with oak wood and cinnamon spice.
I would pair this whiskey with a cigar that has vanilla and cedar spice in the smoke. I would reach for a Rocky Patel Vintage 2006 San Andreas cigar.
Photos Courtesy of Rosemary Miller