As part of the partnership, Unrivaled ticketholders will have the chance to engage with the whiskey brand experiences in select hospitality spaces and enjoy specialty cocktails inspired by the league. At Maimi’s Sephora Arena, the whiseky brand will take over their new VIP Loge Box. At select games, Maker’s Mark will also be part of Unrivaled’s pre-game Fan Fest experience outside the arena.

Maker’s Mark will also appear in-arena through displays with broadcast-visible signage. Thirty-second commercial spots will run on media partners including TNT and truTV throughout the regular season and playoffs, featuring the new Perfectly Unreasonable global campaign, which celebrates the idea that going to unreasonable lengths—in life and in bourbon—is what separates good from remarkable.

“What Maker’s Mark has done throughout its renowned history is exactly what Unrivaled aims to do, which is carving our own path to create something better, and leaning into unreasonable ideas instead of shying away from them,” said Napheesa Collier, Unrivaled Co-Founder. “That’s what makes Maker’s Mark a perfect fit as our first Official Spirits Partner. We’re grateful for their support in our continued pursuit of making the unreasonable a reality for women’s basketball.”

This is Maker’s Mark’s first-ever sports league sponsorship. “Maker’s Mark founders – my grandparents – broke with tradition to reimagine what bourbon could be—a perfectly unreasonable spirit that endures today,” said Rob Samuels, eighth generation whisky maker and Managing Director at Maker’s Mark. “Beginning with co-founders Breanna Stewart and Napheesa Collier, Unrivaled shares that same spirit, and we’re delighted to shine a light on their community of players who prioritize passion and purpose on and off court.”

This announcement comes ahead of Unrivaled’s 2026 sophomore season, tipping off Jan. 5 in Miami. Building on a breakthrough inaugural year, the league returns featuring two new clubs, a redesigned arena with expanded fan sections, and their first-ever tour stop in Philadelphia.

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“From the beginning, our founders – my grandparents – went to remarkable lengths to create an uncompromisingly delicious bourbon,” said Rob Samuels, eighth generation whisky maker and Managing Director, Maker’s Mark. “We are delighted to introduce this latest Wood Finishing Series expression that celebrates the team who still rotate each and every barrel of Maker’s Mark by hand and who continue to embrace our founders’ perfectly unreasonable pursuit of excellence.”

Maker’s Mark Wood Finishing Series is a collection of unique expressions that use wood stave-finishing technique to enhance characteristics already present in the brand’s bourbon.

“The Keepers Release was born from our close collaboration with the Maker’s Mark warehouse team, the guardians of our barrels,” said Dr. Blake Layfield, master distiller, Maker’s Mark. Their sensory experience of Maker’s Mark is unlike anyone else’s — the aromatic oak at different times of the day, evolving tasting notes of our whisky as it ages over multiple seasons — which provided inspiration and helped us shape the flavors of this release.”

At 109.2 proof, the Maker’s Mark Wood Finishing Series Keepers Release 2025 is available for $74.99.

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In this key leadership role, Dr. Layfield will oversee the consistency and taste vision of the brand, as well as new product innovation. In addition, he will advance the environmental and agricultural initiatives on Star Hill Farm, home to the Maker’s Mark distillery .

“Visionary leadership has been a critical and consistent factor in the success of Maker’s Mark, from the moment Bill Sr. and Margie Samuels decided to create something completely different in the bourbon category 70 years ago,” said Rob Samuels, eighth generation whisky maker and managing director, Maker’s Mark. “Blake embodies the brand’s commitment to culture, quality and a higher purpose, and I am thrilled he and the Maker’s Mark leadership team are guardians of the brand’s legacy and vanguards driving the brand forward.”

Since joining Suntory Global Spirits from Diageo in 2019, Dr. Layfield has held a series of R&D and quality leadership roles in Kentucky, serving most recently as senior director of innovation, blending and quality for Maker’s Mark. He holds a doctorate in Food Science from North Carolina State University and a General Certificate in Distilling from the Institute of Brewing and Distilling. He is also Co-Chair on the Research Committee of the Kentucky Distillers’ Association and serves on the board of the James B. Beam Institute at the University of Kentucky.

Layfield will continue to be supported by Buckner in her role as Lead Blender, a critical position for the brand. She began her tenure at Maker’s Mark in 2013 and her palate, creativity, and leadership qualities led to her significant role in the development of the acclaimed Wood Finishing Series.

Continuing to oversee all operations is Kim Harmon, General Manager at the distillery. She joined Maker’s Mark in 2019 as director of safety and sustainability, and among other achievements, was instrumental in Maker’s Mark’s B Corp certification in 2022 – a milestone achievement within the industry.

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Like the inaugural release, Maker’s Mark Cellar Aged 2024 is aged to taste, not time. This expression blends 15% Maker’s Mark 12-year-old and 85% Maker’s Mark 13-year-old at 119.3 Proof.

“We surprised the world with the debut of Maker’s Mark Cellar Aged last year, a bold step in our family’s legacy because, for more than 65 years, aging our whisky for a decade-plus wasn’t something we did,” said Rob Samuels, 8th generation whisky maker and Managing Director, Maker’s Mark. “Staying true to our founders’ flavor vision and our relentless pursuit of excellence, we’re thrilled to introduce our most mature bourbon yet.”

“Delivering an elevated expression that’s distinctly Maker’s Mark, Cellar Aged finishes maturation in our LEED-certified cellar, built into the limestone shelf that surrounds us, creating a richer, deeper and more complex bourbon, free from the harsher tannic effects commonly found in older American whiskies,” added Dr. Blake Layfield, Head of Innovation and Blending, Maker’s Mark.

Maker’s Mark Cellar Aged 2024 is available for $174.99.

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Maker’s Mark Wood Finishing Series is a collection of one-of-a-kind expressions that use an innovative wood stave-finishing technique to enhance distinctive characteristics already present in the brand’s bourbon. Whereas the first series emphasized the production process that impacts the flavor of Maker’s Mark, the second series will focus on the teams behind Maker’s Mark. The first release within this series focuses the distillery team, who craft its bourbon in Loretto, Kentucky.

“Always staying true to my grandparents, our founders’ vision to deliver a full-flavored, soft red winter wheat bourbon with a smooth finish, Maker’s Mark continues to shape the brand’s future through purposeful, flavor-driven innovation,” said Rob Samuels, eighth generation whisky maker and Managing Director for Maker’s Mark. “This Wood Finishing Series release celebrates the entire distillery team, who share our vision and who have contributed their perspective to craft the final expression.”

“It was a very unique, special experience to have the distillery team play a significant role in crafting the taste vision of The Heart Release,” added Beth Buckner, Senior Manager of Innovation and Blending, Maker’s Mark. “Distillery team members all have different, yet very important jobs in creating our whisky; each person described aromas and flavors they experience throughout their day, which helped us shape the flavors of this release.”

Maker’s Mark The Heart Release is available for $74.99

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Since its founding in 1953, Maker’s Mark has aged its whiskey to taste and not time. Cellar Aged stays true to this philosophy, free from the harsher tannic effects commonly found in extra-aged American whiskies, as a result of their maturation process that starts in traditional Kentucky warehouses and finishes in the distillery’s one-of-a-kind limestone whisky cellar.

“For more than 65 years, aging our whisky for a decade-plus wasn’t something we did,” said Rob Samuels, 8th generation whisky maker and grandson of the founders at Maker’s Mark. “It’s not that we didn’t believe in it; we simply hadn’t found a way to do it that didn’t compromise on our taste vision – until now. Cellar Aged embodies an older whisky that’s distinctly Maker’s Mark. One rooted in challenging convention, delivering new flavor experiences from the environment that surrounds us, and building on a taste vision that’s been generations in the making.”

To become Maker’s Mark Cellar Aged, barrels of the distillery’s distillate first spend approximately six years aging in traditional bourbon warehouses, until they reach full maturity. Barrels are then moved into the distillery’s proprietary whisky cellar for an additional five to six years of aging before being blended to taste and bottled. Built into the natural limestone shelf of the Kentucky hills, the cellar’s consistently cool environment slows down the tannic impact that occurs during maturation, while allowing the bourbon to develop a deeper, darker flavor with hidden depths, but no bitterness.

Maker’s Mark Founders Bill and Margie Samuels challenged category norms when they burned their 170-year-old family recipe, choosing to use red winter wheat instead of rye in their mashbill for a softer, smoother bourbon. This spirit of asking “what if?” was present in the introduction of Maker’s Mark 46, which is crafted using a proprietary wood-stave finishing technique, and in Maker’s Mark Private Selection, which became the industry’s first custom barrel program upon its launch in 2016.

Cellar Aged will be an annual, limited release available in specific markets around the world. The maturation approach of Cellar Aged will be consistent every year, but the specific blend of aged bourbon will vary based on which barrels are ready, by taste. The inaugural release of Cellar Aged is a marriage of 12-year-old and 11-year-old whisky – 87% and 13%, respectively – bottled at cask strength (115.7 proof).

Maker’s Mark Cellar Aged Bourbon is available for $150.

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The City Series is said to capture the character of the world’s most enchanting locations in a bottle. Launching with New York City and Sydney, new limited-edition city releases will be added over several years.

To kick off this series, Maker’s tastemakers who became our city spirit guides to help evoke the essence and nuances of the place they live and love through bourbon.

For the New York Edition, flavor experts Erina Yoshida and Justin Ottevanger (Angel’s Share) created a 107.8 proof whisky that features layers of spice, oak and rich dark chocolate. With the Sydney Edition, insiders Sam Egerton and Jordan Toft (Merivale), 110.8 proof spirit is ripe and fruit-forward.

The New York and Sydney Editions are the first two in a limited series of handcrafted Maker’s expressions which honor the taste profiles of cities around the world. It is the result of more than a decade of wood-science expertise, exploring the influence of oak and agriculture on bourbon’s wide-ranging taste profiles. The Maker’s Mark Wood Finishing Series celebrates the inherent uniqueness of different wood types, celebrating individuality through flavor, just as each city’s unique, signature whisky now does.

“It’s incredibly rewarding to bring a taste of our distillery in Loretto, Kentucky to the Global Travel Retail market through the new City Series,” said Rob Samuels, Chief Distillery Officer at Maker’s Mark and Grandson of the Founders. “Just as my grandparents sat down with a taste vision in mind when creating Maker’s Mark, partnering with Erina and Justin in New York and Sam and Jordan in Sydney to create bourbons that embodied their cities resulted in delicious new whiskies that are a true adventure of their own.”

Both the Maker’s Mark Wood Finishing Series New York and Sydney Editions are now available Global Travel Retail. The New York Edition is sold at John F. Kennedy Airport Terminal 1 for a SRP of $95 and the Sydney Edition is available at Sydney Terminal 1 for a SRP of $140 AUD.

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The Kentucky bourbon is inviting fans 21 years and older to nominate a friend, family member or mentor that they would love to share a cocktail hour with, for a chance to receive a pair of custom home bar makeovers this summer, both designed and curated by Soria.

“Over the past year, we’ve all come to appreciate the art of an excellent homemade cocktail, but what makes a cocktail hour most enjoyable isn’t just about what’s in your glass,” said Rob Samuels, Managing Director at Maker’s Mark. “It’s about all the personal details – from the space where you’re enjoying it, to the company you’re enjoying it with. Calling upon Orlando’s great taste, we’re honored to help create that perfect Maker’s Hour for one of our fans and someone who has played a remarkable role in their life.”

The Remarkable Home Bar contest kicked on May 19 and ran through June 9, with fans being encouraged to shout-out to a remarkable person in their life that they would most like to treat to a Maker’s Hour.

A winning duo will be rewarded with Soria personally consulting and creating two custom home bar spaces. The “two-of-akind” bars will each be designed to mirror each other with a cohesive aesthetic, so that the selected pair can share a drink ‘at the bar,’ whether physically together or virtually in their respective homes.

“Good interior design in any room is about creating a space that makes you feel that you’re living your best life, and I’m so excited to collaborate with Maker’s Mark to do that with a pair of bar spaces where treating yourself feels so natural,” said Orlando Soria, Interior Designer and ‘Bar Architect’ for the Remarkable Home Bar program. “I want to use these designs to help whisky drinkers connect with each other in their homes the same way they would at a high-end bar!”

Once selected, Maker’s Mark, Soria and a team of licensed professionals will safely survey the winning spaces to create the fully-customized ‘two-of-a-kind’ home bar areas. Each bar will be complete with bar seating for up to four guests, bottle displays, accent pieces, functional drinks equipment, and the perfect lighting.

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The effort at Star Hill Farm, home to the Maker’s Mark Distillery, represents the most comprehensive natural range of white oak to date anywhere in the world. The American white oak repository is part of a larger mission to change the conservation of a species critical to many American industries, including Kentucky bourbon, and to prioritize the present and future of forests and rivers.

UK Department of Forestry and Natural Resources tree improvement specialist Laura DeWald is leading a project collecting more than 300 unique families of white oak from across the United States to plant at Star Hill Farm. The first planting took place on April 15, successive plantings over the next several years will result in the largest single white oak genetic repository in the United States. This repository will provide the foundation for research and tree improvement to address current and future threats to white oak trees and the millions of acres of forests they dominate. It will also support white oak-dependent industries that contribute billions of dollars to rural and urban economies across the region.

This American white oak repository is the second phase of a collaboration between UK and Maker’s Mark, which also includes the world’s first comprehensive effort to map the white oak genome. Working with Maker’s Mark and the cooperage Independent Stave Company (ISC), the UK team is studying the genetics of the mother tree, called “MM1” at the Star Hill Farm, which is one of the oldest white oaks in Kentucky. It has been exposed to incredible climate variations and is estimated to be 300 to 500 years old. Data from this study will give UK, ISC and Maker’s Mark information about the longevity, disease resistance and vitality that American white oak can offer to the bourbon industry and beyond.

“We have lost or are fast losing some of our most valuable tree species in the U.S. such as ash, chestnut and elm due to disease and pests,” said Seth DeBolt, Beam Institute Director. “This collaboration, the combination of the white oak genetic fingerprint and the germplasm planted solely at Star Hill Farm, will allow us to prepare for any future risk to this organism. In simple terms, if a risk arises, we can look for examples of natural variation within the germplasm that can tolerate new pests or even different climates.”

Rob Samuels, eighth-generation whiskey producer at Maker’s Mark, said the Distillery K is committed to the partnership. “We’re so honored to work with the experts from UK who share a common passion with our team for ensuring the sustainable future of the American white oak, and we’re excited for Star Hill Farm to be the new home of this essential repository and study, in addition to the home of Maker’s Mark Bourbon.”

“To do something like this that talks about the sustainability of a tree species, it will take a long time for the work being done here to come to fruition, so it takes a vision and commitment,” added Jeff Stringer, University of Kentucky Forestry and Natural Resources Department Chair. “Maker’s Mark understands that. They have seen that vision and understand it and are in it for the long haul. They are willing to put in the effort and resources to make this work. It may take 50, 70, 90 years for any barrels to come from this research and that’s a long-term vision that many companies don’t have these days. Maker’s Mark does.”

The partnership between the two began nearly two years ago as one piece of the bourbon brand’s vision to protect and sustain natural resources by not only supporting the white oak forest, but regenerating forest production with healthy, sustainable and superior trees. This collaboration highlights the passion and emphasis that Maker’s Mark is pushing forward to protect the state’s natural resources, which will be vital to the future of bourbon.

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