Rotation is Key

Rows of barrels are carefully placed on their sides in one of the three-story rick houses to wait out the days, months and years, but they are not left alone. After approximately 3 summers in the barrel, the aging whiskey is tested and rotated to another area of the large buildings. A quick climb up the stairs reveals the reason this is so important. The top of the rick house is filled with a sweet, soft aroma, similar to sugar cookies right out of the oven, and the air is dry and warm. As you descend the air becomes damp and looses some of those inviting scents, until you reach the lowest level where the humidity is nearly overwhelming. If a barrel were to stay on one of these three levels for the entire aging process each barrel would be completely different, or at least similar to those on that same level. It's the rotation that ensures consistency throughout the years and Maker's Mark has a well-defined order of rotation for every one of its barrels. Prime real estate is on the center floor where there is a happy medium of humidity and temperature, this is often where specialty bourbons like Booker's (Jim Beam Small Batch brand) are selected from. Since Maker's Mark prides itself on producing only one bourbon and they have developed this rotation strategy to ensure consistency amongst all barrels.