Review #812 - Maker's Mark The Stewards Release (2026)

Maker's Mark continues their annual releases in their Wood Finishing series with this 'Stewards Release' in 2026. After starting several years ago with releases such as FAE, BRT, and BEP, the series entered its modern format in 2024: 'The Heart' release came that year, followed by 'The Keepers Release' in 2025.

All of these bourbons use Maker's Mark's classic wheated bourbon recipe, and the focus is on the different combinations of finishing oak staves used to add more wood character to the bourbon. This 2026 Stewards Release uses 10 virgin toasted American oak staves, and the brand suggests that this will add flavors like honey, toasted marshmallow, and candied ginger.

There's no age statement on this bourbon, but we do get a nice strength of 54.9% ABV (109.8 proof); the price seems quite reasonable as well, around $65.

Maker's Mark The Stewards Release (2026)

USA - Bourbon

Price: USD 65 (2026)

Age Statement: NAS

Strength: 54.9% ABV

Details: Bottled January 2026

Tasting Methodology: Reviewed 3 times over 1 month; bottles at 100%, 80%, and 70% fill levels at times of review. Tasted in a nosing glass each time, rested 15+ minutes

Nose: Sweet strawberries and cream, some cherry and cotton candy, vanilla - very bright and sweet. Caramel apples and sweet breakfast cereal come next, followed by red fruit gummy candies; in the background, we get a bit of leathery oak and some brown sugar. There are accents of maple syrup and freshly-baked pastries.

Palate: Wood spice and leather up front, warming oak and a bit of pepper and cinnamon. Red fruits (strawberry, cherry) and stone fruits arrive behind that, and we get red apple skins and some nice sweetness from molasses and caramel. Toasted oak and vanilla are accents; it's tangy and tart at times, and the mouthfeel is medium-thick.

Finish: Warming leathery oak, a bit more drying than the nose and palate; still, we get lots of fruit like nectarine, cherry, and a bit of banana, too. Black pepper, vanilla, toast, and cola combine for a sweet and spicy experience. It's a medium-long finish.

Final Note: Another good bourbon from Maker's Mark and their Wood Finishing series. While the nose was very sweet, there was more balance in the palate between sweetness and spice, and then the finish really leans into those oak notes, but in a subtle way - it isn't overly tannic. Overall, good balance and complexity, and the fruit notes especially shined in this bourbon. This has a classic wheater character.

Value here is very good, too. Maker's Mark uses a very fair pricing scheme, even on most of their more limited releases; this is a great option for fans of wheated bourbons.

Our Rating: 7.2 / 10

In the current whisky landscape of increasing prices and variable quality, we've added a value rating to our reviews that relates to the score and the available pricing of each whisky. This roughly equates to a 0-10 scale; no reviews so far have exceeded a score of 10, although it is technically possible for the formula to produce a value rating higher than 10 with a high enough score and low enough price.

Value Rating: 7.13

About Us: We're a husband and wife review team living in the Midwest United States. Generally, our reviews and tasting notes will be a compilation of both of our experiences with a whisky over several tasting sessions.