RC6 is the 2022 entry in Maker's Mark Wood Finishing Series. The name refers to the sixth iteration of a stave profile the team called Rye Cask — a virgin oak finishing stave designed to add the bright, perfumed spice character of a high-rye bourbon to Maker's wheated base, without ever changing the mash bill.
The stave combines toasted American and French oak, developed in partnership with Independent Stave Company, and is fitted to fully matured cask strength Maker's Mark before the now-familiar nine-week rest in the limestone cellar. The cool soak coaxes spice and aromatic complexity from the wood while preserving the soft, honeyed wheat heart underneath.
Bottled at cask strength and unfiltered, RC6 is one of the most distinctive Wood Finishing Series releases — a wheated bourbon that drinks with the lift and aromatic snap of a rye-forward whiskey. It is a clever piece of engineering: the same liquid Maker's drinkers know, viewed through a completely different lens.
For anyone who has ever wished Maker's had a little more bite, RC6 delivers it without sacrificing the comfort of the house style.
