Bourbons That Taste Like Maker's Mark (What to Pour Next)

Larceny is built from Heaven Hill's wheated mash bill — corn, soft winter wheat and malted barley, no rye — which puts it in the same flavour family as Maker's. Wheat carries almost no spice, so what comes through is corn sweetness and barrel character: honey, caramel, vanilla and a gentle, easy finish.

At 92 proof it sits within two points of Maker's 90, so the two pours have a genuinely similar weight in the glass. Larceny is blended from barrels aged six to twelve years, which gives it a touch more oak depth than standard Maker's — the main thing our panel could pick apart between them.

It is also, in most markets, easier to find than Maker's and priced at or below it. If you drink Maker's for its softness and want the same experience without thinking about it, this is the answer.

Weller is made from the same wheated recipe family as Pappy Van Winkle, at the same Frankfort distillery. Special Reserve is the entry point: 90 proof, the exact match to Maker's, with a honeyed, rounded profile that any Maker's drinker will recognise instantly.

Where it separates from Maker's is polish. Weller reads a touch drier and more elegant, with slightly less of Maker's overt caramel sweetness and a cleaner, more composed finish. Our panel called it "Maker's in a jacket."

The catch is supply. Weller is semi-allocated, so it usually costs more than Maker's at retail even though its suggested price is similar. If you want to step into the Weller/Pappy wheated family without chasing an allocated unicorn, this is where you start.

Maker's 46 starts as fully matured standard Maker's, then goes back into the barrel with ten seared French oak staves for a few more months of finishing. The result is more of everything that comes from wood: vanilla, toasted oak, caramel and a little clove, layered over the same soft wheated base.

At 94 proof it is a few points hotter than standard Maker's, which suits the added oak. It is unmistakably the same whisky underneath — there is no flavour risk here for a Maker's drinker — just deeper and a touch spicier.

For only a few dollars more than the standard bottle, it is the lowest-effort upgrade on this list.

Cask Strength is standard Maker's with the water left out. Batches vary, usually landing between 108 and 114 proof, and the extra strength concentrates everything: the caramel is thicker, the vanilla darker, the whole pour more syrupy and intense.

The similarity dip our panel measured is about heat, not flavour. Add a few drops of water and it collapses right back toward the standard Maker's profile — which is the best way to see how much of "the Maker's taste" is simply this distillate at a gentler proof.

It scored highest of any Maker's expression on outright quality. If you like the flavour and want to control the intensity yourself, this is the one to own.

Bottled-in-bond means one distilling season, one distillery, at least four years in a federally supervised warehouse, bottled at exactly 100 proof. This decanter release carries a seven-year age statement, so it is older and more oak-driven than standard Maker's.

Because it is wheated, the base is still round and honeyed rather than spicy — the family resemblance to Maker's is clear. What the age and the bonded 100 proof add is structure: more tannin, more depth, a firmer body that stands up better in an Old Fashioned.

It is a premium decanter series, so it costs more than an everyday wheated bottle. Treat it as the special-occasion version of the Maker's profile.

Antique 107 is the same Buffalo Trace wheated distillate as Weller Special Reserve, bottled at a much higher 107 proof. That extra strength turns the soft, honeyed wheated base into something thick, rich and warming, with far more caramel intensity and oak than Maker's.

The grain DNA is identical to the gentler wheated bottles, which is why it still reads as a cousin of Maker's rather than a different animal — but on proof it is the furthest bottle here from the reference pour, which is why it scored lowest on similarity and high on quality.

It is semi-allocated, so its retail price runs well above its suggested price. Buy it for the flavour and the power, not as a like-for-like Maker's swap.