Maker's Mark reverses decision to lower abv

By Carol Emmas

Published: 20 February, 2013

Maker's Mark has reveresed a decision to reduce the alcohol level in its whiskey from 45% abv to 42% abv on the back of a public backlash.

The company, which said "we're sorry" in a press release, intended to drop its abv by 3% from 45% to 42%, in a bid to increase its limited supply while it continued to expand the distillery and increase production capacity.

However, the outcry was immediate with a flood of consumers taking to social media to voice their unhappiness. In response, the brand owners decided they had made a mistake and reversed the decision.

The process that led to the reduction was due to a spike in demand and the idea was to sustain supply.

Chief operating officer Rob Samuels said: "We are really proud of these loyal customers of Maker's Mark, that they had taken the time to share their feedback. It was through their feedback that we were able to make this decisive return to 45% abv and do it in just a handful of days.

He added: "We heard loud and clear from consumers that they would rather put up with the occasional supply shortage than have us change the whiskey in any way."

Chief executive officer Bill Samuels said the company had shortages around 25 or 30 different times, and did not try to exploit it through pricing.

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