Maker’s Mark Private Selection: Los Angeles Lakers – 2020 Champions Edition
Maker's Mark Private Selection: Los Angeles Lakers – 2020 Champions Edition is a cask-strength wheated bourbon bottled for the Lakers' 17th NBA title — 109.3 proof (54.65% ABV), 750mL, from Maker's Mark in Loretto, Kentucky. Fully matured Maker's Mark was finished nine extra weeks in the distillery's limestone cellar with 10 custom wood staves chosen for this recipe. It is available to order online at Del Mesa Liquor.
- ABV: 54.65% (109.3 proof) — cask strength; see applier flags
- Size: 750mL
- Mash: 70% corn, 16% soft red winter wheat, 14% malted barley (Maker's Mark standard)
- Finishing: 10 custom wood finishing staves, nine additional weeks in the limestone cellar
- Origin: Maker's Mark Distillery, Loretto, Kentucky
- Release: Recipe developed January 2021; bottled February 2021
A Championship Barrel Recipe
In January 2021, Maker's Mark worked with Lakers staff, Season Ticket Members and seven-time NBA champion Robert Horry to build a custom Private Selection recipe celebrating the Lakers' 2020 title — the Finals win over Miami on October 11, 2020, the franchise's 17th championship and first since 2010. Unusually for the program, multiple barrels of the recipe were laid down so fans across the Southland could raise a glass. The Private Selection program starts with fully matured, cask-strength Maker's Mark — the house's wheated bourbon, with red winter wheat in place of rye — then finishes each barrel with 10 staves drawn from five stave profiles, one of 1,001 possible combinations. Explore more bourbon whiskey and barrel picks, or browse the Maker's Mark vendor page.
Tasting Notes
Palate: Rich chocolate and dried fruit from the stave finish. Finish: A layer of warming spice over the soft, wheated Maker's Mark core.
How to Enjoy
A collector's pour for Lakers fans: neat in a rocks glass, where the cask strength and stave-driven chocolate and spice show best; a splash of water opens the dried fruit.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Maker's Mark Private Selection? It is Maker's Mark's wood-finishing program: fully matured cask-strength bourbon is finished with 10 custom staves for nine additional weeks in the limestone cellar, then bottled at cask strength.
Who created the Lakers recipe? The recipe was developed in January 2021 with Lakers staff, Season Ticket Members and seven-time champion Robert Horry, celebrating the 2020 championship.
Is this a single barrel? Multiple barrels of this one recipe were bottled for accounts across Southern California — it is a regional championship release, not a one-barrel store pick.
A championship bourbon for a championship season — secure the Maker's Mark Lakers 2020 Champions Edition online at Del Mesa Liquor, San Diego, CA.