New release hitting shelves from maker of 2026 World’s Best Wheat Whisky
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Star Hill Farm Whiskey is a new brand from Maker’s Mark Distillery that won 2026 honor.
- The 2026 release blends malted wheat mashbill and a 70% wheat/30% malted barley mashbill.
- Maker’s Mark Regenerative Alliance converted 58,000 acres to regenerative practices.
The latest version of what was recently named the World’s Best Wheat Whiskey will be hitting shelves soon.
Star Hill Farm Whisky, the new brand from the Maker’s Mark Distillery, won the 2026 honor at the World Whiskies Awards with its inaugural release.
And the 2026 version continues to push the flavor envelope, with a version that uses three different wheat strains: the familiar soft red winter wheat, which is the signature grain in Maker’s Mark’s mashbill, along with hard red and hard white wheats.
The new grains highlight the diversity of flavor available, according to Maker’s Mark, which has focused on regenerative farming practices on site as well as in surrounding farms.
The 2026 whisky is a blend of two mashbills: one composed entirely of malted wheat and another of 70% wheat and 30% malted barley, delivering a layered aromatic profile with amplified fruit notes, according to the distillery.
According to master distillery Blake Layfield, the blend “dialed up the complexity.”
It has a nose of molasses, fig and baking spice, with citrus, ripe pear and buttery shortbread on the palate and a finish of soft cinnamon.
It’s 116.4 proof, with a suggested price of $100.
The 2026 version of Star Hill will be available in the U.S., United Kingdom, Australia, Japan and Duty Free this year. In the U.S. the limited release will be at select retailers nationwide and at the Maker’s Mark Distillery in Loretto through an experience you can book that includes a guided tour of Star Hill Farm paired with cocktails that highlight flavors from nature.
In 2025, Star Hill Farm Whisky became the first to earn Estate Whiskey certification status from the Estate Whiskey Alliance, established by the University of Kentucky to highlight local sourcing and sustainable production in whiskey produced entirely on the distillery estate using grains grown on estate-owned or controlled land.
The Maker’s Mark Regenerative Alliance has helped convert 58,000 acres of conventional farmland to certified regenerative practices.
