My favorite bourbon is... well, a picture is worth 1000 words:
I've tried as many as possible (Blue Smoke in NYC has a list longer than my (primate-length) arm, if anyone is in that neighborhood) and I'm Maker's through and through. Which is to say I'm saturated.
I've spent a few hours, including lunch, with Bill Samuels, Jr. (pres of MM, and the founder's son). Just he, his master distiller, me and my uncle shooting the breeze for a few hours last summer at the distillery.
Off the top of my head, I can name 5 bars that carry MM b/c I assured them it'd be worth it.
I like Basil Hayden for its butteryness (c), I like Elijah Craig, tho it's tough to find. Woodford is great stuff; Blantons is OK; and I like the 1792 when I can find it.
Is there a distillery that just makes its bourbon and is not a mega-conglomerate -- yes, it's called Maker's Mark. It has doubled its capacity only once since it was founded 50+ years ago.
Check
this link for bourbon info.
Bourbon is not a cowboy drink anymore, and MM is the reason. Every distiller followed suit with a premium bourbon after MM took off.
Make mine a double, with two ice cubes. No more, no fewer.
For Irish Whiskey, there's Tullamore Dew. Not the most expensive, but my favorite, hands down.
JP