Before Makers' Mark, it was not OK for bourbon to taste good!

[nblair]

When Maker's Mark was family owned, they deserved every bit of their reputation. Maker's from the 1960s and 70s was every bit as good as anything that came out of Stitzel-Weller. I wish I had a case of the Gold Wax 101 from the late 1970s.

Mike Veach

I am curious to know what happened to MM. Was the Allied Domecq takeover the sole reason for the decline in quality? Was the situation similar to Stitzel-Weller and UD where Allied Domecq came in and started drastically cutting costs, raising the barrel proof, etc.? How could it go from SW quality to what it is now?