
November 8, 2017

Young official Macallan and indie oldies

No ‘colours’ today, no NAS, no funny names…

Macallan 10 yo ‘Sherry Oak’ (40%, OB, +/-2017)

Never tried this baby before, but I remember that the old official 10 from around fifteen years ago was rather unimpressive. Now I think a price of £75 for such a 10 yo would make a depressive oyster laugh. Colour: deep gold. Nose: rather light but full of roasted nuts and with a little hay, cappuccino, cognac, brown sugar, crème brulée, and warm cake. A light Macallanness, but a Macallanness indeed. Mouth: rather light, well in keeping with the nose, with these roasted nuts indeed and a wee feeling of coffee-Schnapps. Walnut cake, butterscotch, cassata, raisins. Rather find, very ‘rounded’ (using the word ‘smooth’ is now verboten in Whiskygeekland). Finish: short, with a touch of menthol and liquorice, then earl grey tea and peanut butter. Some drying tannicity in the aftertaste. Comments: really fine, not £75 fine of course, but fine. Like, £40 fine. SGP:351 – 81 points.

Macallan 12 yo ‘Fine Oak’ (40%, OB, +/-2017)

I found this one rather poor back in 2015 (and earlier). WF 78. Colour: gold. Nose: really very light, all on orange cake and peach jam. Notes of porridge and ale, a large pack of shortbread, a wee winey side (seasoned casks, you see) and touches of butter cream. It’s a tad spirity as well, you would sometimes believe this is 5 yo whisky. Mouth: again, it tastes spirity and too young, rather rough, with some grass, beer, overripe apples, and Fanta. Rather thin body. Walnut skins, perhaps one raisin sitting in a corner. Finish: short, but a little nicer, thanks to a pleasant malty side. Sadly, the aftertaste is a little spirity and raw. Comments: I find it odd that they would have gone this low… SGP:341 - 76 points.

Macallan 25 yo 1991/2017 (51.2%, Hunter Laing, Old & Rare Platinum, 222 bottles)

Colour: white wine. Nose: no sherry treatment or seasoning here, this is classic pure unsherried well-aged Macallan, with orange cakes, Jaffa cakes, sponge cake, and small biscuits. Indeed, it’s pretty cake-y. Some butterscotch, hay wine, and then whiffs of moss, grass, leaves… With water: whiffs of paraffin, old cardboard box, sour dough… This is really Macallan au naturel. Mouth (neat): oh yes! Bright, rather big, ridden with tangerines and oranges, but also rather grassy again, with notes of ‘inadvertently chewing a cigar’. With water: the fruits are gone, and it really got very leafy and grassy. Green peppercorns, rocket salad, green tea, thyme… Finish: long and really very grassy. Lime peel. Comments: it all started very well but the grassy side won over. Not that I dislike grassy whiskies of course, but I’m not sure I’m into such grassy whiskies at £1,300 a bottle. Could have been Glen Spey or Glendullan. SGP:361 - 80 points.

Macallan 25 yo (48.8%, That Boutique-y Whisky Company, batch #5, 126 bottles, +/-2017)

This lovely little bottle comes with a handicap, it was voted ‘Scotch Single Malt of the Year (Single Cask) 2017’ by one funny writer who gave it 97 points. But I suppose you can't let a little thing like that stand in our way, can you? Colour: amber. Nose: whiffs of sulphur at first nosing (ha ha!) but that’s not a problem here, quite the contrary, that adds depth. Bicycle inner tube, then orange peel, tangerines above everything, peonies, lilies, and a whole jeroboam of well-vintaged Sauternes. Which, naturally, comes with apricots and quinces. Let’s be honest, this is a stunning nose that reminds me of the Macs that used to be distilled in the 1950s. Pretty brilliant indeed. Mouth: okay, okay, okay. Even if this is more old Cognac than malt whisky, I’d say it’s brilliant, with even more ripe peaches and apricots, totally in the Cognac way. I’m finding a little rancio, a dollop of chestnut liqueur, and hints of orange blossom and rose waters. You could pour this over some brioche, or better yet, proper artisanal vanilla ice cream. Finish: long, a tad grape-y, with notes of pipe tobacco and Timut pepper. Comments: indeed, indeed, fabulous old Cognac ;-). SGP:641 - 91 points.

We have a winner, ite Missa est.

Check the index of all Macallan I've tasted so far