Distillery

The Macallan whiskies

The Macallan is one of the most prestigious Scotch malts and one of the most sought-after at auctions around the world. Its distillery is on the Easter Elchies estate, in Speyside, above the River Spey, near Craigellachie. It belongs to Edrington. It is famous for its small stills and its devotion to sherry-seasoned oak casks, which the house has made to order in Spain. Its style is rich, rounded and elegant.

Founded
1824
Owner
Edrington
Origin
Speyside, Scotland
In the catalogue
7 whiskies

History, style and where to startSee it on the world mapThe Macallan official website

  • The Macallan distillery, photo 1 of 3
    Photo: Peter Moore · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons (cropped and converted)
  • The Macallan distillery, photo 2 of 3
    Photo: Charlie Marshall · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons (cropped and converted)
  • The Macallan distillery, photo 3 of 3
    Photo: יאיר צפורי · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons (cropped and converted)

7 whiskies

Guide to The Macallan

History

The distillery was founded in 1824 by a local farmer, Alexander Reid, on an estate where whisky was already being distilled, taking advantage of the new law that made legal distilling easier. In the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th its whisky became famous among blenders. In the 20th century the family that ran it bet on bottling its malt and on sherry casks, and in the 1980s began promoting it strongly around the world. At the end of the 20th century it passed to Edrington. In 2018 it opened a new distillery with an undulating green roof that blends into the landscape.

House style

Macallan distils in very small stills, which give a rich, unctuous spirit. The key to its style is wood: European and American oak casks seasoned with sherry in Jerez bodegas. Sherry Oak, with sherry casks only, is rich in dried fruit, ginger, orange and chocolate. Double Cask combines European and American oak, more honeyed and with vanilla. It uses no peat.

Average flavour profile of its 7 whiskies in the catalogue

Sweet
3.1
Fresh fruit
2.1
Ripe and dried fruit
3.1
Floral and herbal
0.7
Cereal and malt
1.2
Vanilla and creamy
2.1
Oak
2.4
Spicy
2.4
Toasted
2.1
Smoky
0.0
Maritime
0.0
Body and intensity
2.9

Where to start

Macallan 12 Year Old Double Cask is the most accessible way in and a good portrait of the house: honey, vanilla and dried fruit. The 12-year-old Sherry Oak shows the classic sherry style. The 15-year-old Double Cask gains body, and the 18-year-old Sherry Oak is one of Scotland’s great sherried whiskies.

This text was generated and translated by AI and may contain errors. Founding year, owner and official website come partly from Wikidata.

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