“Not a Big Mac”
Country: Scotland
Region: Speyside
Brand: The Macallan Amber (Sherry Oak)
Type: Single Malt Whisky
Age: NAS
Alcohol: 40%
Macallan in Mist and Rain
Colour: Golden Amber
Nose: Light but Pleasant enough with Floral tones, Fruit and Barley. I think of freshly baked Apple Pie stuffed with Raisins and Spices like Cinnamon, Ginger and a bit of Nutmeg. I also find Vanilla, Toffee, Orange, light Sherry, Bread Dough, light Varnish, Straw, Cocoa Powder and a hint of Canned Peach.
A Very Warm Reception in the Shop
Taste: Quite a disappointment after the Nose. The delivery is Thin and Watery. The
Some of the Wash Backs
Finish: Short, Light, Dry and quite Bitter with Malt, Oak, Vanilla, Artificial Strawberry Flavour, Orange, Nut Shells and Bread Dough.
Another View of the Wash Backs
Added Water does not improve the Macallan Amber. Better sip it neat.
Rating: 81
Nose: 21.5 - Taste: 20 – Finish: 19.5 – Overall: 20
The Aroma Gallery
General Remarks: The Macallan Distillery was founded in 1824 and is located in Craigellachie, Moray. It is part of the Edrington Group since 1999. Generally, the Macallan whisky is considered a Sherried Speysider by nature although by law (2009) Craigellachie is Highland territory. Gold, Amber, Sienna and Ruby form the NAS "1824" Series. The Amber matured in First Fill and Refill Spanish Oak Casks from Jerez and American Oak Casks, all seasoned with Oloroso Sherry. All Macallans of this series are named after their Colour. The Series honour the fact that all Macallan Whiskies are free from Artificial Colouring. The Amber sells at around 70 US Dollars.
Delivery of the Barley
Drinking Experience Neat: Average/Good
Conclusion: Not a Big Mac I'm afraid. It starts off well enough with a Light but Pleasant Nose. A nice combination of Barley, Fruit and Floral Aromas. The Raisin - and Spice notes are very clear. But on the Palate the Macallan Amber is Young, Thin and, quite frankly, too boring for a Single Malt that will cost you around 70 bucks. The Finish is very Short and quite Bitter. Lack luster Wood Management I would say. This Malt also needs an ABV of around 46%. If you like Macallan and you don't want to spend a small fortune, I would advise you to go for the Sienna instead.
A Few Warehouses
Some Data: The name Macallan derives from two Gaelic words namely Magh that means Fertile Strip of Land and Ellen referring to St. Fillan, a missionary from the 8th century. The Macallan Distillery is located close to the B 9102, just north of Craigellachie. It was first licenced in 1824 to Alexander Reid. Macallan is the 3rd best selling Single Malt worldwide. Some of its Malt disappears in Blends like The Famous Grouse and Cutty Sark. The Distillery possesses 2 Mash Tuns, 22 Wash Backs and 14 Stills. In 2013 their total production amounted to close to 10 million litres.
Tasting Session after the Tour
The water for the distillery is sourced using boreholes by the river Spey. From Easter to August, the Distillery opens from Monday to Saturday from 9.30 to 16.30 hours, In September and October from Monday to Friday from 9.30 to 16.30 hours and from November to Easter from Monday to Friday from 11.00 to 15.00 hours. The Standard Tour costs 8 Pounds but is worth every Penny of it. The Precious Tour costs 20 Pounds and promises even more details as well as extra fine drams during the Tasting Session afterwards. All tours must be booked in advance as their is a limit of 10 persons per tour.
Our Excellent Tour Guide Julie
We visited Macallan on a rainy Saturday May 24, 2014. We were very early (9.30) and were really lucky to have Julie as our Tour guide. She only started working at Macallan at the beginning of 2014 but she was the best tour guide during our trip to Scotland. Enthusiastic, pleasant, knowledgeable and also extremely detailed. The Standard Tour takes around 1,5 hours and is great value for money. Macallan uses Models, Pictures and Aroma, Flavour and Wood samples to provide you with a really complete overview of the Whisky making process. At the end of the tour we tasted the 12 Fine Oak, the 18 Sherry Cask, the 21 Fine Oak and the Amber. The Gift Shop and Visitor Centre are very representative and have a lot of great old Maccallans on display. If you were to visit only one distillery while you are in Speyside I fully recommend Macallan. A pity you are not allowed to take pictures of the production process! But other than that full marks to Macallan. If only I liked their affordable Whiskies as much as their Tour!
Some Golden Oldies
Jan van den Ende October 8, 2014
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