While I missed the exact date, I thought I would use the occasion of Burns Night to write about an amazing evening I had some years ago tasting Macallan Single Malt. Before I go any further, let me just mention that January 25th is considered to be Burns night. An occasion to celebrate the life and poems of the Scottish poet Robert Burns who lived 1759-1796.

I tried a slew of single malts one night some years ago, the 15 year old was my favorite of the lot. It was beautiful and elegant. It was rich, straw yellow in color with rose, oak, vanilla, dried fruit, and caramel. Nuanced and layered, was enveloping and broad on the palate.

Macallan was founded in 1824 by Alexander Reid who was a barley farmer and school teacher and was one of the first distilleries in Scotland. It’s made it’s name on single mats and its blend of Scottish, North America and Spanish traditions.

The estates is 485-acres and they have 24 spirit stills, made from copper, each holding 3,900 liters. Macallan is famous for its sherry oak single malts but the ones that I tried were a part of the triple cask maturation regime. The casks are part European casks that previously held sherry, American oak that also previously held sherry and American oak that previously held bourbon. Apparently they are considered a lighter scotch than the sherry oak single malts. The Scotch is 43% ABV. Reading my notes, it seems I found it long and elegant.