Music: Bloodhound Gang, “Uhn Tiss Uhn Tiss Uhn Tiss”
Update: I hate you, Macallan! Why, oh why, did you discontinue this great dram?
One of the last bottles at the LCBO before being discontinued, I picked this one up after having great luck with the other widely-available NAS sherry bombs offered by the other big boys. It breaks my heart to think that this may be the last Macallan I might ever buy, as they have gone the way of weak 40%-43% NAS offerings with their 1824 series, and anything worth trying seems to be prohibitively expensive. A true shame, as I do like anything sherried that Macallan does.
Nose: Molasses, salted caramel and figs. Vanilla. Any sherry in the nose is very subtle. There is also this cinnamon sugar oatmeal scent, like one of those instant quaker packets.
Palate: Sweet sherry and cherry one-two punch, with smoke and leather on the uppercut. Chocolately, and all sorts of berry flavours (blackberries and red grapes). You’d think the alcohol would hit you like a ton of bricks at 60.1% ABV, but this one is pure elegance. With only half a teaspoon of water, this one is intensely warming, but not biting. Aberlour’s a’Bunadh fails that test.
Finish: Sherry, chocolate and cherry. Not as immediately drying, which is nice for something so sugary sweet.
Having to review stellar whiskies that are the last of their kind is so depressing. Delicious, to be sure, but depressing.
“Just jot me down on your to-do list under, ‘put out like a fire’.”
Whisky, Empirically. 