Love em’ or hate em’ The Macallan have made themselves known as a luxury brand in the scotch whisky world and it’s a concept they embrace whole heartedly. You may find that many offerings from their line are a little out of reach for us common folk as the prices can often seem more like a real estate investment. However, outside those locked cabinets filled with flashy decanters you may notice some more reasonably priced expressions such as various triple oak bottling’s and 12 year old offerings, each catering to specific tastes and budgets but mostly out of sync with their higher end expressions. As much grief as I give Macallan for their luxury vibe I have to give credit where credits is due, those luxury offerings are often quite delicious, whether you can afford them or not is irrelevant. With their special focus on sherry casks and sherry seasoned casks they’ve commanded a mastery over the oak they use and they keep a close eye on the influence it has on their spirit.

Insert today’s luxury offering, The Macallan Ruby. Being part of the much hated 1824 series may leave the weary wanderer a little skeptical as the entry level and unexceptional Gold really had drinkers turning up their nose at Macallan. “How dare you take our money” folks cried as this one differed so drastically from what we’ve come to know from Macallan, expensive… but damn tasty. The Gold was cheap and gross. Moving on to the barely tolerable Amber and people were spitting their Macallan on the ground, demanding refunds as their reliable favourite had become a stranger right before their eyes. Luckily, redemption was in sight and folks smiled from ear to ear as the stunningly delicious and subtlety spicy Sienna took the hearts of drinkers by storm. Finally, the delightfully dark and wonderfully scrumptious shining gem of the family, the very well received Ruby. These whiskies from the 1824 series are all named after the colour imparted on them by the oak barrels they were resting in, however, it didn’t seem to work quite as Macallan had hoped. Folks were not celebrating change, they were throughly unimpressed with the decision to move away from age statements. Unfortunately, Macallan was getting called out for the wrong reasons. People wanted age statements and it didn’t matter how delicious the nectar turned out to be, it still wasn’t enough for the uninformed. If it didn’t have an age stated on the bottle, no one trusted it and most refused to give it a chance. What can be said is that the colour reflects the perceived flavour, for the Ruby that is, as deep notes of leather and polish dominate the nose while beautifully long and lasting waves of sherry flood the senses. From nostrils to jowls you can expect a full and lustrous palate with notes of toasted oak and dried cranberries, a touch of nutmeg spice and sweet raisins on the finish. It’s lovely mouth feel paired with its enormous flavour had collectors rushing out to buy the last remaining stocks as secure investments for thirsty bellies. Even at 43% you can’t be mad, you want more ABV it’s true but you can’t be mad.

The Macallan found a happy medium between highly expensive and absolutely delicious and named it Ruby.

“Hell yeahs” ripple through the crowd as thirsty bastards nod their heads in approval.

Cheers

Josh Ward @knowyourwhisky