Macallan 25 Years Old Fine Oak Bottled New Label 43% NV

Professionele reviews

Serge Valentin (85)

Colour: dark straw.

Nose: ah, it’s getting better and better. Again a nice balance, more on fruitcake, orange peel, tangerine. Lots of ginger too. Quinquina. Develops on lavender, fresh nutmeg, fir honey. I like it! It makes me think of Highland Park… Wait! Highland Park? Hmmm, Highland Park belongs to Edrington Group, just like Macallan, and we always wondered where the Macallan people could have found all these ‘new’ bourbon casks and… and… Hey, I’m joking! Anyway, this 25 yo has got a very, very nice nose.

Mouth: balance is the word here, even if the attack is just a little watery. But the 'spirit' arrives after ten seconds, and then this 25 yo gets most enjoyable. Freshly squeezed orange juice, spices (clove), all sorts of dried fruits, ginger, pepper… Hints of Grand Marnier. And again a very nice balance even if, between us, they could have bottled these high-end malts at 46% instead of 43. You’re right, and why not the youngest ones as well? The nose was still nicer than the mouth, which has a quite weak and rather short finish, on orange peel. Too bad! But it’s really a nice malt…

BOW (91)

The maturation of The Macallan Fine Oak takes place in a unique combination of oak bourbon and sherry casks. American oak barrels that have previously stored bourbon or sherry give the distillate a soft, subtle color, as well as floral aromas, apple and citrus notes, and the sweetness of toffee. The barrels of European oak, in which Sherry was previously kept, give the whisky a strong color with dried fruit and spice accents. The combination of these barrels produces a particularly smooth and soft single malt of great complexity.