Macallan "tasting" - am I missing something?

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

I see where there's a tasting on the Reflection - something like $40-45. I am not a dark liquor drinker... mainly drinking vodka/rum/beer, or the occasional margarita. A friend of mine goes on about "Macallan". Is this something I should try?
 

Tom

[DaKahuna]

Up to you.  It's a good way to get to sample different offerings.  

 

A word to the wise though -- developing a taste for fine whiskey's can be expensive.  

 

[markeb]

38 minutes ago, DaKahuna said:

A word to the wise though -- developing a taste for fine whiskey's can be expensive.  

I thought we were talking about Macallan…😀

[zitsky]

14 minutes ago, markeb said:

I thought we were talking about Macallan…😀

Why don’t you go buy the 25 smart aleck.  Nice and smooth.

Edited February 19, 2022 by zitsky

[zitsky]

1 hour ago, Tom-n-Cheryl said:

I see where there's a tasting on the Reflection - something like $40-45. I am not a dark liquor drinker... mainly drinking vodka/rum/beer, or the occasional margarita. A friend of mine goes on about "Macallan". Is this something I should try?
 

Tom

If you’ve never had whisky you might not enjoy it.  But if you have money to burn, why not.  I plan to do it.  Macallan is my scotch of choice and I have tried a few Macallan and non Macallan.  Glenfiddich, Speyburn, Hibiki etc

Edited February 19, 2022 by zitsky

[DaKahuna]

I have never taken a liking to scotch.  I have had some that I liked but found most too peaty or earthy tasting.  However, I did sign up for the Macallan Tasting on our upcoming Silhouette cruise.  

 

[zitsky]

20 minutes ago, DaKahuna said:

I have never taken a liking to scotch.  I have had some that I liked but found most too peaty or earthy tasting.  However, I did sign up for the Macallan Tasting on our upcoming Silhouette cruise.  

 

Have you ever tried Johnnie Walker Black?  Cheap and not harsh.  That’s how I got started.

 

I should add.  You can get some cheap Japanese whiskey for the same price.  $30-$40

Edited February 19, 2022 by zitsky

[markeb]

Back to the OP's actual question.

 

Macallan is one of the best known Scotch Whiskies in the world. Macallan is located in Speyside, a region of the Highlands of Scotland that has a fairly recognizable style. Moderate alcohol, some oak, and generally no peat or smoke that are common in other regions. Macallan chose to market itself as a Highland Scotch versus a Speyside Scotch, which is a trivial pursuit question versus a real difference.

 

Macallan seems to make 1000 different whiskies (Another trivial pursuit question: whisky without an "e" generally means Scotch (although other malt whiskies, such as Japanese Whisky, usually omit the "e"; whiskey, with the "e" is generally Irish or American. But again, Makers Mark is a "Whisky"). Which is a challenge with a Macallan tasting.

 

The tasting can be hit or miss. At least a couple of us on CC who are regular whisk(e)y drinkers have had radically different experiences with the Celebrity tasting experience. Because of the number of variations in Macallan, it's really useful to have someone who knows their stuff guiding you through the tasting. And it also helps if they know whether you can actually buy the product they're tasting. Almost all Scotch whisky makers make "travel editions". Those are duty free only products. You can buy them on the ship, or in duty free in Heathrow, but not in the US. Macallan has been denounced quite a bit for its "no age statement" (NAS) whiskies, but I actually don't think that's a valid complaint. A good master distiller and blender (a dirty word, but that's what they do) can produce a great flavor profile regardless of the age of the whisky.

 

IF you get a knowledgeable person leading the tasting, and you're open to the magic of a good Scotch, the tasting can be a really nice experience. Expect 3-5 1/4-1/2 ounce pours, so around 2 neat pours of whisky. I think it was scheduled for around an hour, which really doesn't give you time to recover between tastings of similar products. Hopefully a mix of different finishing styles, but probably 12 year olds and NAS whiskies. And if you're not a whisk(e)y drinker, that's going to be more than enough. You're pallet will wear out after the second or third Speyside. The differences become very subtle and you'll lose them.

 

Honestly, I think it would be much better to do a tasting across whiskies. Macallan, Balvenie, Glenmorangie, for instance. Throw in a Cao Ila just for something different. But Macallan probably sponsors the event, and the whiskies you'll taste are for sale in duty free and/or at the bars. Probably over the package limits.

 

It's a nice introduction to one of the largest and best known Scotch whisky producers, and probably not horribly overpriced. I personally wouldn't sign up until I was on board and knew where it was going to be offered and who was doing it, but I confess to being a whisky snob. I'm hearing an 18 or 19 year old Glenmorangie calling me right now...

[markeb]

1 hour ago, zitsky said:

Why don’t you go buy the 25 smart aleck.  Nice and smooth.

 

$2499 a bottle in Virginia. They're not tasting that. $200-250 for Balvenie 21 Port finished. I'll take that one. And it's probably still too old, but the Port finishing calms down  the wood tannins from all that barrel time. The Sherry finish does the same for the 25 year old Macallan.

[zitsky]

3 minutes ago, markeb said:

 

$2499 a bottle in Virginia. They're not tasting that. $200-250 for Balvenie 21 Port finished. I'll take that one. And it's probably still too old, but the Port finishing calms down  the wood tannins from all that barrel time. The Sherry finish does the same for the 25 year old Macallan.

They’re not tasting it on the ship but if it was ever offered I would recommend tasting it.  I’ve bought several bottles.  I first tried it when I lived in Oregon, at a Portland restaurant.  Maybe 15 years ago.

[markeb]

1 minute ago, zitsky said:

They’re not tasting it on the ship but if it was ever offered I would recommend tasting it.  I’ve bought several bottles.  I first tried it when I lived in Oregon, at a Portland restaurant.  Maybe 15 years ago.

 

One of those I should have bought when I was willing to pay the price. It's gone through the roof! Kind of like when I could walk into the local VABC store and buy Pappy...

[zitsky]

5 minutes ago, markeb said:

 

One of those I should have bought when I was willing to pay the price. It's gone through the roof! Kind of like when I could walk into the local VABC store and buy Pappy...

The last time I bought a bottle, maybe 2 years ago, it wasn’t as special as I remembered it 15 years ago.  Not bad, just different.  I’m usually happy with Macallan 12 Sherry cask but I have that and Double cask at home right now.  I have also tried Cask strength.

[markeb]

6 minutes ago, zitsky said:

The last time I bought a bottle, maybe 2 years ago, it wasn’t as special as I remembered it 15 years ago.  Not bad, just different.  I’m usually happy with Macallan 12 Sherry cask but I have that and Double cask at home right now.  I have also tried Cask strength.

I went Balvenie and Glenmorangie. I do have a Macallan 12 in the basement and should open it. 
 

This called my name during this thread…

 

[cruise kitty]

No one ever shows any love for the Laphroaig 😉 

[markeb]

1 minute ago, cruise kitty said:

No one ever shows any love for the Laphroaig 😉 

I didn’t want to scare the OP!

[DaKahuna]

1 hour ago, zitsky said:

Have you ever tried Johnnie Walker Black?  Cheap and not harsh.  That’s how I got started.

 

I should add.  You can get some cheap Japanese whiskey for the same price.  $30-$40

Yes, I have had Johnny Walker Black.  I have also had their Blue Label as well. 
 

I have some Yamasaki and Hibiki in my home bar stock. 
 

Full disclosure - my sit at home and relax with a drink is Ron Zacapa 23.  I like dark, aged rums.  I also just finished a bottle of Basel Hayden I received a a Christmas gift last weekend. 

[zitsky]

57 minutes ago, cruise kitty said:

No one ever shows any love for the Laphroaig 😉 

Tell us about it.

[markeb]

51 minutes ago, zitsky said:

Tell us about it.

 

Islay...

 

You ever see one of those word maps? Where the size of the word represents how often it's used?

 

Smoke

Peat

Iodine

Salt

Sea

Medicinal

 

Sounds disgusting. Tastes amazing!

 

But not Highlands, Speyside, or Macallan!

Edited February 19, 2022 by markeb

[emmas gran]

My DH drinks Macallan belongs to the club, his favourite Malt is Springbank but its is not widely available. (the label looks like its been drawn by someone in kindergarten)

He drinks them straight no ice or water  .

[hawkesbaynz]

I admit to being a whisky novice but really enjoyed some tastings on Islay & Jura last Summer. We stayed on the Laphroaig estate. My favourite whisky was an Ardbeg. Our favourite gin comes from a distillery on Islay - Botanist. That excited my wife. 
 

I did the tasting on the Silhouette in September. Just me and a waiter who knew a percent of the guys in Islay. A real waste of time.  I think if there was a group of interested Whisky drinkers it would have been good.

 

My brother in law used to be the bottling plant manager at Glenfiddich in Speyside.  He arranged a fantastic behind the scenes tour and tasting. 

[Bo1953]

7 hours ago, zitsky said:

The last time I bought a bottle, maybe 2 years ago, it wasn’t as special as I remembered it 15 years ago.  Not bad, just different.  I’m usually happy with Macallan 12 Sherry cask but I have that and Double cask at home right now.  I have also tried Cask strength.

z  when are you holding a tasting??? 😎

 

Cheers and bon voyage

[Bo1953]

I can only say that our Macallan tasting on The Millie a few years back was the best, while the tasting on The Edge was the most underwhelming as to presenter 'appeared' to not be on top of his game as far as Macallan goes...

 

This is not to say that we did not enjoy it, as opposed to a bit lacking.

 

bon voyage

[Tom-n-Cheryl]

Thanks for all the responses - this rabbit hole is deeper than I thought (but, I'm not surprised).

 

Full disclosure, I've only tasted scotch one time:

 

My wife and I met at a liquor store in the early 80's - she was a manager, I ran delivery. For whatever reason, we purchased a bottle of Royal Salute to save for some unknown future special occasion. From our perspective, it seemed "high end" at the time: top shelf, ceramic bottle, velvet bag - we were easily impressed. Fast forward about two decades, after moving into a new home, we opted to open it up. Well, the cork was falling apart. I smelled it, and took a small sip... apparently it had gone bad (at least I hope it was not supposed to taste that way)!!

 

I'll probably give the tasting a go - though I likely will not know if the person leading the tasting really knows their stuff (unless it's painfully obvious they don't)!

 

Tom

 

 

[zitsky]

3 hours ago, Bo1953 said:

z  when are you holding a tasting??? 😎

 

Cheers and bon voyage

I would do one but then @markeb would show up and would be all like,

 

Can you taste the cinnamon?

What day of the week was this bottled?

Should I taste with my left hand or right hand?

 

I gotta say, a Macallan tasting with just me and the staff would be great!  I wouldn’t mind.

 

I am tempted to get another bottle of Macallan 25 to see how it compares to the last one.

 

[lsb48154]

There was no Johnny Walker Black (only red) available on the Apex a week ago. Rather disappointing!  They claimed supplier issues.  And to add insult to injury, they had Black for sale in the shop on board.