It’s been an interesting run with the Macallan Limited Edition series. I missed the first, loved the second, thought the next two were okay, and then had my interest revitalized with the stellar No. 5. With this, I’ve got the final installment, and the tiebreaker that will determine whether or not I remember this line favorably or not.
Nose: Apple, pear, plum, apricot, and orange. Vanilla, caramel, and toffee. Cherry. Butterscotch, brown sugar, and honey. Raisin, date, and fig. Red grape. Sawdust, clove, nutmeg, cinnamon, and oak.
Palate: More of the apple, pear, orange citrus. Plum, red grape, cranberry, raisin, date, and fig. Blackberry. Vanilla and milk chocolate ice cream cake. Toffee, caramel, sugar cookie, butterscotch, and honey. Cola and a touch of leather. Almond, walnut, and chestnut. Oak.
Finish: Plum, date, fig, and raisin. Apple, pear, apricot, and orange. Blackberry. Caramel, vanilla, and milk chocolate. Black pepper, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, and oak. Medium-long finish.
This is a damn fine whisky. In terms of quality, this leans more in the direction of the 2 and 5 that I enjoyed so much. At $150, it cost $50 and $40 than each of those respectively. I would say that this was still worth the squeeze, but it’s outclassed in terms of VFM.
And there it is. The end of the line for Macallan special edition run, barring some miracle that presents me a reasonably priced bottle of the No. 1. Is the series worth the hype? Perhaps not. And it definitely doesn’t warrant the second-hand pricing. But three of the five I tried were damn fine whiskies, and the other two were good (though not $100 good.)
In retrospect this is a fine series. Thanks for the ride Macallan. 4.25/5.