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The Macallan releases a lot of new expressions throughout the year. These range from single malts aged for nearly a century (and priced accordingly) to special limited-edition bottles that can sometimes be difficult to tell exactly what makes them different from other releases. The latest Macallan whisky, however, does have a unique feature that makes it stand out—it was partially matured in Pedro Ximenez sherry casks.
This new whisky is the third in the distillery’s A Night on Earth Series, which is said to be inspired by Jerez de la Frontera, Spain where the Macallan‘s casks come from. Those are the sherry-seasoned American and European oak barrels that are used to mature the vast majority of the distillery’s whisky, although there are some bourbon barrels in the mix as well. Most of those sherry casks were seasoned with Oloroso sherry, a dryer style that is known for having a nutty flavor profile. But some of them previously held Pedro Ximenez (or PX) sherry, a richer, sweeter style that is often enjoyed with dessert. And a portion of those casks were used to were used to age the whisky that went into A Night on Earth in Jerez de la Frontera, a new non-age statement single malt.
I asked Raquel Raies, regional education manager for the Macallan, to explain how the new whisky differs from past releases. “This whisky embodies the celebratory flavors of the region, especially the tradition of eating 12 grapes at midnight—one for each chime of the clock—as a symbol of good fortune for the coming year,” she said. This limited-edition release was aged in a combination of European and American sherry-seasoned oak, as is par for the course, which she says is supposed to capture the flavors of “uvas en aguardiente,” a Spanish concoction of distilled wine and grapes typically enjoyed before New Year. “In addition to the perfectly balanced combination of first-fill and refill European and American sherry-seasoned oak casks, a small, rare parcel of Pedro Ximenez-seasoned European oak casks have been hand selected by the whisky maker Steven Bremner for additional layered depth and unexpected richness and sweetness on palate.” We did not get to sample the whisky, but official tasting notes describe sweet pastry, white grapes, honey glazed almonds, vanilla, balanced spices, and fresh rosemary on the palate.
As mentioned before, this is the third in the A Night on Earth Series following the first, A Night on Earth in Scotland (inspired by the country’s shortbread), and the second, A Night on Earth The Journey (inspired by the flavor of rice popcorn vendors and sweet steamed rice pudding). Like those past releases, A Night on Earth in Jerez de la Frontera is a limited-edition single malt, but you can currently find bottles available to purchase from the Whisky Exchange.
