Scotch Whisky Review #209: The Macallan Quest

Distillery: Macallan

Region: Speyside

ABV: 40%

Age: NAS.

Color: 1.2, Chestnut/Oloroso Sherry. Natural Color.

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Nose: Everything is a bit faint. There’s a little notes of caramel, oranges, and a bit of golden raisin that pop up here and there along with a bit of sweet challah bread.

Palate: Not a whole lot of going on here much like in the nose. Bit of sweetness from the malt, hints of that sweet challah here and there. Very easy to drink but less than flavorful.

Finish: Medium in length. A little bit of oak lingers with a tiny tinge of heat.

Conclusion: This Macallan comes from their travel exclusive series and while the packaging is nice, much like a lot of modern Macallan, it fails to really impress. It’s a very easy to drink whisky but it also lacks heavily the flavor department. I found that it makes for an excellent whisky highball however with a bit of lemon sparkling water and ice. It’s perhaps my second favorite whisky so far to use in a highball, after the Arran 10 year. Not bad but whenever I’m traveling next, I’ll likely avoid this offering and look at other possibilities instead.

Final Score: 72.

Scotch Whisky Review #209, Speyside Review #88, Whisky Network Review #301

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Scoring Legend:

• 96-100: The perfect dram, nectar of the gods.
• 90-95: Near perfect, there is something truly special about this whisky.
• 85-89: Amazing, will always try to keep a bottle of this in my collection (if feasible).
• 80-84: Very Good, maybe only one minor nitpick about the whisky keeping it here.
• 75-79: Good, quite enjoyable to drink.
• 70-74: Solid, wouldn’t go out of my way to get it.
• 60-69: Meh, still drinkable.
• Below 59: If you have a bottle of this, start cooking with it instead.