Macallan Edition No. 2
Whisky: Macallan Edition No. 2
Country/Region: Scotland/Speyside
ABV: 48.2%
Nose: Sherry-forward, leather with hints of sulfurous funk, roasted nuts, especially almonds and Brazil nuts, burning candle wicks and hot wax, chocolate and dates.
Palate: Medium-bodied, very sherry, dates, dark chocolate, musty leather and mild funk, lacquered wood, burning candles, mild herbal incense, more stewed fruits at the end with hints of linoleum.
Finish: Medium-length and drying with stewed fruits and chocolate.
Score: 5
Mental Image: Secret Chocolate at Midnight Mass
Narrative & Notes: I poured this as dram #20 on a “Holiday Mystery Whisky Advent Calendar” and guessed it was an older sherried Clynelish, though Glen Grant also came to mind. To be honest, the whisky felt very cask-forward, so I was unsure which direction to go besides sherry and oak. The impression of candles led me toward Clynelish, while the almost savory quality of bitter chocolate brought to mind Glen Grant.
I was wrong again! It was Macallan Edition No. 2 in my glass, and I am not surprised I missed this one. I have reviewed very few Macallan bottles, so it is not a distillate or character that I recognize immediately. Even tasting this again a few months later, as I, for some reason, skipped posting this during the advent calendar tasting, I still did not get a lot of evident distillery character, though, for a sherry-driven malt, this was enjoyable.
I thought the flavor profile epitomized the “classy, classic, chic” idea with its restrained sweetness and bold leathery profile. It is not the sort of thing I particularly crave, but I suspect distillery fans— whether driven by the malt, the imagery, or both— would find a lot to love with this bottle. Judging by the reviews and comments on Whiskybase, not to mention the astronomical appreciation in the price of this bottle, that must be true.
Overall, an enjoyable sherry-forward malt but not one worth the hype-driven pricing. I rated this a five when trying it blind, and I was tempted to raise the score when I enjoyed it more upon a revisit. Still, the pricing was a bucket of cold water, and while I do not explicitly consider pricing in my score (though sometimes I do comment on value propositions), it was hard to look past the asks for this malt.
