Whisky Review: Macallan 2008 SMWS 24.150

Macallan 2008 SMWS 24.150 / 63.7% / ¥16,800

Tasted neat, and with some mineral water

It was a party in my mouth, for a little while at least.

Recently, a spate of single-cask Macallans have turned up in SMWS out-turns, which hasn’t happened for quite a while. All of the sudden we are seeing three of four quite lovely releases pop up, so this bottle, “A Party in Your Mouth” is Macallan distilled in 2008, and then dumped for 2 years in 2018 into a first-fill ex-PX sherry hogshead to finish.

Turkish coffee - "black as hell and sweet as love". 
A single malt from oloroso butts, married in a first-fill
American oak PX hogshead since 2018.

Just 1 of 332 bottles!

• Color: treacle (2.0)
• Nose: beer nuts, stewed prunes, ethanol, baked apples; dates and malt
• Taste: sweet rich, honey-glazed BBQ pork, cola, 5 spice; candied fig and the classic Macallan raisins
• Finish: medium: dry sherry, sandalwood, and toffee

A rather wet PX treatment gives us that Coca Cola colour, but the previous maturation for 10 years in Oloroso saves this from being overwhelmingly syrupy. There’s enough complexity in the glass that you’re left wanting more, although the finish is perhaps the weak point as it’s flat and abbreviated.

A good winter dram!

Rating: 6/10