I’ve been told this bottling is a ten year old Macallan, but with how rare these things have become over the last couple of years I’m not 100% sure about that. Still, there’s a distinct possibility for it to be true.

I’ve had quite some drams from The Maltman over the last couple of years, but I’ve never bought a bottle. Somehow, when push comes to shove I generally find the brand to be too expensive compared to other releases of comparable distilleries, age and quality. What might make them stand out is the high average level of whiskies they bottle.

This indie from a sherry butt might be an exception to the pricing rule. It’s currently available for just over € 100 in the Whiskybase Market, and that’s not too expensive for a cask strength whisky, of a renowned bottler, from a sherry cask. It still more than I like to spend on ‘just’ a ten year old, but still. A sign of the times…

Sniff:
A whopping lot of chocolaty sherry notes. Some barley, spices and fruit. Raisins, blue grapes. Hazelnuts. It reminds me of the raisin and hazelnut chocolate bars from Aldi my mum used to buy.

Sip:
Quite gentle for the ABV, rather dry and some chili heat. Some oak and barley.

Swallow:
Strangely, some glue-y notes on the finish. More heat and dry sherry. The nuttiness remains.

Yeah, where to go with this. The ABV was quite acceptable, and the sharpness that came along with it not too much. However, the sweet, chocolate-y notes on the nose, the rather flat palate and the glue-y notes on the finish is something that I can’t really wrap my head around. None of these are flavors I really dislike, but it just doesn’t seem to add up in this case. No balance, little to no consistency.

Strangely, this weirdness, combined with the nuttiness on the nose and finish do make this more like Macallan than I expected. So if that’s you’re profile, you might like this a lot more than I do.

80/100

Secret Speyside 2007-2018, Macallan, 10yo, Sherry Butt 10900, 55.2%, The Maltman. Available at The Old Pipe for € 110