The Macallan pays homage to the mighty oak

THE MACALLAN, the luxury single Malt Scotch Whisky, has unveiled the latest in the Harmony Collection, with two new whisky releases as part of the brand’s collaboration with Cirque du Soleil.

Last year, the troupe had a special performance at the Macallan estate in Scotland to celebrate the whisky brand’s 200th anniversary. This was called Spirit, and the show is reflected in the Harmony Collection Vibrant Oak’s packaging, with a character from the show, Ayla, represented in the box. The second release, Harmony Collection Guardian Oak, also has another character from the show, Davonna.

During a tasting on March 25, The Macallan transformed Kenneth Cobonpue’s Fable Café into an homage to the oak — the theme for this year’s Harmony Collection. An ersatz oak tree was set up in the middle, while glasses of the whisky were covered by acorn tops.

The Harmony Vibrant Oak was matured in a combination of first fill sherry-seasoned American oak casks and refill sherry oak casks. Bottled at 44.2% alcohol by volume (ABV), this whisky delivers key flavors of vanilla, lime, sweet oak, apple, toasted almonds, according to a release. To us, it had a very forward oak flavor, tempered with a little vanilla and nut.

The Harmony Guardian Oak, meanwhile, was matured in a combination of first fill sherry-seasoned European oak casks and refill sherry oak casks. Bottled at 44.2% ABV, this whisky delivers key flavors of dates, orange, rich oak, raisins, and baking spices.

The Harmony collaborations have seen partnerships with figures such as the culinary Roca brothers, with their harmony collection recalling chocolate, a second one inspired by coffee. The most recent one before this oak-inspired collaboration was one with the artistic McCartney sisters, celebrating the lands of Scotland.

More than the celebrity names, each Harmony release has sustainability at its heart: for example, the coffee collaboration used coffee farming byproducts in the packaging; the McCartney sisters’ one used meadow cuttings in their box. The latest one uses oak chips in the packaging.

This is reflective of the brand’s embrace of the environment. Hans Eckstein, brand ambassador of The Macallan in the Philippines said in an interview after the tasting, “The Macallan believes very strongly (about) not negatively affecting the impact in nature where we produce our whisky. You’ll see that in our distillery — it blends into the hills.”

It’s not just aesthetics and lip service. Mr. Eckstein said that The Macallan has partnered with car manufacturer Bentley in an effort to reduce their environmental impact. “We want to make our entire vehicle fleet electric by this year,” he said. “The ultimate goal of The Macallan is to become carbon-neutral by 2030. We have five more years to hit that aim.” — JL Garcia