Macallan – Easter Elchies Black 2018 Release (70cl, 49.20%)

Macallan – Easter Elchies Black 2018 Release is a single malt whisky from Macallan (Speyside). Bottled at 49.20% ABV, 70cl. 2018 was very much about the “new” at Macallan, with its state-of-the-art new distillery opening in the summer. However, November also found time for a long-awaited return from the past, the Easter Elchies series. The first releases to bear the name of the distillery's famous manor home were the Easter Elchies Seasonal Selection, launched in 2005, followed by a highly-acclaimed and equally sought-after single cask series. The last of these was bottled in 2013. After a five year hiatus, Macallan launched the Easter Elchies Black. The release was intended to embody the “warmth” and “timeless luxury” of the eponymous house, and advertises notes of citrus, apple and sweet peat smoke. Crown jewel of the Edrington Group and one of the best-known names in single malt Scotch, made famous by the legendary status of much of the whisky it has produced over the years, including its Fine & Rare series, Anniversary malts and flagship annual 18-year-old release.