Shackleton Mackinlays Rare Old Highland Malt

[William]

I tried the Shackletons Mackinlay's Rare Old Highland Malt earlier and i have to say i loved.

Colour: Pale gold.

Nose: Spicy oak, fresh fruit green apples, pear drops, smooth malty cereal, vanilla, hint of orange zest and a whisper of smoke.

Taste: Loads going on here, rich creamy toffee, vanilla, a bit of orange zest, hazelnuts, a little sprinkling of pepper, old and new oak spices and a lovely very light touch of smoke is always lingering in the background

Finish: Long and rich with drying oak spices, creamy toffee and the slightest hint of smoke.

No wonder Ernest Shackleton choose Mackinlay's whisky to take with him to the South Pole. This shows just how special a blended malt whisky can be, it is a very high quality blended malt whisky and very easy to drink. Richer than the colour lets on. Damn, why did they send me such a small sample I could have sat with this all night. Is it worth the £100 price tag? Only you can decide but I think I will be getting a full bottle now. Loved it!

William

[Samson]

Cheers William, I wouldnt mind trying this and even more so now. I asume with 50000 botttles some will be heading my way. I was actually thinking that W & M must be confident that this is good to put the £100 price tag on it.

[Innes]

Sounds good William, I thought they would have sent you a bigger sample than that. Perhaps this will encourage other whisky producers to release more blended malts created for their quality and complexity. I am surprised more dont as Compass Box are very good at it.

[Hunter]

William do you think it is worth £100

[Gregor]

Thanks for your thoughts on this William. I would have assumed you would get a decent sized sample.

[William]

There was no size on the sample bottle but i would say it was a 30ml tube, enough for one good dram.

Whether it is worth £100 really depends on your budget, it is certainly a quality dram and as good as any at this price. It is certainly a rare taste of whisky history as i have said and that is bound to carry a price. If it is within your budget you wont be disappointed.

[Woodwynd]

When and where will it be released.

[William]

[Fergie]

[Kenny M]

Anyone intending to get a bottle of Shackletons Mackinlays whisky?

[Woodwynd]

[Hodge]

I am like Fergie, very curious but the price is a bit off putting. I dont think it will sell out fast so hopefully i will maybe get a chance to taste it at a whisky tasting event and then decide.

[Acker]

I wonder if this is flying off the shelves. Quite curious about it and wouldnt mind tasting it myself but like others i am wondering if a release of 50000 bottles is worth £100 per bottle.

[5-12-1908]

The lack of colour is quite a novelty.

As whisky is more of a taste sensation, why bother with colour? surely the distillers can make the "natural" colour a selling point?

Going down the meat section of a supermarket with all the bright red meat isn't really something you need in a bottle of whisky surely?

[Blakey]

Personally I believe that the caramel E150 colouring that is added to some whisky does alter the taste and i do not think there is any need for it in single malts or as in this case a blended malt.

Having said that, i am sure a lot of bended whisky drinkers would be put off if the saw a difference in colour between bottles of the same blended whisky sitting on a shelf in a supermarket. Unlike the single malt whisky drinker who would have at least an idea about how whisky is produced, the average blended whisky driner would realise that no 2 batches of whisky good possibly be identical in colour as individual barrels will have its own unique influence on the whisky.