Review - The Macallan 'Masters of Photography : Mario Testino Edition'

This whisky is the latest in the cult Masters of Photography series of single malts by The Macallan. This is the fifth such release in the programme, which was started back in 2010/11.  Each bottling in the series is accompanied by a series of images from a highly regarded photographer and an exhibition of the work.  This year's edition is been completed in conjunction with Mario Testino and follows on from the previous four photographers Rankin, Albert Watson, Annie Leibowitz and Elliott Erwitt. 

Inbox - June 15, 2012

Inbox is our weekly round up of whisky news and PR material that has found its way in to our email inbox. It was created as we cannot write full articles or do justice to every piece that we receive. It features items from around the world of whisky and is published by us each Friday.

Within Inbox we write a few lines detailing each press release/piece of news/PR event that we have received and provide links, where possible, for you to find out further information.  Things seem to be warming up in PR-land following the Queen's Diamond Jubilee long weekend here in the UK, and this week includes a couple of bits of news for all of you keen photographers out there ...

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Famous Grouse - Win a cask
The Famous Grouse Experience, which is housed at the Highland distillery of Glenturret, has announced the latest competition to help celebrate the 10th anniversary of visitor centre's opening - a once in a lifetime chance to win a cask of Glenturret whisky worth £7,000.  Visitors taking a tour at the Famous Grouse Experience in Creiff will each be given a scratch card offering various prizes, including one for the grand prize of the winning cask.

The cask will be filled with Glenturret single malt and matured for 10 years  Scratch cards will be given to anyone taking the tour that is both over 18 years of age and a UK resident.  The closing date is 31 December this year.  For further information on the Famous Grouse Experience, the tours and the competition terms and conditions - visit www.thefamousgrouse.com.

Jura - Photo competition No.1

The Jura single malt whisky brand has teamed up with leading camera maufacturer Olympus to launch an online photography competition with the aim to find images from across the world that capture the theme of ‘community spirit’.

Three amateur photographers will win a trip to the island of Jura, which is famed for its small, close-knit community and united by the island they love and the warmth of its people. Each of the three winners and their partners will enjoy a week’s stay in the exclusive Jura Lodge and a VIP tour of the Jura distillery and island. The winners will also receive an Olympus PEN E-PL3 camera (pictured and worth £370) and a photography workshop from photographer David Nightingale.

To enter, applicants must upload a photo via the special page on the Jura website that captures 'community spirit' with a description in 50 words or less. There will be one winner from North America, one from the UK and one from the rest of the world. The competition closes on Friday 3 August.

Macallan - Photo comp No.2
Following the recent launch of the third part in their Masters of Photography series, the famous Speyside whisky brand of Macallan have announced a consumer photo competition.  This year's work is produced by world renowned portrait photographer Annie Leibovitz and the subject of consumers entries is to be portraits conveying 'The Last Word'.  The competition can be entered via the special website www.themastersofphotography.com.

Once submitted, each portrait will be live on the website and can be voted for by viewers.  Last year's competition pulled in 7,000 entries and this year sees the brand embracing social media for the first time with photos being used on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest.  Each week, the most popular portrait will be 'The Last Word of the Week' and be Macallan's Facebook profile picture for that week.  There are also to be monthly prizes and the overall winner will receive a photographic VIP trip to the Macallan distillery in Speyside.  The closing date is 5pm GMT on 23 October.

Tomatin - New release announced

The Highland distillery of Tomatin have announced a new limited edition whisky. The whisky is released at 15 years of age and will be available shortly in specialist whisky retailers worldwide. The majority of the maturation was in ex-bourbon casks, before being transferred to ex-Tempranillo red wine casks for the final three years. It has been bottled at a strength of 52% ABV and there are just 3,150 bottles in the release. The recommended price is £49.99.

Graham Eunson, the Distillery Manager at Tomatin, explains, "The intensity of the wine casks is gently softened by the use of second fill ex-bourbons to achieve a perfect balance. The combination of flavours and aromas achieved by the use of these differing casks is fantastic. There’s always a sense of anticipation and excitement when you experience a potential new whisky for the first time and in this case, those emotions were well justified.”

Whisky cocktails > The Macallan Negroni

Macallan, the famous Speyside whisky distillery, has teamed up with Cheri Loughlin, one of the leading online cocktail writers, to create a special cocktail to celebrate their Masters of Photography competition. Cheri writes the excellent Intoxicologist blog, which we have been following for the last couple of years and remains one of our favourites. The blog offers a detailed insight in to the world of mixing cocktails, offering recipes and tips for making both the classics and innovative new drinks. It is a 'must read' and we have learnt plenty from it. You can also follow Cheri's updates on Twitter - just search for @intoxicologist.

The Macallan launched the second in their Masters of Photography series late last year. World renowned photographer Albert Watson was commissioned and has produced a stunning series of images, such as the one pictured, left (title - Chris in Mini). To read more about the concept - click here to read our full article about the Masters of Photography. There is a photographic competition running alongside the series and anyone can enter! All you need to do is to send them one of your own photographs – the theme is ‘Great Journeys’ – and the top 10 entries will then be voted for by the general public. Albert Watson will pick the his top three from these and choose the winner. The prizes include a 10 day photographic trip to Scotland, a selection of Nikon cameras and subscriptions to Digital Camera magazine. Visit www.themastersofphotography.com to enter and vote on your favourites - the closing date is 30 June 2011.

Anyway, back to the special cocktail that has been created. Cheri the Intoxicologist has invented a modern twist on the Negroni - a classic cocktail that combines gin, sweet vermouth and bitters (traditionally Campari) in equal third parts. The Negroni is widely said to have been invented in Caffe Casoni in the Italian city of Florence in 1919, when local dignitary Count Negroni asked the barman to strengthen his favourite Americano cocktail by adding gin instead of soda water. The barman then garnished the new drink with orange peel, instead of the lemon used for the Americano, so as to distinguish between the two.

The Macallan Negroni, created by Cheri Loughlin the Intoxicologist, is made using the following ingredients and quantities,

1 ounce The Macallan 12 years old single malt
1 ounce Port
1/2 ounce artichoke liqueur (something like Cynar)
3 dashes of peach bitters
Twist of orange zest

To make it combine the liquids in a mixing glass with ice. Stir or shake to chill according to preference. Strain into a rocks glass over fresh ice. Garnish with the fresh orange zest twist. We plan to make this Macallan Negroni for ourselves in the next week or so (once we find one last ingredient!) and will report back as to how we get on and how it tastes.

The Macallan Masters of Photography 2010/11

At the start of December, we were delighted to be invited to the UK and world launch of the Macallan Masters of Photography. The event was held in the gallery spaces of famous art auctioneers Phillips de Pury & Co. in central London. This is the second incarnation of the Masters of Photography concept by Macallan, who select a premium single malt whisky from their famous Speyside distillery warehouses and a series of photographic images by a famous Scottish photographer, before launching them together. In 2008, the first in the series paired a special 30 years old whisky with images by Rankin. Now, the collaboration is with the world renowned Albert Watson. The US launch is on 20 January.

Macallan is one of the most famous whisky distilleries and brands in the world. The range of single malt whisky from Macallan is extensive and are some of the best selling around the globe - it is consistently in top three for sales of single malt, with particular strong performances in the American, UK and travel retail markets. The Macallan distillery is located close to the village of Craigellachie in the heart of the Speyside region of Scotland and overlooks the River Spey. It was founded in 1824 by Alexander Reid and was originally called Elchies distillery, after an area of land nearby. The name was changed to Macallan in 1892 following a change of ownership. For further information on Macallan, please visit www.themacallan.com.

Albert Watson is one of the most influential photographers of the last 40 years. In a prolific career he has produced many memorable portraits of leading figures including Alfred Hitchcock, Mick Jagger and Kate Moss. He is also well known for his work in high fashion and has produced many cover shots for glossy magazines such as Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar and Rolling Stone. In addition, Watson has also directed over 500 TV commercials, had many solo shows exhibiting his work, published several books of his photographs and produced numerous iconic movie posters such as Kill Bill and Memoirs of a Geisha. He has also been voted as one of the Top 20 most influential photographers ever by Photo District News. For more information and to view some of his stunning images, go to www.albertwatson.net.

The concept behind the series of photographs is the journey of the wood that helps to flavour Macallan’s whisky. Watson, plus two models, started their journey in the forests of northern Spain where the European oak trees grow and then followed the wood through the whole process – the local timber yard, cooperage, Gonzalez Byass bodegas in Jerez where the sherry is made, sherry maturation, transportation to Scotland and finally, the Macallan distillery in Speyside. While the main focus is on the wood itself and its role in the whisky making, Watson conveys this with the use of the models, the dramatic Spanish and Scottish landscapes and the characters met along the way. As both of us are students of photography, we were impressed how much was conveyed through attention to detail, extraordinary use of light and sympathetic printing.

Macallan are running a competition in conjunction with the launch of the Albert Watson Masters of Photography series. All you need to do is to send them one of your own photographs – the theme is ‘great journeys’ – and the top 10 entries will then be voted for by the general public. Albert Watson will pick the his top three from these and award the prizes. These include a 10 day photographic trip to Scotland and master class with Albert Watson, a selection of Nikon cameras and subscriptions to Digital Camera magazine. For further information, visit the website above. Visit www.themastersofphotography.com to enter and the closing date for entries is 30 June 2011.

There are two whiskies that are being released in this Masters of Photography series. The first is a Macallan 20 years old that has been matured in Oloroso sherry casks. There are only 1000 bottles of this available and each comes in a presentation case with a specially commissioned book containing Albert Watson's Masters of Photography series of photos. It is bottled at 43% ABV and they will retail at specialist whisky stores for around £700 each. The second is the Macallan 1946, of which there are only 36 bottles released from a specially selected premium sherry cask. Each bottle comes with a one-off platinum photographic print signed by Albert Watson and will be sold with a reserve price of £10,000!

Macallan 20 years old > Our tasting notes
We were delighted and privileged to be able to sample this exclusive and rare whisky. The colour is a dark golden amber with a hint of red vibrancy to it. The nose is expressive and full of wonderful, rich aromas - dark dried fruits (think of prunes, figs, raisins and dates - essentially we are talking fruit cake/Christmas pudding), caramel, butterscotch sauce, plenty of spicy wood (imagine cedar wood, cinnamon and nutmeg - the feeling is like polished antique furniture), vanilla and burnt/spiced orange peel. The combination and balance is lovely. On the palate, there is initial sweetness with notes of vanilla, honey and caramel. Then come the darker notes - think of molasses, the dark dried fruits from the nose (especially fig with some cinnamon, which reminded us of panforte cakes from Tuscany), candied and spiced orange peel, coffee, a hint of dark chocolate and some bitter woodiness. The finish is slightly shorter than expected but good. The sweeter notes disappear quickly to leave lovely, warm cocoa, bitter chocolate and cinnamon notes.

What's the verdict?
This is a delicious and well produced whisky - the nose is excellent, the palate very good and the finish is decent but lets the whole whisky down slightly. Otherwise, it offers plenty of rich, warming characters and these are well balanced. Is it worth £700 a bottle? Only you can really decide that!