Iconic luxury brands The Macallan and Lalique have unveiled The Macallan in Lalique Natural Colour decanter containing an exceptionally rare 55 years old single malt whisky valued at £6,000 (USD$12,000).

The Natural Colour decanter has been designed by the legendary French crystal house Lalique, exclusively for The Macallan. A limited edition, of only 420, have been produced, each individually numbered and available in selected outlets in the USA, UK, Asia and Russia from January 2008.

Ken Grier, director of The Macallan comments: “The first Macallan in Lalique decanter paid homage to the carefully selected wood casks in which the spirit matures. This second collaboration between The Macallan and Lalique celebrates the natural colour which results from the interaction of spirit and wood to deliver the rich diversity of colour evident throughout our range of outstanding whiskies. We used this as the inspiration for the design of this decanter which we have titled ‘Natural Colour’.

“The first decanter containing 50 year old single malt was launched in 2005 and proved a huge success. Since then we have seen an increase in demand for our rarer whiskies, proof that we were moving in the right direction by extending our partnership with Lalique to produce a series of decanters containing the finest Macallan single malt. The Natural Colour decanter launched today is the second in what will be a series of six based on The Macallan’s Six Pillars and is testament to the quality and craftsmanship of both partners in the production of this outstanding product. We are confident that this will make the Natural Colour decanter even more desirable to the discerning purchaser and will be of particular interest to whisky connoisseurs and collectors of Lalique crystal.

The Macallan 55 years old single malt contained (more…)

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A small, private distillery on Scotland’s west coast has been recognised for it’s dynamic approach to making whisky.

At a ceremony in New York last night the world’s leading whisky publication has awarded Islay’s Bruichladdich Distillery with Pioneer of the Year.

The award was made by The Malt Advocate for the innovative distillation programme, imaginative ACE maturation policy, and novel bottling concepts.

The ceremony took place in Times Square’s Marriott Hotel in front of 2000 industry representatives, world-wide distillers and whisky fans.

Whisky guru Jim McEwan, Bruichladdich’s talented production director, collected the award: “We have the inspiration; we have the flexibility; we have the know-how.”

“It’s an honour for my team and I to be recognised for our hard work. Being this innovative does not sit easy within this industry so set in it’s standardising ways.”

“We love to challenge that fuddy-duddy image of single malt and add a little magic, some excitement. Sure, we ruffle a few feathers on the way, but that’s pioneering…”

“Our ‘what if?’ mentality encourages a hot-bed of new ideas, (more…)

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