Description
History of the Macallan 12 Double Cask
Following its establishment in 1824, The Macallan quickly became a household name in the whisky world.
The Macallan Estate area in the Speyside region was formerly known as Maghellan—a portmanteau of ‘magh’ and ‘Ellan’. ‘Magh’ translates to ‘fertile ground’ in Gaelic, and ‘Ellan’ is taken from St. Fillan, a monk closely connected to a church in the estate.
The Macallan distillery has always taken pride in their skills of maturing their prized scotch whiskeys. Seasoned oak casks are meticulously handpicked by The Macallan Master of Wood. It is no exception for the 12 Year Old Double Cask, which is matured to perfection for 12 years in both American and European sherry oak casks.
The 12 Double Cask has made its way into Macallan’s core range of single malt Scotch whiskeys after its release in 2016.
How it is made
First, barley grains undergo the malting process to activate enzymes needed for fermentation. The Macallan uses Minstrel barley grown in their distillery’s estate to ensure the highest quality grains.
After fermentation, the alcohol is distilled in copper and spirit stills to extract the “heart” of the distillate. The 12 Double Cask scotch is produced in stills smaller than the average size, which allows the copper still to impart more of its flavours onto the spirit. This practice also gives the master distiller better precision in deciding the cut ratio that runs off the still.
Lastly, the colourless and concentrated soon-to-be scotch is reduced to its maturing strength of 40% ABV and filled into oloroso sherry-seasoned oak barrels for ageing. This process ultimately gives the 12 Double Cask its unique, signature flavour straight out of the bottle.
