#Types of macallan whiskey full#
#Types of macallan whiskey license#

Reid was succeeded by his son, also named Alexander, who led the company until his own death in 1858. The following year, Reid formed his own company, Alexander Reid & Co., remaining head of the distillery, known as Macallan, until his death in 1847. Distilling had most likely taken place on the hill since the early 1700s and the introduction of the first punitive whiskey duties.

#Types of macallan whiskey license#

Smith was to win the exclusive right to the 'The' in its name, yet it remained common practice for distillers from the Glenlivet area to include 'Glenlivet' in their own distillery names into the 1970s.Īnother distillery emerged from the underground in 1824, when Alexander Reid obtained the license to operate on a small hill overlooking the River Spey in the village of Craigellachie. The first distiller to take advantage of the new license was George Smith, who founded what became known as The Glenlivet distillery. Under that legislation, distillers were provided a license to operate, in exchange for an annual fee of £10, and a smaller per-gallon duty. The Duke of Gordon became the champion of this cause, and in 1823 promulgated the Excise Act. Pressure began to build to banish the tax duties and introduce a less burdensome licensing system. Nonetheless, the whiskey produced in the area known as Glenlivet, in the Speyside region, became recognized for its higher quality-and even became the favorite of King George IV.

In the rush to produce their whiskey before being discovered, the clandestine distillers tended to produce a clear alcohol that bore little relation to later Scotch whiskey fame. Many of these sites were to remain important locations for Scottish distilleries. Stills were often cleverly disguised, hidden among the rocks and brush of the wild northern country. As a result, hundreds of distillers operating thousands of illegal stills sprang up throughout the country. Steady increases in tax duties drove most whiskey makers underground-also serving in part as an act of defiance against the British crown. Origins of Whiskey Legend in the 19th CenturyĪlthough whiskey had been distilled in Scotland for many centuries, it remained under English domination into the early 19th century. In 2003, the Edrington Group, a private company, reported total sales of £269 million ($363 million). The Macallan is one of the five core brands owned by Scotland's Edrington Group, which also owns the brands The Famous Grouse, Cutty Sark, and Highland Park, among others. The company also sells a 60-year Scotch-at prices ranging to more than $22,000 per bottle.

#Types of macallan whiskey full#

The full collection, available at per glass prices ranging from $50 to $3,500, was presented for the first time at the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa in Atlantic City, New Jersey, in 2004. The company's vintage range includes its Fine & Rare Vintage collection, featuring bottles from each year between 19. Macallan pioneered the trend for laying down stock in the 1950s and 1960s, allowing it to create a new vintage class of single malt whiskeys. The company also releases Cask Strength and 'replica' bottles of 18 single malt whiskeys.

The Macallan single malt whiskey comes in a variety of ages. The Macallan is also considered by many to be the world's finest single-malt whiskey, earning monikers such as 'the Rolls Royce of single malts' and 'the Dom Perignon of Scotch.' Safeguarding the company's reputation for quality is its adherence to traditional distillery techniques, including the use of small, hand-crafted brass stills, high quality 'Golden Promise' barley, and Spanish oak sherry casks for aging at its Craigellachie, Scotland base. The Macallan, made by The Macallan Distillers Ltd., is one of the world's top selling Scotch whiskey brands, typically ranking in the top three in terms of global sales.