A 1971 vintage Macallan from the Fine & Rare Collection, taken from a single sherry butt, cask 7556, and bottled in 2002 at 30 years old. It was bottled at cask strength of 55.9% ABV, with 515 bottles from the cask.
About This Whisky
Cask 7556 was a sherry butt filled in 1971 and left to mature for three decades. By 2002 the whisky had reached a colour the distillery calls rich rosewood, yet it kept a notably lively, citrus-led profile rather than heavy wood. The distillery's own description even notes that the finish has no woody dryness, which is unusual at 30 years. At 55.9% it keeps plenty of power, and the 700mL bottles were presented in wooden boxes.
Tasting Profile
- Nose: Parma violet sweets with light fruits and citrus orange.
- Palate: Fruity and orangey, with a light oiliness and a malty cereal note.
- Finish: Citrus orange and dried fruit with no woody dryness, then an aftertaste of heavily toasted oak.
Serving & Food
Open it an hour before serving and pour at room temperature into a stemmed nosing glass. Take the first sip neat, then try a little water, which brings the orange forward. Serve with candied orange peel dipped in dark chocolate, a panettone or aged Gouda.
How to Enjoy
A 1971 birth-year bottle, or a centrepiece for a vertical of Fine & Rare vintages.
Product Details
Producer: The Macallan
Region: Speyside, Scotland
Series: Fine & Rare Collection
Vintage: 1971
Year bottled: 2002
Age: 30 years
Cask: Sherry butt #7556
Outturn: 515 bottles
ABV: 55.9%
Volume: 700mL
About the Distillery
The Fine & Rare Collection is The Macallan's library of vintage-dated single malts. It was launched in 2002, and this 1971 was part of the opening wave that year. Today the collection counts around sixty bottlings, running from the 1926 vintage, which has set auction records, to a 2000 vintage released in 2024 for the distillery's bicentenary. Each bottle carries its distillation year, cask number and outturn, so every release is a fixed snapshot of one cask rather than a recipe.