We Tried The Macallan’s New Bentley Whisky, But Couldn’t Reveal the Taste — Until Now

Update, 3/13/2024: The Macallan and Bentley Motors have officially launched The Horizon scotch whisky.

The brand’s tasting notes claim that The Horizon, on the nose, boasts “Resinous polished oak with plums and dark cherries, alongside aromatic fresh leather and an herbal, leafy note … an abundance of dried fruits follow–sticky dates, raisins and sultanas leading on to sweet cinnamon, nutmeg with a hint of cloves;” on the palate, it has “dark treacle notes with cinder toffee, crystalized ginger and charred pineapple … sweet vanilla pods and fudge … followed by dark chocolate coated brazil nuts and a warming oak spice;” and a “rich oak … long, complex” finish.

It’s available now for an SRP of $50,000 at selected retailers, as well as The Macallan’s own retail boutiques and the distillery’s Estate Boutique.

Legally, I’m not allowed to tell you what The Macallan Horizon smells or tastes like, though I had a dram or two of the first bottling between the Scotch titan and Bentley Motors. I’m prohibited from telling you whether I enjoyed that dram, which came during this summer’s Monterey Car Week, at the end of a dinner cooked by Thomas Keller and his French Laundry team. (I am able to relay that Mr. Keller’s plates were otherworldly good.)

I’m not allowed to share how much this bottle will cost, how many will be created, nor a variety of other details; I signed a lengthy non-disclosure agreement that lasts until the bottle actually launches, which will be sometime in 2024.

Initially, it was supposed to be ready for this extravagant affair over the summer. The reason for the delay? Sussing out how to keep all that lovely distillate within a horizontal bottle design — so chosen to further imbue a vehicle in motion — has proven difficult.

More on that in a second. As a quick aside, The Macallan Horizon’s bottle design is quite revolutionary. It melds aluminum (left over from Bentley production of the Continental GT and Bentaya) with copper (recycled from Macallan’s former stills), then adds a dash of wood (upcycled from both brands) and Scottish leathers (employed by Bentley in its new $2.1M Batur).

The overall 180-twist around the bottle is meant to represent an exploding cask; there are nods to Bentley knurling and headlights on the bottle, and it’s a show stopper for any shelf. It’s properly stunning to behold in person.

The Macallan

Which begs the question: presuming this is a high-priced bottle, and that it will be limited in availability, what should one do with it? Display it as art or drink it? (And if you do drink it, what happens to the empty bottle?)

“The bottle is a thing of beauty,” Kirsteen Campbell tells me, over a glass-licking pour of The Macallan 25, “But I’m the master whisky maker, so I’m going to say you have to taste it.”

Campbell, the first woman to take on the top coveted spot at The Macallan in the brand’s nearly 200-year history, hopes any future Horizon owners are “curious about the flavor and the story of the whisky,” in addition to the stunning aesthetics of the bottle. “Absolutely, they should open it,” she adds.

The larger query remains: What stopper, precisely, will they be opening? Sideways storage has huge implications when abutting a traditional cork, something Campbell recognizes. “This is a completely new world,” she says of the discussions around the stopper. “We’re working with partners that can do all the rigorous testing to make sure that closure is exactly how we need it to be.”

The Macallan

Because buyers who are drinkers, collectors, or displayers all must be considered, the bottle stopper needs to successfully survive being laid down for 50 or 100 years, per The Macallan reps, a positioning for which little data exists. If, for example, the distillate has a higher-than-usual ABV, a traditional cork would quickly be toast, though synthetic options would be available. “That’s why the project has rolled on a little bit, we’re continuing to reengineer and test,” Campbell says.

Let’s say you do open the marvel and have a wild night with some very lucky friends; do you display an empty bottle? Should it come with a refill of Horizon liquid or perhaps another Macallan offering? The Macallan didn’t officially address these queries, though it’s safe to assume they’re all being discussed internally.

Ask Campbell if this is the tip of the spear in terms of potential future projects that see Macallan bottles in different positions and she’s cryptic: “If you follow The Macallan brand, you know we’re very creative and innovative; all I’m able to say is watch this space,” though she did note “this is our first release with our Bentley partnership.” So, if you read into that statement, perhaps more releases are forthcoming.

The Macallan

The Macallan Horizon

The Horizon is The Macallan’s first collaboration with Bentley Motors. The liquid is delightful, but it plays second fiddle to the remarkable horizontal bottle, made using aluminum, copper and wood sourced from both companies.

Specs

Proof	93.2
Volume	700 mL

Pros

• Bottle is a true work of art
• Great to see great brands working together

Cons

• Not cheap, Bob

• $50,000 at The Macallan

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