Macallan 1851 Inspiration

Related whiskies : The Macallan 18 Years Old , The Macallan 18 Years Old, Fine Oak , The Macallan 1948, 51 Years Old , The Macallan 1979 18 Years Old, Gran Reserva

by **bcrossan** » Thu May 29, 2008 2:00 am

This seems to be an Asia only duty free product as far as I can tell. I picked one up in China or Taiwan (I forget which exact stop) for around $90US. It is a pretty decent dram, but I still wonder the exact age of it. A guy I ran into in the duty free shop said it was a blend of 18-21 yr old. Given it is under $100 I can't believe that to be true. Anyone know for sure?

by **WhiskyViking** » Thu May 29, 2008 7:16 am

It originally was exported only to Taiwan, but it has now also arrived in other parts of the world, Europe included - duty-free only (with the exception of certain quality stores as The Whisky Exchange in London - £75).

It originally was thought of as the next Macallan Replica, but then the preverbial s**t hit the fan and some (if not all) of the "genuine" 19th-century Macallans were revealed as being fake. So Macallan tok the whisky that was supposed to be Macallan Replica 1851 and turned it into Macallan Inspiration 1851 and shipped it off to Taiwan.

Since most the fakes actually was young Macallan (10yo) the Replicas/Inspiration I don't really belive that it as old as that guy claimed. It retails in European Duty-Free for around £50-£60 (it's even available in Norway).

by **Iain** » Thu May 29, 2008 8:21 pm

bcrossan wrote:A guy I ran into in the duty free shop said it was a blend of 18-21 yr old.

That guy is telling you porkies. Spit in his eye!

by **kallaskander** » Thu Jun 12, 2008 2:04 pm

Hi there,

it is overpriced and based on a fake. The bottle Macallan had bought at an auction turned out to be a fake and not genuine 1851 Macallan. Far from it.

Instead of calling the whole thing off Macallan decided to go on with a newly composed Macallan based on fraudolous whisky that did not even come close the 1851 mark. The inspiration behind this bottling comes closer from the 1990s than from anywhere 1851.

They did not call it a Replica bottling but sold the whisky inspired by a lie to Asia. Now it comes back to Europe and it was said somewhere that this is still another whisky and not even the original recipe that was used for the Asian market.

What can you read on the back of the Fine Oak botlings? Macallan remains the whisky against which all others must be judged.

Greetings
kallaskander

by **laphroaig10_65** » Thu Jun 12, 2008 4:43 pm

The new European version of the Macallan "1851 Inspiration" can be found in the shops too. I found it at the Kik Bar in Bologna. The price? 105-110 euros (It was bought by a friend).
Luca

by **UUNetBill** » Thu Jun 12, 2008 5:03 pm

I'd agree that the Replicas/Inspirations are somewhat overpriced as a purely drinking whisky, but for some of us, the packaging and feel of these whiskies are worth the extra money.

I bought an 1861 Replica because I like Macallan and I was born in 1961. Centennial and all that. And the $200 I paid for the 1861 Replica was a far cry from the price I'd have had to pay for a 1961!!

My 1861 is one of my few bottles I haven't yet opened, it's still sitting in it's nice box looking all 1861-ish in it's hand-blown bottle and replica label. I'm sure I'll crack it on some future occasion, maybe my 50th birthday or something. But until then, I enjoy having it in my collection. Oh, and MJ also rated it 95 in his last edition, the same score given to the 30 yo sherry oak which costs between US$650-800, so it can't be all bad.

I'd say if you have the money and want to have it, then by all means buy it! That's what it's all about, is it not?

by **bamber** » Thu Jun 12, 2008 5:05 pm

Remember this:

SpiritofShetland wrote:Yup.

They're not replicating the fakes any longer, just getting inspired by them...

by **bryce_3** » Thu Jun 12, 2008 5:50 pm

I own one of the older Taiwanese versions and quite like the packaging and controversy that surrounds it.

by **irishwhiskeychaser** » Thu Jun 12, 2008 6:12 pm

UUNetBill wrote:
My 1861 is one of my few bottles I haven't yet opened, it's still sitting in it's nice box looking all 1861-ish in it's hand-blown bottle and replica label. I'm sure I'll crack it on some future occasion, maybe my 50th birthday or something. But until then, I enjoy having it in my collection.

I'd say if you have the money and want to have it, then by all means buy it! That's what it's all about, is it not?

I love it 'looking all 1861-ish' :lol: