Curious Details
Distinction in the Distillation
There are times when the choice to do things differently is where the real, deep value lies, even when this deviation goes against conventional thinking. Take our curiously small stills for example...
One of The Macallan’s marks of distinction is what we affectionately refer to as our ‘curiously small’ stills. These small copper stills are one of the defining features of our distillation process, and are one of our Six Pillars – the guiding principles that shape everything we do. Yet the decision to continue operating stills of this size and shape comes at a cost, and in fact they are some of the smallest within the scotch whisky industry. So why keep them?
There is a “purpose to the process”. These exceptional stills play a significant role in the dense and full-bodied spirit that we make.
A particular, distinctive, and unbeatable character
These copper stills are traditional and handmade, and are truly works of art, crafted by coppersmith company Forsyths, located just three miles from the distillery and our trusted stills partners since the 1950s. When we made the decision to build the new distillery, our shared values and principles made them an obvious choice.
Instead of changing the shape or size of our stills, we deliberately chose to fashion the exact same shape, size and lyne arm orientation of our original squat copper stills. This ensures that the character of our new-make spirit is preserved and consistent. There are 24 of these exceptionally crafted spirit stills within the new distillery; each one distinctive, each one Macallan.