Part 2: Inside The Cooperages in Jerez, Spain

Up to 80 percent of The Macallan’s character and flavour comes from our extraordinary oak casks. The wood for these casks begins on two continents – America and Europe. 

Once it’s been air dried for a year where it was felled, and then another year after being cut into staves in Jerez, Spain, the next stage of the journey readies it to meet the Cooper.

The craft of the cooper (the name given to professional cask makers) is highly skilled and respected. This step of the cask production is the most dramatic part of the whole whisky-making process. Steeped in tradition and often in generations of experience, the coopers we partner with in Jerez are passionate about their work, and pride themselves on providing consistently excellent casks for our spirits. While it is just one element of the process, the time with the cooper has a direct impact on the end result, and is part of why we choose to invest more than any other distillery. 

The ‘raising of casks’ is a unique process where the staves are carved and sanded into a rough form held in place by metal hoops, before meeting the fire that helps to mould the cask.

Some things cave under intense pressure, while for others their true worth is revealed through the trial. Casks require heating to be crafted into shape, and to prove that they are worthy of their call. The level of heat treatment has a significant impact on the flavours created in the wood. In the bourbon industry the cask is heated quickly and it ignites, burning the surface of the wood to create a ‘char’.

As well as adding flavour and colour, char can remove harsher, unwanted flavours from the spirit, almost acting as a filter between the wood and the spirit inside. For sherry and wine cask production the cask is toasted at a lower temperature for longer. This develops a larger pool of complex characters that can be passed on, over time to The Macallan spirit.

 

During the toasting of the wood caramelisation takes place giving ‘toasty’ notes. This caramelisation is responsible for sweet, toasted, candyfloss flavours as well as colour development. In both American and European oak we expect to see an ‘even toast’ throughout the inside of the cask. This ensures we have as consistent a maturation period as possible.

The temperature and timing of the heat that is expertly applied to these oak casks can significantly influence the flavours which are present in the final whisky. The Macallan dictates the exact toasting times and temperatures of the casks to best suit The Macallan new make spirit.

Only once the casks pass the rigorous toasting and sounding test are they then ready to be filled with Oloroso sherry and stored at the bodegas (wine cellars) for the next stage of the journey.