A trinity of globally acclaimed artists, Sir Peter Blake, Valerio Adami and Michael Dillon, were commissioned to create label art for The Macallan 1926. Bottled in 1986, it would go on to become the most valuable bottle of wine or spirit ever sold at auction.*
Now, in 2026, these artists have reunited with The Macallan to pay homage to this single malt whisky with a new collection of artwork for The Romantica Collection.
The Romantica Collection revives a sense of romance, imagination and freedom of spirit with a new body of artwork commissioned exclusively for the Collection. Each artist contemplated The Macallan's journey during cask no. 9925's years of slumber, from 1986 to 2026, and interpreted this in their own unique style with a depth, complexity and vibrancy mirrored in the character of the Scotch whisky that bears their art.
*The Macallan Valerio Adami 1926 - sold at Sotheby's, London for £2.18m in 2023.
A Tribute to The Macallan 1926
In 1986, The Macallan 1926 reached the apogee of maturity with a complex and alluring character, slowly aged into perfection over six long decades in sherry seasoned oak casks from Jerez de la Frontera, Spain. This would become the world's most valuable wine or spirit sold at auction.
As maturation of The Macallan 1926 came to an end in 1986, another journey was just beginning. Single sherry seasoned European oak cask no. 9925 was filled and laid down to mature in a cool and quiet corner of The Macallan Estate, to be unveiled in 2026, one hundred years after The Macallan 1926 was first distilled.
Creative Inspiration
Reunited with The Macallan to pay homage to The Macallan 1926 on its 100th anniversary, each artist brings their own singular perspective to a new collection of artwork for The Romantica Collection.
Sir Peter Blake: The Music Room
Blake's collage captures the sense of community at the heart of The Macallan. It imagines a celebratory crowd gathered outside The Macallan's Spiritual Home, Easter Elchies House in Speyside, Scotland. The year is 1986 and the crowd is celebrating the opening of The Macallan Octagon Room, a music room inside Easter Elchies House, designed on the theme of Victorian entertainment and reserved for the most special guests to The Macallan Estate.
Under the stewardship of Allan Shiach, 1986 proved an eventful year. The Octagon Room was declared open, The Macallan 1926 was bottled and The Macallan Romantica Collection was distilled. Elements of the Octagon Room have been reimagined outside in Blake's collage; the checked carpet on the lawn and a small portrait of Allan Shiach, ordinarily positioned discretely indoors.
The Macallan Romantica Collection - Blake Edition can be seen on the table within the collage, quietly linking the events of 1986 to the release of The Macallan Romantica Collection in 2026.
About Sir Peter Blake
One of the most celebrated figures in British art, Sir Peter Blake is a pioneer of the pop art movement, best known for co-creating the sleeve design for the Beatles' 1967 album Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
Knighted in 2002 for his services to art, Blake has maintained a long and distinguished relationship with The Macallan. He previously created label art for The Macallan Fine & Rare 1926 and most recently reunited with us for the Anecdotes of Ages Collection, released in 2021.
Valerio Adami: Romantica
The composition of the lady, moon and stars was taken from a sketch by Adami from 1986, the same year The Macallan new make spirit was filled into cask no. 9925. The lady represents Janet Harbinson, custodian of The Macallan when The Macallan 1926 was distilled.
Janet proudly stands in a Scottish landscape with her back to an interpretation of Adami's 1926 bottle. Using the 1926 bottle as a mirror to reflect the past, Janet connects moments in time by turning forward to face a future made possible by her stewardship long ago.
Janet's bold red dress reminds us of a colour commonly found in Adami's work. The colour red is also significant throughout the history of The Macallan. Today, it underpins the importance of sherry seasoned oak casks from Jerez de la Frontera, Spain, and an unrivalled commitment to creativity and craftsmanship
About Valerio Adami
Valerio Adami is an Italian painter known for his distinctive style of Narrative Figuration, characterised by bold, black outlines enclosing flat areas of bright, unmodulated colour.
Considered a major figure in contemporary art, Adami blends figuration with abstraction, exploring complex themes through his work. Retrospectives have been held in major cities worldwide, including Paris, Valencia, Tel Aviv and Buenos Aires.
Michael Dillon: The Macallan Estate
Dillon's landscape painting captures the natural beauty of Easter Elchies Estate, home to The Macallan Distillery in Speyside, Scotland. Since The Macallan Romantica Collection was distilled, the most extraordinary modernisation has taken place in the form of a new Distillery sensitively nestled into the panorama with nature undisturbed.
From a leafy green foreground where young oak trees spring up alongside birch trees and thistles, the gaze is drawn along a grassy path to The Macallan Distillery, an architectural masterpiece almost imperceptible under the landscape created by its grass covered, undulating roof. The Distillery is a symbol of The Macallan's growth and modernisation since 1986, yet is only revealed in Dillon's work by the reflection from the tall glass windows, suggesting something magical is concealed beneath.
About Michael Dillon
A mural artist and decorative painter of international repute, Michael Dillon specialises in fantasy murals, trompe l'oeil, decorative schemes and painted furniture. Whilst based in Dorset and Ireland, Michael has travelled widely to undertake commissions across Europe, North America, the West Indies and Africa.
The Whisky
The Macallan Romantica Collection exemplifies The Macallan's mastery of wood and spirit. A consolidation of generations of Scotch whisky mastery, creativity and craftsmanship for which The Macallan is globally renowned.