Raise The Macallan

I now realize that I’m not a raging alchy…
I may drink fu-​fu drinks and all but this takes the cake. I was invited to a Macallan event, whereby 5 samples of Macallan were provided. I seriously lost count and most of my memory after the first one. HOLY ISHT this stuff is strong!!!
The nuts on the table couldn’t even soak up the amount of alcohol I had. I think I drank the entire carafe of water just to cleanse my palate.
I do appreciate the stories and humor behind each drink and the graciousness of the hostesses passing out the drinks.
If you get invited to this event, RSVP and go early because seats fill up quickly!

What is better than scotch? Free scotch!
This event was well organized and from a marketing standpoint, really communicated the Macallan brand well. Even novice scotch drinkers could come to understand the process and history of this distillery.
We were served small drams of the 10, 12, 15, 17, and 18. The staff were very friendly and the host did a good job. There were a few jokes about English/​Scottish animosity and shots at blended whiskey drinkers. Silly, William Wallace.
The 18 was definitely the best but that is to be expected. The 10 had a strong bite but that is to be expected. I thought the 12 was pretty balanced but like with all whiskey, it is a matter of preference. Drink what you want, pay what you want.
Good times.

This event was unlike any other tasting I have been too. As I walked down the pier, once the venue doors were in sight, I could smell a waft of scotch coming through them. This made me pretty excited and I hurried in. I walked up to a set of tables where girls in little black dresses help IPads to check people in with. It was well organized and nice not to be standing there waiting for someone to flip through a bunch of pages. Once checked in they handed me a token for my «first free drink.» I was sort of confused by this but the second I walked in, servers held trays of a 10 year Macallen sample and gave me one in exchange for my gold token. Everyone was mingling in an open room with a couple of conches and a handful of tables. Swedish meatball hors d’oeuvres were being passed out and they had a few display boards with information about $ 400K plus bottles of Macallen in crystal decanters. I was alone so instead of mingling, I read these displays trying not to stick out like a sore thumb and the ONLY person there alone in a hot pink and orange dress. After reading all the displays and finishing my drink, I thought that this was the entire deal and almost left when these partitions opened and people began to funnel into another «room.» Girls at the portion were directing traffic and sending groups to tables on either side of the room. Again, very nicely organized. Again, I seemed to be the only one alone there and I got directed to a table for 8 and sat by myself. Luckily some people joined me and they were quite pleasant. A Scottish man got up on stage immediately after we were seated and began to talk to us about scotch and make us laugh with his cute accent and witty humor. He got a lot of audience participation which was cool. It was about 45 minute presentation and it was quite educating and enjoyable. we were served 4 different Macallens, a 10, 12, 15, and finally a 20 year throughout the lecture.
Very nice event. Will recommended it to everyone next time they are in town.

«I love scotch. Scotchy, scotch, scotch.» — Ron Burgundy
For a newbie to the world of whisky, this was an cute introduction. While I do not have the most sophisticated palate for complex adult beverages, I can appreciate the quality of this single malt. It’s definitely an acquired taste, but taking the time to savor the nuances of the drink is similar to appreciating a fine wine or a craft beer.
When the doors to the Broadway Pier building opened, the group of roughly 100 guests were checked in while a couple of servers brought out trays of the 10 year old whisky. Other servers walked around with trays of snacks until the last guest was ushered in and the doors were closed. Then, everyone was asked to make their way towards the spacious hall inside the building.
Once we got seated at tables towards the back of the building by the waterfront, we had to sit through a series of monologues by Macallan’s US Brand Ambassador, Eden Algie, and his signature bright green tartan pants. I could have done without much of the lecturing, since most of the infomercial presentation is available on the website.
Much love to the server who brought out the different tastes of their 12, 15, 17, and 18 year old whiskys because we got a couple of extra mini-​snifters for our enjoyment. All the waitstaff in general were great, friendly, and prompt in getting those samples out to the people.
The event itself was ok, although maybe a bit more marketing flash and excessive self-​promotion (or quick jabs at Johnnie Walker) than needed, but enduring lengthy speeches and corny jokes for more than a wee dram of premium whisky on the house is perfectly fine with me.
* Footnote: I thought they were collecting donations for charity, but that wasn’t the case this evening.