Macallan 1986 The Ultimate Dinner Single Cask #191101 / El Celler de Can Roca 13

It may be hard to imagine today, but for much of the 20th century, Macallan was primarily a constituent malt in blends. It was not until the 1980s downturn in the market that the distillery decided to focus on its single malt brand. Fortuitously, this coincided with the crest of a wave of enthusiasm for the high quality releases that the distillery had licensed to Campbell, Hope & King and Gordon & MacPhail in the 1960s and 1970s. These remain some of the most collectible on the market. While global single malt sales volume is still lead by Speyside neighbours, Glenfiddich and Glenlivet, Macallan is easily the most sought after. So much so in fact, that they had to open a brand new distillery in 2018, a subterranean architectural masterpiece within the Easter Elchies estate, boasting 36 copper pot stills.

Macallan and the El Celler de Can Roca are now long-time collaborators, having cooperated on the release of both the Edition No.2 in 2016 and the Distil Your World London Edition in 2020. Prior to both of these however, was The Ultimate Dinner.

Held over six dates in June and July 2014, The Ultimate Dinner was a series of charity events, co-hosted by Macallan and the famous restaurant in Girona. It saw the Roca brothers, Joan, Josep and Jordi, create a menu designed to complement the sensory experience of drinking Macallan single malt. Tickets for guests cost $10,000 each, and each specially designed dish was accompanied by a rare and in some cases, exclusive Macallan expression.