Last night I attended a tasting of single malts from The MacAllan at Trinity Hall Irish Pub in Dallas.  Jerry Fonicello from The MacAllan was there to introduce each of the pours and was both informative and entertaining, if not a little “over the top.”  Marius Donelly (proprietor of Trinity Hall Irish Pub) did a great job of putting this together at a reasonable price (including food) and with a great selection.  Speaking of the selections, here’s the lineup that we tasted with our local prices for a bottle:

1. The MacAllan 10 Year Old Fine Oak Single Malt – $36
2. The MacAllan 12 Year Old Sherry Oak Single Malt – $40
3. The MacAllan 15 Year Old Fine Oak Single Malt – $70
4. The MacAllan 17 Year Old Fine Oak Single Malt – $130
5. The MacAllan 18 Year Old Sherry Oak Single Malt – $146
6. The MacAllan 21 Year Old Fine Oak Single Malt – $250
7. The MacAllan 25 Year Old Sherry Oak Single Malt – $640

The standout values for the night were the Fine Oak 10 and Sherry Oak 12, which were both good.  I would give a slight nod to the Sherry Oak 12, which had a more interesting flavor profile due to the sherry influence.  The standout of the night was the Sherry Oak 18, which I consider a very nice whisky, but overpriced.  Everything after that was severely overpriced, in my opinion.  The Fine Oak 21 was interesting, but not dramatically more so than the Fine Oak 17 and the Sherry Oak 25 was a disappointment when compared to the Sherry Oak 18, especially at more than 4 times the price!

I’m really glad that I was able to attend this event and get this experience at a price that would’ve matched that of a single pour of the Sherry Oak 25.  This helped solidify my previously unfounded belief that The MacAllan makes very good whisky at outrageous prices, while offering the masses some solid values at the same time.  Even in the lower price range, you can find better offerings, but you can always return to these for a reliably good and solid whisky.  If you’re interested in trying their best, then it might be worth it to spring for the Sherry Oak 18 before it disappears from shelves as The MacAllan introduces an entirely new range next year.  I don’t expect much change with the new line that would dissuade me from the evaluation that I came away with last tonight.  I might even try some of their new entry-level whisky when they’re available.