Technique & Everyday Craft
Macallan Closes Harmony, GlenAllachie Bottles 21-Year-Old, and Watch Week Aspen Returns
A roundup of this week's notable whisky releases, from Macallan's coconut finish to Old Overholt's 11-year-old rye, plus the third edition of Watch Week Aspen.
Macallan The Harmony Collection VI
Macallan has unveiled the sixth and final pair in The Harmony Collection, both inspired by coconut. Fresh Coconut, at 46.3% ABV, sells for $185 nationwide; Toasted Coconut, at 43.3%, is a travel retail exclusive at the same price. Master whisky maker Kirsteen Campbell balanced sherry-seasoned American oak and bourbon barrels. The packaging incorporates discarded coconut fibers, continuing the series' use of organic waste. The collection, which began in 2021, has explored chocolate, coffee, nature, oak, tea, and now coconut.
Glenfiddich × Aston Martin 16 Year Old
Glenfiddich's second collaboration with Aston Martin Formula One Team is a 16 year old limited edition, finished in a combination of first-fill bourbon barrels, port pipes, oloroso sherry casks, wine casks, and fino sherry butts. Malt master Brian Kinsman and Adrian Newey, Aston Martin's managing technical partner, developed the recipe. At 43% ABV and $80, it's a nationwide limited release. The pair's first release used virgin American oak and bourbon casks, while this one pushes the cask mix further.
GlenAllachie 21 Year Old Cask Strength Batch 7
The GlenAllachie has bottled its 21-year-old Cask Strength Batch 7 at 51.9% ABV, without chill filtration or added colouring. Master distiller Billy Walker selected Pedro Ximénez and oloroso sherry puncheons and hogsheads for the maturation. Priced at £297.99 (around $400) at the distillery, with a global rollout in the coming weeks. Walker calls it the finest 21-year-old expression released to date, part of a philosophy that prioritises improvement over consistency batch to batch.
Isle of Raasay Hungarian Oak
Isle of Raasay's Oak Species Maturation Series adds a Hungarian Oak expression, matured in oloroso sherry casks made from Quercus petraea sourced from the Zemplén Mountains. The whisky combines peated and unpeated spirits distilled in 2021, aged separately in these casks before being married. Bottled at 50% ABV, $110, and limited to 8,000 bottles globally from September. The series debuted in 2024 with a virgin Colombian oak release, and the distillery remains one of Scotland's smallest, with a community of 161 residents.
Old Forester 117 Series Triple Char
Old Forester's 117 Series Triple Char is the first bourbon made entirely from distillate produced at the Louisville Whiskey Row distillery. The barrels, made at the distillery's own cooperage, were charred three times longer than usual—about 20 seconds. Exclusive to Kentucky, it is priced at $65. Assistant master distiller Caleb Trigo says the extra char delivers intense richness, spice, and oak. The 117 Series continues to spotlight experimental processes.
Jack Daniel's Distillery Series 17
Jack Daniel's Distillery Series 17 highlights high evaporation in whiskey aging. The batch uses barrels laid down in 2016, aged on the top floor of Barrelhouse 1-13 on Coy Hill, the distillery's highest point. Bottled just shy of hazmat proof, it sells for $45, exclusively at the distillery. The release follows a 2018 Tasters' Selection expression also focused on angels' share.
Old Overholt Extra Aged 11 Year Old Rye
Old Overholt's Extra Aged Cask Strength 11 Year Old rye is the fourth release in the line, distilled and barreled in spring 2014 at James B. Beam Distillery in Kentucky. At 62.8% ABV and $110, it's available nationwide. The brand claims status as the oldest continually produced American whiskey, with production running since 1810 in western Pennsylvania before moving to Kentucky in 1987. This release follows a 2024 11-year-old and sits behind the 12-year-old released last fall.
Wyoming Whiskey State of the Union
Wyoming Whiskey's State of the Union is a limited wheated bourbon commemorating America's 250th birthday. Aged six years at 49% ABV and priced at $80, it's exclusive to Wyoming. The mashbill is 68% corn, 20% wheat, and 12% malted barley, and it's the first release since co-founder David DeFazio regained ownership earlier this year. It joins the National Park Series and other releases that honor American history, with a portion of proceeds going to park preservation.
Branch & Barrel 5 Year Old Bourbon Batch 35
Colorado's Branch & Barrel has released Batch 35 of its 5-year-old bourbon. Distilled from Colorado grains and Rocky Mountain snowmelt, it uses an uncommon two-grain mashbill of 84% corn and 16% malted barley. Aged in No. 3 char American white oak at a low barrel entry proof of 104, it's bottled at 46% ABV and $55. Available at Colorado retailers and the distillery, this batch continues the brand's focus on locally sourced ingredients and high-altitude aging.
Watch Week Aspen's Third Edition
Watch Week Aspen returns for its third year, running August 13–16, free and open to the public. The program includes a 3K run led by NORQAIN's US brand president Emmanuel Bütler, panels on the pre-owned market with SYYNCH, and a VintageFest where collectors compete in three categories. Presentations cover Omega's Speedmaster heritage, A. Lange & Söhne's Lumen collection, and Hermès' Le Temps Suspendu. New this year are tennis and pickleball mornings hosted by Gerald Charles.