Hong_Kong_Tatler_September_2017

(John Hannent) #1
The Macallan pairs its new Double Cask
12 Years Old whisky with limited edition
guitars created by Philippe Dubreuille

Spirited Duet


TATLER FOCUS | THE MACALLAN


W


hisky and music are two of life’s
great pleasures. A bottle of fine
single malt Scotch and a finely
crafted musical instrument have
a lot in common; both are things of beauty and
precision that bring lasting joy to the owner
and others. Now The Macallan has taken that
connection to another level, creating a series of
limited edition custom guitars in partnership with
master guitar maker Philippe Dubreuille to mark
its latest release, The Macallan Double Cask
12 Years Old.
The guitars are handmade using sherry-
seasoned casks of American and European oak,
the same woods used to mature the whisky, and
indeed the whisky’s most important ingredient,
contributing up to 80 per cent of its flavour
profile. The instruments come with reclaimed
cask wood embedded within their necks; the
famed Six Pillars of The Macallan as inlayed fret
markings; the Double Cask 12 on the 12th fret
and headstock; and even a measure of Double
Cask whisky embedded in their bodies.
Such painstaking craftsmanship and attention
to detail come naturally to London-based
Dubreuille. A self-taught guitar maker with 25
years of experience, he only started making
the instruments as an experiment when
he lost his own, discovering a talent for it.
The Frenchman got his big break when he
broke into the backstage area of a gig by
legendary rock band The Cure and sold a
guitar to frontman Robert Smith. Dubreuille
has since worked with the likes of Mark
Ronson, Iggy Pop, Noel Gallagher, Aerosmith
and Gorillaz. This is the first time, though,
that he’s made a guitar using oak.
“The choice of wood is incredibly
important for guitar creation as, much
like with whisky, it creates a unique
personality for the instrument,”
he says. “This is something that
I wanted to bring to life with my
design. As soon as I heard about the
project, it sparked my imagination;
nothing goes together quite like good
music and great whisky.”

There are five guitars in total, one
of which was the star of the show at a special
event—The Macallan Jazz x Double Cask
Guitar Appreciation—that was held at
W Hong Kong hotel on September 1st,
before it was featured at an exhibition
in Taipei. One of the guitars is available
for sale at the shop in the home of The
Macallan, Easter Elchies House, in the
legendary Speyside whisky-producing
region of northeastern Scotland. It
costs £10,000 and comes with a
bottle of The Macallan Double Cask
12 Years Old. The latest release
from The Macallan is a bold yet
approachable single malt, featuring
a nose of creamy butterscotch,
toffee apple, orange and vanilla custard
followed by a honeyed palate full of woody
spices, citrus, raisins and caramel. Q

PERFECT HARMONY
Beauty, precision and
masterful craftsmanship
are characteristics shared
by The Macallan’s new
Double Cask 12 Years
Old whisky and the
limited edition guitars
by Philippe Dubreuille
Free download pdf