The Macallan recently released its 6th expression (2022 release) in the Classic Cut series. The Macallan Classic Cut single malts are bottled at higher ABV than it's standard 43% ABV bottlings, but they are not cask strength. Cask strength whiskies are whiskies that have not been substantially diluted with water at bottling. The Macallan Classic Cut single malts give consumers a feel of what higher ABV could do for Macallan's wonderful whiskies. Here, we compare the different Macallan Classic Cut expressions.
| Year of Release | Casks Used | ABV | WB rating | Notes |
| 2017 | Sherry seasoned American oak casks and European oak casks from Jerez, Spain | 58.4% |
88/100 |
First and only release using Macallan's old packaging |
| 2018 | Sherry seasoned casks from Jerez, Spain (assumes this includes both European oak casks and American oak casks) | 51.2% |
88/100 |
|
| 2019 | Sherry seasoned casks from Jerez, Spain (assumes this includes both European oak casks and American oak casks) | 52.9% |
88/100 |
|
| 2020 |
Sherry seasoned casks and ex-bourbon casks
|
55.0% |
86/100 |
Started using ex-bourbon casks in the Classic Cut range |
| 2021 | Sherry seasoned casks and ex-bourbon casks | 51.0% |
87/100 |
|
| 2022 | Sherry seasoned casks and ex-bourbon casks | 52.5% |
86/100 |
The term "cut" refers to the process of removing sections of the distillate during the whisky distillation process to remove impurities. The depth of the cut have significant influence over the taste profile of the batch of whisky.