The Day of the Dead is approaching, a day in which Mexico will be filled with altars, catrinas and offerings in memory of those who are no longer here. Although this festival is celebrated mainly on November 1 and 2, this week the country is already preparing for one of the most important events of the year. Also outside of Mexico, engines are heating up and well-known brands have wanted to pay tribute to this holiday with more than 500 years of history.
The Macallan is one of the companies that has paid tribute to the day of the dead with the launch of a special edition. This bottle is part of the Distill Your World collection, a way that this recognized brand of Scottish whiskey to honor large cities like New York and London.
Now it is Mexico’s turn, but since they did not know what city to choose to star in its new launch, they chose to create a bottle for the Day of the Dead. This is a single spokesman in American and European oak barrels. And its orange color is no coincidence: it refers to the iconic flowers of Cempasúchil, one of the most important symbols of this celebration.
The notes to dead bread, vanilla and pineapple of this whiskey that The Macallan has created with the Roca brothers also remember this Mexican party. Celler de Can Roca owners joined forces with Diane Stuart, the brand’s Maker whiskey, to elaborate this distillate.
In order for this special edition to capture the essence of the Day of the Dead and everything that surrounds it, the Roca brothers and the whiskey expert traveled to Mexico City last year, and soaked up all its culture and traditions.
They also met personalities such as the cook and pastry chef Elena Reygadas or the farmer Luis Pérez, an expert in the marigold flower, who helped them in this mission. The Rocas did not want to waste the opportunity and also designed a traditional menu with the colors, flavors and aromas most representative of this festivity.
The bottle of the Distill Your World collection resulting from these synergies is presented in an elegant white box that, when opened, reveals an illustration with marigold flowers as the protagonists created by Alfredo Ríos, an artist who is dedicated to capturing nature and Mexican folklore. .
The creative process of this bottle, of which only 2,500 units have been made, is captured in the documentary Distill Your World México, which is available on Filmin. In it, you can also learn first-hand about the journey made by the Roca brothers to create the rest of the bottles in this very special collection from The Macallan.