An odyssey of a sherry cask: How The Macallan distills its spirit in China’s contemporary rituals

In the era of experience economy, nothing wins consumers’ favor more than a high-quality experience, especially among the younger generation. Recently, The Macallan launched its all-new innovative campaign in China — The Macallan 360 Experience — using a dual online and offline strategy to let whisky enthusiasts immerse themselves in the brand’s craftsmanship and heritage. At the heart of this entire experience lies the sherry cask — a barrel that spans countries and carries both flavor and history. The story begins in Spain's Sherry Triangle where Palomino grapes ripen in the sun-drenched vineyards and casks are handcrafted from air-dried oak. Finished casks are seasoned with the namesake fortified wine for up to two years before travelling to the rugged Speyside of Scotland to age new make spirit. But this is not the end but the start of maturation as the spirit draws color and flavor from the mellowed staves. This odyssey of a sherry cask across thousands of miles was recently staged on The Macallan's campaign tour across a quartet of Chinese metropolises. Apart from this multisensory tour featuring its sherry-seasoned oak casks – the single biggest contributor to the mahogany-hued, aroma-rich whiskies, The Macallan also held pop-ups and bar takeovers in established markets including Shenzhen, Beijing, and Shanghai as well as the newer territory of Xiamen, to fully immerse visitors in its past, present, and future. These creative initiatives by one of the world's oldest spirit brands helped cement a legacy of bicentennial mastery while nurturing a progressive spirit. As Maggie Chan, Managing Director of Edrington China, owner of The Macallan, put it, "The sherry cask is the code to the soul of The Macallan's flavor, and this tour is a decoding journey to carry forward the legend." A heritage seeped in a sherry cask This months-long campaign in China – The Macallan 360 Experience – was designed around the journey of sherry-seasoned oak casks. Reputed to be the soul in the world of whiskies, the sherry cask alone contributes to 80% of the aroma and flavor of a whisky as well as its natural color. Hence the cask serves a case in point for understanding The Macallan's exceptional mastery throughout its sumptuous history. Its making is a five-year odyssey across two countries, from its provenance in the Sherry Triangle – the three historic towns nestled in southern Spain where the casks are made to be seasoned with wine from locally-grown grapes. Cooperage is an ancient craft, with roots that could trace back as far as 300 BC. A cask begins with the rigorous selection of oak sourced from vast forests in Europe and the U.S. American oak casks lend layers of vanilla and fresh fruits while European ones bring an opulent note of dried fruits and sweet spices in addition to a natural color. After the selected wood is air dried for two years, casks are handcrafted in line with The Macallan's specifications in the Sherry Triangle before getting toasted with calibrated durations and temperatures. The heat caramelizes the wood's sugars, fortifying color and releasing a complex flavor profile. The barrels are then seasoned with sherry for 18 to 24 months before being emptied and shipped to the banks of the River Spey in Scotland over 3,000 miles away, where The Macallan Estate lays down new make spirit in them. All these steps, from wood selection and cask-making to sherry wine seasoning, add up to a five-year rite that shapes the flavor of every drop. But casking is not the end of the journey but the start of another: the maturation of The Macallan's new make spirit in the casks that stretches for years or even decades. This fascinating process from acorn to glass makes the oak cask more than a barrel but the engine of aroma and spice that intensify over time. The artisan and the avant-garde Recreating the voyage of the sherry cask into an interactive experience has gone beyond a traditional exhibition, lending a contemporary twist to The Macallan's sophisticated ancient craftsmanship. Besides this ingenious design, the brand curated a range of other experiential events on its China tour, including "You Know Me So Well" personalized tastings and a social media campaign #MyTasteCompanion (#我的品味搭子) to connect with consumers who have a growing demand for experiential engagement. According to a 2025 consumer experience report by Ipsos, a French market research firm, Chinese consumers are markedly experience-led: 92% say they choose a brand because they expect a good experience (versus a 70% global average), and 87% say they're willing to pay more for a better experience (versus 46% globally). In Shenzhen, where the campaign kicked off, the brand's Master Whisky Maker Kirsteen Campbell shared her whisky-making philosophy with whisky enthusiasts in an intimate setting. By cultivating these contemporary rituals, The Macallan established a paradigm in consumer engagement in the whisky world and the wider luxury landscape. The Macallan 360 Experience initiative expanded the distillery's creative expressions that built on a continuum of inventive ideas. In June 2025, the brand collaborated with acclaimed designer and frequent partner David Carson in introducing a new visual identity for its Timeless Collections, from bottle form to label typography. The refresh followed an Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) campaign and a marquee Out-of-Home (OOH) spectacle which foregrounded the brand's bond with nature and commitment to artistry. High-tech visuals and experiential rollouts such as the odyssey of a sherry cask could offer cues for high-end spirits navigating cross-cultural storytelling. Weaving the bicentennial spirit into metropolitan life One subtle touch of The Macallan 360 Experience was its seamless integration into the social fabric and cultural pulses of the four Chinese cities, each with distinctive characteristics. Shenzhen, southern China's economic powerhouse, was the first stop of the campaign. "Shenzhen is an important milestone in The Macallan's ever expanding presence in China," said Maggie Chan. "By bringing the tour to more cities, we hope more consumers can experience firsthand the brand's craft story, rich flavor, and spirit of innovation. This is not only about sharing The Macallan's sherry cask legend, but also about honoring its promise to hold onto the extraordinary and create new horizons in return for our consumers' trust," she added. Across Shenzhen, Shanghai, Beijing, and Xiamen, The Macallan collaborated with local hotspot bars to launch bar takeovers, where whiskies' versatility was fully explored, from neat pours and highballs to cocktails. In the glow of neon lights, it extended the sherry flavor journey into buzzing urban nightlife, recasting whisky as a living ritual of contemporary society rather than a static luxury item. An example of this local adaptation was witnessed in Shanghai. 2025 marked the fifth year for the distillery to participate in the China International Import Expo (CIIE). It exhibited the sherry oak tour and displayed the possibility of weaving whisky culture into Chinese consumers' lifestyle. Then the brand made its debut at the West Bund Art & Design fair, an international platform for contemporary artworks, where it hosted a forum titled "The Fluid Vessel: Wandering the border between consumption and collection." In this move, it was seeking to position prestige whisky as an art collectible in addition to a drinking ritual, which was in tandem with Shanghai's cultural vibe. According to Chan, The Macallan's mission aligns closely with that of the West Bund Art & Design: to champion the development of craftmanship and creativity to encourage art to be woven into everyday aesthetics. Furthermore, it appointed Zhang Ruoyun, an actor popular with China's Gen Zers, its brand advocate, and staged a performance by singer-songwriter Tia Ray in Shanghai to attract the younger demographic in China. As shown by a survey, the rate of drinking among Gen Zers in China rose to 73% in 2025 from 66% in 2023. "Getting tipsy" has become a buzzword in recent years, and "drinking culture" are widely discussed on Douyin and Xiaohongshu (RedNote). Whisky in particular is a go-to base spirit for at-home mixing, as a new generation of "home bartenders" emerge. Through the sherry cask-featured campaign in China, The Macallan has translated the arcane cask-making craft into an intuitive narrative for consumers. Moreover, whisky and art are seamlessly blended into China's urban dynamics. Much like its complex flavor profiles, The Macallan is crafting a versatile brand story by creating contemporary consumer rituals. This pioneering spirit is not new. The brand has a history of inventive engagement that dates as far back as the 1920s, when a small stamp began appearing at the bottom of correspondence bearing the slogan: "Whisky! Open a bottle of THE MACALLAN to-night." This early touchpoint was a precursor to the sophisticated, nuanced storytelling perfected in recent campaigns. It is this enduring spirit, one that honors tradition while embracing new realities and forging new connections, that continues to define and distinguish the world's leading single malt whisky brand.

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An odyssey of a sherry cask: How The Macallan distills its spirit in China’s contemporary rituals