The Macallan TimeSpirit: When The Scots And The Spaniards Collide
In a celebration with the Roca brothers, The Macallan TimeSpirit raises three cheers to their bicentennial anniversary with a special release
What's the best way to celebrate the 200th anniversary of a whisky brand that has stood the test of time?
One: By reinventing the moniker to read “200 years young”.
Two: By recruiting three of the best gentleman-chefs to design a one-sitting only menu that outdoes any fine-dining experience in the world.
And last but not the least: By releasing their most unique single malt ever. The TIME: Space Mastery, a journey through time in India. The Macallan has also globally released TIME: SPACE - a dual chamber vessel that includes the oldest whisky released by The Macallan at 84 Years Old and a new distillery release from 2018. More on this precious whisky connoisseur’s collectable later.
THE CHEFS
Spaniards Joan, Josep and Jordi Roca are legends in the world of fine dining. Third-generation restaurateurs, their El Celler de Can Roca in Girona, Spain, was awarded three Michelin stars in 2009 and the Best Restaurant In The World title twice. Yet, what stands out when you see the three brothers together, is the support system they have created for each other.
The oldest, Joan, is the chef, Josep is the sommelier, and the always-ready-with-a-joke Jordi is the pastry chef. At The Macallan event, all three are present with their partners beside them: Chef Joan speaks first, mostly in Spanish, explaining the importance of local produce for their food and the focus on eating healthy.
Josep goes next in English, talking more about the many collaborations they have had with The Macallan. While the food will be paired with non-whisky drinks, too, he explains, the menu has been crafted for a one-time meal experience only, to celebrate the values that The Macallan stands for.
Jordi speaks at the end, his raspy voice and heavy accent leaving no doubt that the youngest brother is the funniest one. He suffers from dysphonia, a neurological disease that’s has left his voice hoarse, but has made his spiritedness soar. “We’ve been the best restaurant in the world,” he says, “but we also want to be the best for the world.”
The Roca brothers now have several successful restaurants (see box for the Girona recommendations) and even a few boutique hotels to their name.
THE FOOD
The first dish arrives with the drama that such fine-dining experiences deserve. It is called Printing Press. The chef has transformed a 19th-century bookbinding press into a kitchen tool to heat and imprint edible paper with a whisky-based ink. The Macallan’s 200th year anniversary logo is what is printed, making it a bite of history.
The next course celebrates The Macallan distillery, with a box opening to bites of malted oat brioche and a yeast horseradish and turnip.
A cured cashew cheese is followed by my favourite dish, called Treasured Water. What looks like a napkin in your bowl unfolds as a warm broth is poured on it. Drama and deliciousness.
A mushroom salad and a scallop broth later, a whole turbot is clay-backed and cracked tableside, served with seaweed, toasted oats and noisette butter sauce.
One of the restaurant’s signature desserts is called The Angel’s Tribute, where a cloud is created above your dessert to gently ‘rain’ on your dish. Among foodies, this is called the most Instagrammable dish ever. But even before this arrives, the three brothers (Jordi in a kilt that’s two sizes short for him, making guests burst into laughter) wheel in Colour The Macallan, a red-hued dessert, created by fermenting cocoa beans to enhance acidic, lactic and acetic notes… along with the stunning Time:Space Mastery bottle.
THE DRINK
The bright red colour of the case opens to a stunning dual-compartment vessel. The circular container has 200 spikes, for the brand’s bicentennial year, representing how nature guards what is most precious and fragile. The details are creating using stemming techniques from the art of origami, but the real star of the show is mastery in whisky creation.
With layers of complexity that embraces 200 years of whisky craftsmanship, this limited release (just 120 bottles in India) features notes of 14 cask types, creating layers of complexity and depth in aroma, texture and flavour. There are influences from American Oak Bourbon casks, European Oak sherry-seasoned casks and the finest refill casks from The Macallan’s rich inventory.
Euan Kennedy, Lead Whisky Maker for TIME: SPACE Mastery, says, “We have explored the full extent of our water houses to capture the complex influences of cask seasoning, oak origin, cask size and distillery character in one incredibly special bottle of whisky—with the elegance provided by European Oak at its heart.”
As Scottish heritage and the Spanish ideas come together for this special celebration… there could not have been a better way to turn 200 years young!
THE ROCA REPERTOIRE
RESTAURANT NORMAL
The menu mainly consists of Catalan recipes, including hearty stews and many dishes that are served on the pan itself. Don’t be surprised with a starter comprising freshly picked and seasoned olives, plain and simple. Or, as many would say, ‘normal’.
VII
The emphasis at this newly opened tapas and wine bar is on natural wine, but dishes are finished with a unique touch. Potato salads come with large capers and peppers, and the Molette, a bread roll from Andalusia, is filled with sherry-flavoured kidneys, for instance.
ROCAMBOLESC GELATARIA
At this tourist attraction, situated at a street corner “by the red bridge” close to the Town Hall, popsicles/ice cream on the stick sell the fastest. While the strawberry and rose water-flavoured Rocanas, shaped after Jordi’s nose, is a favourite, I preferred the black coloured, blueberries and vanilla-based Gelat Fos and Dit Colom, with chocolate, oil and salt.