Whisky #296 – McKinlay’s Rare Old Highland Malt – “Shackleton’s Whisky”
by 
McKinlay’s Rare Old Highland Malt – “Shackleton’s Whisky”. Highlands, Scotland. ABV: 47.3%. Tasted at Òran Mór (Glasgow), £20.20.
Colour: Yellow snow. Watch out where the huskies go, and do not eat the yellow snow…
Nose: Citrus and sweet oak.
Palate: Lemon sherbet. Quite dry. Not the winter warmer type of whisky I thought might be appropriate for an Antarctic expedition.
Finish: Somewhat salty, and a little dry. Medium length.
Comments: Great story behind this one. Originally shipped to Antarctica in 1907 by Ernest Shackleton to fortify his British Antarctic expedition aboard the “Nimrod” (originally supposed to be aboard the ship “Endurance”, as shown in the photo below). Three cases of McKinlay’s were discovered buried in the ice under the floorboards of Shackleton’s hut in 2007 when restoration work was being undertaken. Long story short, some of this very old whisky was sent back to Scotland for analysis so it could be recreated, resulting in this McKinlay’s Rare Old Highland Malt – “Shackleton’s Whisky”.
