The Macallan, the esteemed single malt Scotch whisky distillery, has two new Harmony Collection releases hitting shelves this month. But if you want both bottles, you’ll need a passport. The 2025 Harmony additions are comprised of one for domestic retail sales and one exclusively available to global travelers.
Harmony is a fun and comparably affordable series of releases for a brand that can sometimes feel a little focused on big age statements and elaborate decanters. Harmony eschews numbers for flavors and ideas. Previous releases have partnered with the best palates and minds in the coffee and chocolate industries, as well as with conservationists and even Cirque du Soleil. For Harmony V, Macallan partnered with single tea garden curators from Jing. The whiskies they collaborated to create were inspired by two of Jing’s teas: Phoenix Honey Orchid and Organic Cherrywood Lapsang.
Thankfully, you don’t need to be a tea expert (or even an enthusiast) to get what they’re doing with these releases. The whiskeys of course, don’t contain any tea, but have been blended to highlight flavors found in these particular teas. Honey Orchid focuses on the fruity, fresh, and floral flavors of lighter tea styles, while Cherrywood Lapsang aims for a richer, deeper profile with spice and dark fruit.
Macallan Harmony Phoenix Honey Orchid Tea ($200) is the domestic retail release. It’s characterized by tropical and stone fruits, floral and citrus notes, and an overall light, fruity, and sweet finish. Macallan Harmony Organic Cherrywood Lapsang Tea ($190), the global travel retail release, veers more toward darker flavors — toffee, dates, oak spices, and a creamier overall profile.
Tea is an interesting cross-brand partnership for a whisky brand, particularly because more mature and nuanced whiskies can take on the tannic, herbal, raisiny, and floral properties of some of the best teas. Tasting notes provided by Macallan highlighted “leafy astringency,” as well as honey and citrus peel.
Some of the fun is also in the packaging. Where 81-year-old single malts are sometimes presented as decor for a Bond villain’s island fortress, the Harmony collection uses simpler bottles and creates packaging from what would otherwise be waste (in this case, repurposed tea leaves).
Macallan has created a number of excellent collections within its portfolio over the last couple of decades, but Harmony has been a particularly nuanced and quirky line — one that the average consumer can still crack into. If you’re a Macallan lover wanting to shake things up with your next pour, there isn’t a better duo of bottles to look out for. Phoenix Honey Orchid is available now domestically, however the Cherrywood Lapsang variant won’t hit global retail shelves until October 1. You can also find Phoenix online at www.themacallan.com.
G. Clay Whittaker is a Maxim contributor covering lifestyle, whiskey, cannabis and travel. His work has also appeared in Bon Appetit, Men’s Journal, Cigar Aficionado, Playboy and Esquire. Subscribe to his newsletter Drinks & Stuff for whiskey and spirits picks, perspectives on drinks, and stuff.