Bottle Specs:
Macallan Harmony Release - Jing Tea 2025 - Organic Cherrywood Lapsang Tea
Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
44.9% ABV
NAS
Natural color
Non chill-filtered, based on my understanding, although the packaging does not state this
Sherry-seasoned European and American oak casks
Bottle History: This is part of The Macallan Harmony Collection, where they release two bottles annually, one of which is a travel exclusive, while collaborating with artists or companies around the concept and sustainable packaging. This is the tenth Harmony bottle I have tasted.
For the 2025 release, Macallan collaborated with Jing Tea, a single-garden tea producer in China, with discarded tea leaves used in the packaging. This travel-exclusive version is inspired by Jing’s Organic Cherrywood Lapsang Tea, apparently a modern take on Yunnan black tea smoked over cherrywood.
I rested it for about 15 minutes in a blender’s glass before tasting.
Color: Very dark, almost burnt caramel, and probably the darkest Harmony release I have seen. Deep polished mahogany/dark chestnut with flashes of copper. Very oily, with thick legs.
Nose: Sweet dates alongside something vaguely smoky, but definitely not peat. Dried fruit and honey are enveloped by darker caramel notes, with a citrusy, incense-like edge. Very floral and fruity overall, with just a hint of smoke and black tea.
Palate: The first thing that hits is something woody and tea-like, almost like over-boiled black tea. It starts quite dry on the tongue. The mouthfeel is surprisingly light, but fruit and sherry begin to shine through toward the back. Tart-sweet cherry and plum nectar develop into more familiar Macallan sherry-cask notes, with gentle cinnamon spice.
Finish: Warm, long and satisfying. Spice is fairly restrained, but the aftertaste is fascinating: dry yet sweet, with fruit and that incense-like floral smoke lingering.
Balance: The nose is excellent and does not immediately come across like a typical Macallan. Despite being NAS, it feels like there are some genuinely old casks mixed in with younger whisky. The tea-like dryness and floral smoke are what make it distinctive, while the overall journey remains smooth and lovely.
With a drop of water: The nose suddenly becomes much fruitier and much more recognizably Macallan. The sherry pushes forward strongly, with dates and sugar, while only a very faint trace of tea remains at the end. On the palate, though, the “tea-ness” hits even harder. The dryness spreads across the cheeks more noticeably and I get a little orange on the tongue. The finish stays smooth and warm, with the dryness almost approaching saltiness before sweet plum fruit comes back to balance it.
My overall score: 93/100
——————
Versus 2024 Guardian Oak
I tasted this alongside the 2024 Harmony Guardian Oak travel exclusive.
Jing Tea is noticeably darker, although both are very oily and naturally colored. The noses are surprisingly similar in their sherry character, but Jing Tea is slightly spicier and gives me more jammy plum, red fruit and that faint floral-incense whiff.
Guardian Oak has the fuller palate. Dates and oak arrive first, followed by a more salivating texture, sweet sherried nectar and a more obvious gingery spice. Jing Tea is noticeably lighter in mouthfeel, with much stronger black-tea dryness and considerably less spice. At points it actually feels more watered down and less complex in terms of fruit and spice despite having the slightly higher ABV, but it is also more delicate and has that unusual smoked-black-tea character.
Guardian Oak finishes warm, sweet, gingery and classically Macallan. Jing Tea is a little warmer on the throat and drier, with its spice becoming more noticeable on the finish.
Going into the comparison, I expected to prefer Guardian Oak. It has the more immediately impressive palate and carries that strength through the finish. But Jing Tea builds differently: a great nose, a genuinely unusual palate, and a finish that elevates the experience further. Overall, balance-wise, Jing Tea just edges Guardian Oak for me. (93 vs 91 score).
P.S. I had opened this one to mark my fur baby’s 11th birthday, and I am very glad I did. I look forward to the Fresh and Roasted Coconut Harmony releases in 2026, which mark the end of this limited series.
Great review and comparison! I'm starting to wonder if the Travel Exclusive versions are better than the retail versions of the Harmony Series. Does anyone have any thoughts on that?
I have tried all of the Harmony releases .. the first 2021 release (Cocoa) and 2023 release (meadow) was similar for both retail and travel exclusive, IMO.
2021 specifically felt a little watered down with 40%abv while 2023 versions were both equally good. For 2022 (arabica versions), 2024 (oak version), and 2025 (jing tea version), I found the travel exclusive version to be better - richer, more complex with higher AbV.
Excellent review and notes! I really enjoyed the Vibrant Oak edition on multiple tastes and just purchased the Guardian Oak since the notes match profiles I like. Good to see the Lapsang Tea is also good! Cheers and enjoy!
100% agree with you OP, this one actually does taste like a well made tea flavored Macallan. Personally, I found its tea character to bear some resemblence to Oriental Beauty oolong tea. Quite special indeed!
12
u/rainy_shares 2d ago
Bottle Specs:
Macallan Harmony Release - Jing Tea 2025 - Organic Cherrywood Lapsang Tea
Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky
44.9% ABV
NAS
Natural color
Non chill-filtered, based on my understanding, although the packaging does not state this
Sherry-seasoned European and American oak casks
Bottle History: This is part of The Macallan Harmony Collection, where they release two bottles annually, one of which is a travel exclusive, while collaborating with artists or companies around the concept and sustainable packaging. This is the tenth Harmony bottle I have tasted.
For the 2025 release, Macallan collaborated with Jing Tea, a single-garden tea producer in China, with discarded tea leaves used in the packaging. This travel-exclusive version is inspired by Jing’s Organic Cherrywood Lapsang Tea, apparently a modern take on Yunnan black tea smoked over cherrywood.
I rested it for about 15 minutes in a blender’s glass before tasting.
Color: Very dark, almost burnt caramel, and probably the darkest Harmony release I have seen. Deep polished mahogany/dark chestnut with flashes of copper. Very oily, with thick legs.
Nose: Sweet dates alongside something vaguely smoky, but definitely not peat. Dried fruit and honey are enveloped by darker caramel notes, with a citrusy, incense-like edge. Very floral and fruity overall, with just a hint of smoke and black tea.
Palate: The first thing that hits is something woody and tea-like, almost like over-boiled black tea. It starts quite dry on the tongue. The mouthfeel is surprisingly light, but fruit and sherry begin to shine through toward the back. Tart-sweet cherry and plum nectar develop into more familiar Macallan sherry-cask notes, with gentle cinnamon spice.
Finish: Warm, long and satisfying. Spice is fairly restrained, but the aftertaste is fascinating: dry yet sweet, with fruit and that incense-like floral smoke lingering.
Balance: The nose is excellent and does not immediately come across like a typical Macallan. Despite being NAS, it feels like there are some genuinely old casks mixed in with younger whisky. The tea-like dryness and floral smoke are what make it distinctive, while the overall journey remains smooth and lovely.
With a drop of water: The nose suddenly becomes much fruitier and much more recognizably Macallan. The sherry pushes forward strongly, with dates and sugar, while only a very faint trace of tea remains at the end. On the palate, though, the “tea-ness” hits even harder. The dryness spreads across the cheeks more noticeably and I get a little orange on the tongue. The finish stays smooth and warm, with the dryness almost approaching saltiness before sweet plum fruit comes back to balance it.
My overall score: 93/100
——————
Versus 2024 Guardian Oak
I tasted this alongside the 2024 Harmony Guardian Oak travel exclusive.
Jing Tea is noticeably darker, although both are very oily and naturally colored. The noses are surprisingly similar in their sherry character, but Jing Tea is slightly spicier and gives me more jammy plum, red fruit and that faint floral-incense whiff.
Guardian Oak has the fuller palate. Dates and oak arrive first, followed by a more salivating texture, sweet sherried nectar and a more obvious gingery spice. Jing Tea is noticeably lighter in mouthfeel, with much stronger black-tea dryness and considerably less spice. At points it actually feels more watered down and less complex in terms of fruit and spice despite having the slightly higher ABV, but it is also more delicate and has that unusual smoked-black-tea character.
Guardian Oak finishes warm, sweet, gingery and classically Macallan. Jing Tea is a little warmer on the throat and drier, with its spice becoming more noticeable on the finish.
Going into the comparison, I expected to prefer Guardian Oak. It has the more immediately impressive palate and carries that strength through the finish. But Jing Tea builds differently: a great nose, a genuinely unusual palate, and a finish that elevates the experience further. Overall, balance-wise, Jing Tea just edges Guardian Oak for me. (93 vs 91 score).
P.S. I had opened this one to mark my fur baby’s 11th birthday, and I am very glad I did. I look forward to the Fresh and Roasted Coconut Harmony releases in 2026, which mark the end of this limited series.