Wizards Of Whisky: Charles MacLean

Charles MacLean is one of the most recognised authority in the Whisky fraternity. An author who specialises in the subject of Scotch whisky, about which he has published ten books to date.

His popular works include The Pocket Guide to Scotch Whisky, Whisky: A Liquid History, Maclean’s Miscellany of Whisky, Maclean’s Whiskypedia. He is also very well known for the ‘ Whisky wheel’ which is a collaborative work by Charles and Sheila MacLean. The text is derived from common descriptors used by Charles over the past 30 years. The colours and textures were conceived to reflect the key aromatic groups.

He acts as a consultant to the whisky industry on a variety of matters, and over the past 20 years has written numerous materials for many leading companies and brands. He is also Whisky Consultant to Bonhams Auctioneers.

He was elected a Keeper of the Quaich in 1992 for ‘his services to Scotch over many years’ and granted the rare honour of being elected Master of the Quaich, the industry’s highest accolade, in October 2009.

He has featured in many documentaries and videos related to whisky and his screen presence has appealed to whisky enthusiasts across the globe. He is also the whisky expert cast in Ken Loach’s movie Angel’s Share a must watch.

If you haven’t read his books or watched his videos yet, we strongly suggest that you do. He is one of the most prolific writers on whisky of our time. Swipe right to see some of his work.