The Macallan Diamonds Are Forever 55th Anniversary Release

The Macallan has once again released a James Bond collaboration in the form of a limited edition whisky, marking 55 years since the premiere of Diamonds Are Forever.

Read more: Bond's encounters with The Macallan

A Diamond of a release, The Macallan Whisky Mastery Team have created a whisky to reflect the story arc of the film. 

An avid Bond fan, Whisky Maker Russell Greig decodes the film’s narrative and encapsulates the core theme of not everything being as is seems.

The Macallan Diamonds Are Forever 55th Anniversary Release is a multifaceted and profoundly remarkable release

The Whisky

This single malt parallels the film's intriguing twists. On the palate, expectations are exceeded with a surprisingly light sweetness; an unexpected twist if admiring the whisky's dark natural colour inspired by Nevada rock. Smooth as the spy himself, initial vanilla and caramel hints are followed by fruit-driven, darker complexity.

Cask selection

A novel expression of the film's narrative where not everything is as it seems, Russell Greig completes the cask selection with bespoke hybrid sherry and red wine seasoned American and European oak casks, in reference to the transatlantic locations and how Bond’s forensic knowledge of red wine ultimately saves his life.

Early in the film, Bond’s connoisseurship of sherry is uncovered as he ‘noses’ a Solera sherry. Sherry seasoning is fundamental to crafting, and in the maturation of, Macallan's exceptional oak casks which are the single greatest contributor to the distinctive aromas, flavours and natural colours of the single malt whisky.

A man of many dimensions, later in the film, Bond’s forensic knowledge of red wine ultimately saves his life. A pivotal scene delectably translated through the unusual inclusion of red wine seasoned casks.

Diamonds Are Forever is primarily shot in the USA. The American oak stands proxy for the critical Las Vegas and coastal California scenes and the natural colour of the whisky mimics the Aztec sandstone in the Nevada desert.

The Artwork

The packaging design brings to life the creative development process of the film, in a behind the scenes exploration of the Bond archive. The film’s concepts of clones, laser beams, the villain’s white cat and the Las Vegas lair are all visually depicted.

The design is reminiscent of The Macallan’s packaging for the 2022 Bond series, which Ferras says was a hit with customers the first time around. “We got such a good response from the consumers to that style [based on] the archive of James Bond, using the real sketches, and just showing the [behind-the-scenes] of a film,” the creative director details. “We like to be consistent and have continuity.”

Fingerprint

The fingerprint on this glass is a visual metaphor for the influence Macallan's exceptional sherry seasoned oak casks have on the maturation of The Macallan. A false fingerprint is one of the gadgets 007 used in the film and was a modern innovation of its time.

The Macallan Diamonds Are Forever 55th Anniversary Release is exclusively available on themacallan.com and at The Macallan Estate Boutique, retailing for $750. 

Starting March 2026, it will be available at select national and local U.S. retailers.

Check out the beautiful website that The Macallan created for this release.