There was a time, not so long ago, when the phrase "Canadian single malt" would have drawn a raised eyebrow at any serious tasting table. That time is passing. Macaloney's An Aba is one of the bottles doing the heavy lifting in that shift, and having spent a good few evenings with it, I can tell you it earns its place honestly.
Macaloney's operates out of Victoria, British Columbia, and has built a reputation for taking the Scottish single malt tradition seriously — copper pot stills, barley-forward production, no shortcuts with grain neutral spirit or flavouring. An Aba, which takes its name from the Scottish Gaelic, is bottled at 46% ABV without chill filtration, a decision I always respect. It tells you the distiller wants you to taste the whisky as it came from the cask, not a version smoothed out for mass appeal. This is a non-age-statement release, which at this price point suggests a blend of younger and more mature casks selected for balance rather than any single vintage.
Tasting Notes
I won't fabricate specifics where my notes don't warrant it, but I will say this: An Aba sits firmly in the malt-driven, slightly coastal style you might associate with a lighter Lowland or a restrained Highland dram. At 46%, there is enough body to carry weight on the palate without the burn you sometimes get from younger NAS bottlings that lean on high proof to mask their youth. The non-chill-filtered approach gives it a textural quality — a slight oiliness — that rewards patience. Give it a minute in the glass before you nose it. It opens up.
The Verdict
At £54.95, An Aba occupies a competitive space. You are paying a small premium over entry-level Scotch single malts, but what you get in return is something genuinely different — a whisky that respects the old methods while carrying the character of its Pacific Northwest origin. It is not trying to be Scotch. It is trying to be excellent Canadian single malt, and on those terms, it succeeds.
A 7.8 out of 10 feels right to me. This is a well-made, thoughtful whisky from a distillery that clearly understands what it is doing. It does not have the depth or complexity of a long-aged single cask, nor should it at this price, but it delivers quality, integrity, and genuine drinkability. If you are the sort of person who likes to explore what the new world of single malt has to offer without gambling on something untested, An Aba is a confident place to start. I would buy another bottle, and that is always the truest measure of a whisky's worth.
Best Served
Pour it neat in a Glencairn and give it five minutes to breathe. If you find the 46% carries a touch more heat than you prefer, add no more than a teaspoon of cool water — it softens without collapsing the structure. This is also a whisky that works beautifully in a proper Highball: 50ml over good ice in a tall glass, topped with chilled soda. The malt character holds up against the dilution, which is the mark of a whisky built with backbone.
