The Still & The VineSchool of Wine & Spirits
Daftmill 2011 Summer Batch Release
Scotch WhiskyIssue 30

Daftmill 2011 Summer Batch Release

Daftmill Distillery (Cuthbert family) · Daftmill Distillery, Fife, Scotland

Medium length with lingering green apple, soft malt, and a clean almond sweetness that fades slowly.92 (46% ABV) proof12 YearsIn the Lowlands of Fife, a working farm called Daftmill has been in the Cuthbert family for six generations. In 2005, brothers Francis and Ian Cuthbert began distilling single malt whisky on the side, using barley grown in their own fields and water from their own spring. For the first eight years they sold nothing — every drop was laid down to age. Today Daftmill is one of the rarest and most authentically estate-produced single malts in Scotland: the Cuthberts grow their own barley, malt it at Crisp Maltings in Alloa, distill it in their farmyard still house, and age every cask in their own warehouse on-farm. Production is miniature — a few hundred casks a year — and each release is a single vintage bottled without dilution of provenance.
Tasting Notes

Nose

Malt, Almond, Honey, Vanilla, Green (Cut Grass), Peach

Palate

Daftmill is the quiet answer to the question of what single malt tastes like when every barley grain is grown within sight of the still. The Cuthbert brothers only distill when farm work allows, which means the spirit is made with the patience of people who already have a day job feeding them. The result is a whisky of remarkable poise — delicate, grain-forward, and utterly confident in what it is not. This is not bombastic Scotch. It is the opposite: a farm-scale meditation on barley, water, and time, made by a family that owns every variable and rushes none of them.

Finish

Cocktail — Save it for the glass. Daftmill is a single-estate whisky of such delicate construction that mixing it would be misuse. Serve neat in a tulip glass at room temperature, with a few drops of still spring water added only after the first neat sip.

Specifications
Distillation
Pale straw with delicate gold highlights
Maturation
$180–$220
Chill-Filtered
Fresh hay, lemon zest, and green apple open the nose, followed by clotted cream, digestive biscuit, and a gentle honeysuckle note. A whisper of vanilla pod and subtle malted barley sweetness anchor the aromatic picture.
Serve & Pair

Food Pairing

A plate of aged Scottish cheddar, a drizzle of heather honey, and a slice of oat cake — mirroring the whisky's grain and orchard-fruit core without overwhelming it.

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