DAFTMILL DISTILLERY 2011

These sixth-generation farmers reckon that they are only the third family to have farmed Daftmill in 1,000 years of existence, but it was only in 2003 that the idea of whisky making began to form in the minds of Francis Cuthbert and his brother Ian. They converted three of their buildings into a distillery in 2003 and were granted their licence two years later, making it the first member of the now burgeoning small-scale distilling movement in Scotland.

None of the maturing stock has yet been released, though samples from casks show that it is mature, balanced with a gentle herbal note, and very much ready for sale.