...where distraction is the main attraction.

Monday, May 17, 2021

Mathilda Malt: Littlemill 25 year old 1988 for K&L

As mentioned in Friday's post, my older daughter, Mathilda, just turned seven. To celebrate each of her previous birthdays on the blog, I've lavished praise upon her and then reviewed a Littlemill. At some point soon, I'll run out of Littlemill samples, which will be a beautiful thing because that will mean I have enjoyed a lot of Littlemills.

But I don't feel comfortable writing extensively about my family right now. This would still be the case if I knew all of you personally. I used to freely and publicly write about personal matters, sometimes right here on this blog, but things are not as they once were. I feel very protective of the Rube Goldberg machine that is my internal life, and even more protective of my remarkable daughters.

In high school I had a habit of calling one of my best buddies on the phone to tell him when I couldn't hang out. This is the same. Hello, I can't talk right now, though I am thinking of you.

But I can write about this whisky I tasted. So in honor of the seventh birthday of the most fascinating and complex person I have ever met, here's a Littlemill!


Distillery: Littlemill
Region: Lowlands
Independent Bottler: Creative Whisky Company
Range: Exclusive Malts
Age: 25 years (7 November 1988 - 2014)
Maturation: ???
Cask #: 8
Outturn: 298 bottles
Exclusive to: K&L Wine Merchants
Alcohol by Volume: 54.9%
(Thanks again to Brett for the sample!)

NOTES

White peaches, roses, pears and tangerines fill the nose's foreground, while honey and damp moss drift through the background. The nose shifts once the whisky is reduced to 46%abv, as notes of toffee, oak spice and malt move to the fore. Jasmine, peach ice cream and lychee gummies sneak in around the edges.

The palate starts with a lovely combination of hay, honeycomb, roasted cashews and shortbread biscuits, then slowly develops notes of lychee, bitter citrus peel and peach skins. A little more herbal bitterness appears once the whisky is diluted to 46%abv, as does some more heat and sweetness, with minerals and melon rind in the background.

It finishes with honey, shortbread and lychee, though with only tiny bit of sweetness. The bitter citrus peel gives it a nice zing. At 46%abv, it picks up roses, orange juice and a hint of minerals.

WORDS WORDS WORDS

Continuous fruit and countryside (no manure) notes result in another excellent Littlemill experience. It's a late spring / early summer whisky to enjoy outside, maybe with some early Miles calling out from a Bluetooth speaker. Yes, I wish I'd pre-ordered this whisky back when it was priced the same as a single cask bottle of six-year-old Kilchoman. But having tried this Littlemill fills me with a grateful feeling that far outweighs the regret.

Availability - Sold out
Pricing - $140 at pre-order, then $160
Rating - 90