The Blind tasting competition Littlemill (here), which was a nice one, reminded me that I still have a sample of another very interesting indie LM i got from the UK a year or two back when I swapped samples with Dave, a whisky friend. Those cold winter nights are a fine time to taste more whisky, and why not some old and forgotten samples?
This sample comes from the Whiskyman (a Belgian Independent bottler) bottling, distilled in 1988 ad bottled in 2012.
Littlemill 24 yo 1988 ‘Sympathy for the Whisky’ ,54,2%, The Whiskyman 2012, 159 btl.
Nose: This is nothing i was expecting and it’s very different than the other LM I tasted a while back Sharp and citrusy on entry. Quite “green” too. Wet hay, tangerine and coconut. Orange peel. Feels quite waxy. Getting bitter with grapefruit. This is a citrus lovers delight, with all sorts of shade of citrus really from the sweet, to the bitter, and to the sour, with the addition of a bit of oak, but not too much, not much coconut or other big cask effect here. lovely.
Palate: The citrus fruit shine here just as the nose suggested : blood oranges to boot, Then lovely buttery oak and more grapefruit and pomelo (I love pomelo, btw). Pepper and a hint of exotic fruit on top of citrus juice and spice. A very faint hint of passion fruit to finish it off. Beautiful.
Finish: Grapefruit , spices and oak. Delicious.
This is a very different Littlemill, but a very very enjoyable one. If you’re a fan of cirtus notes (the entire spectrum), you’re in for major fun here.
Score: 89/100
Cheers, Dave for the sample