A mini verticale of Strathmill


September 22, 2025

A mini verticale of Strathmill

The disappearance of the big names among the indies—at least under their original labels—has, in recent years, allowed a number of previously overlooked distilleries, often unfairly so, to gradually step into the spotlight. Strathmill is one of them, and I’d wager that before long, people will be talking about Strathmill at dinner parties. Care to bet on it?

Strathmill 13 yo 2011/2025 (55.6%, James Eadie, WhiskyBrother exclusive, Cask Finish, cask #373081, 249 bottles)

Finished in Malaga for 20 months. I couldn’t say whether it was dry or sweet Malaga, so let’s see… By the way, PX ‘seco’ from Malaga is dirt cheap and can be superb, better value for money than a Citroën 2CV back in the day. Colour: gold. Nose: it’s getting annoying how successful they are, 99% of their finishes work. Each time I brace myself, and each time I’m caught off guard by the freshness and clarity of the aromas. Here: crisp green apple and honeysuckle that would make a top Pinot Noir Champagne blush, so to speak. And probably the best of dry PX from Malaga. With water: it doesn’t change. Which is not very annoying. Mouth (neat): three parts lemon, one part green apple, and one part chalk and wax. Yes, that’s more than 100%, but it’s genuinely excellent. With water: no real change, except a faint undercurrent of vin jaune-style savagnin. Which, sadly, we adore. Finish: fairly long, refreshing, driven by citrus. Comments: honestly, with stuff like this, if they gave the name of the wine, it would be brilliant advertising for the (poor) winemakers. If they even know it, that is. The whole thing is decidedly irritating…
SGP:651 - 89 points.

Let’s move on to some older Strathmills...

Strathmill 28 yo 1996/2025 (55.3%, Halcyon Spirits, oloroso sherry, cask #2053, 132 bottles)

It’s certainly less common to come across old malts like this one that have been finished. At least openly—of course, plenty of official brands do it without ever saying so. Colour: full gold. Nose: if it’s good, it’s good, as Monsieur de La Palice might have said. The finishing side shows in a few pencil shavings, but they blend in fairly quickly with the rest, which is gloriously Jerezian, one could easily imagine standing in a real bodega. And I do mean a proper Jerez bodega, not one north of Hadrian’s Wall, if you follow me. Bitter oranges, jamon iberico, old walnuts, camphor, saltpetre, tobacco, sea breeze… We’re practically on the banks of the Guadalquivir. With water: in comes new leather, a packet of Spanish cigarettes (obviously), and some manzanilla—manzanilla the tea, mind you, so chamomile and not the wine from Sanlúcar. Mouth (neat): same setup on the palate, some cedar and fir wood right at the start, then it unfurls into bitter oranges, pepper and walnuts. With water: now we’re talking, everything comes together beautifully, the saline, citric, taut sides... We adore all this. Finish: still a little cedar, but the rest plays out as expected. Very lovely. A slightly more tannic aftertaste, on green tannins... Comments: very good.
SGP:561 - 87 points.

Let’s join the S.A.S.! Not the Special Air Service—it’s the Strathmill Appreciation Society. All that’s left is to set it up, I suppose.

Strathmill 32 yo 1992/2024 (48.8%, Maltbarn, The 26, sherry)

Hey, whatever happened to the creative labels? Is this a nod to Mongiardino or Moon Import? The godfathers of that delightful ‘whatever works’ aesthetic we started seeing on our bottles thirty years ago, with cars, fish, birds, spanners, kings, queens, insects, flying saucers, American presidents, monkeys, parrots… Colour: light gold. Nose: the age shows more clearly here, we’re deep into old beehive territory, with nectar and pollen, aged fir wood, beeswax, honey, farmhouse cider, then soft nougat and even a touch of white chocolate… not forgetting dandelion and mulleins in bloom. Mouth: firmer and more compact, with the citrus and white and grey pepper returning. There’s a slight fragility from the age, but let’s admit—it’s charming. One could liken it to ageing actresses, but let’s not. Finish: not very long, still a bit fragile, though the honeyed character saves the day. Bees—the gods’ foot soldiers—will save the world, did you know? Comments: full of charm.
SGP:541 - 86 points.

Check the index of all Strathmill we've tasted