Daft Mill Distillery – interview with Francis Cuthbert, by Paul McLean – Scotch Whisky News
Daft Mill Distillery – interview with Francis Cuthbert, by Paul McLean
Q; The Cuthbert family have grown malting barley for the whisky industry in the Howe of Fife for six generations. WHO does what for the whisky production? And when do you do it? A; We operate on a seasonal basis, during spring we are busy on the farm. We start distilling in early June till Early August when we stop for Harvest. Distilling resumes in Nov through to Feb. I do most of the distilling myself, sometimes we have a summer student.
Q; WHEN do you work on the farm? And what do you grow/stock? A; We grow Barley of course, potatoes, carrot, broccoli and grass on the farm. We have a herd of beef cattle.
Q; I HAVE FARMERS IN MY FAMILY in Ireland, I know how time consuming it is, what made you think of building a distillery? A; Our plan is to add value to the barley we grow
Q; WHEN did you get the license? A; 2003 we applied for planning permission to turn the old mill buildings, which date back to Napoleonic times, into a distillery. The license to distil was granted by Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs on St Andrews Day 2005 and the first whisky was produced on 16th December 2005, making Daftmill the newest distillery to open in Scotland at that time.
Q; Who built the distillery? A; We tried to ensure that the project was an entirely local affair and were keen to see that all the work was carried out, where possible, by people living close by to the farm. Apart from the copper stills, which were made in Rothes, we ensured all the work has been carried out by people within a five mile radius of the farm. We use local tradesmen who have worked for us in the past so we knew the quality of work they did. The local Joiner, roofer, stone maison, steel fabricator, electrician, welder, painter ect all did a great job for us.
Q; WHAT style of whisky are you distilling? A; The whisky produced is not only made from malting barley grown on the farm, but is also made using water from Daftmill’s own natural spring. Our aim is to produce a classic light fruity floral lowland style of malt. In addition, nothing is wasted in the distilling process as spent grains, “draff”, is fed to cattle on the farm, effluent produced is used as a fertiliser and hot water is pumped into the farm’s duck pond, which ensures that the surface does not freeze over during the winter.
Q; unpeated V peated, do you have any preferences for your own brands? A; All our whisky so far is made from unpeated malt.
Q; WHY the “daft” name? A; Because of the local topography the stream appears to run uphill! So local people called this backward-running burn the “Daft” Burn. Inevitably, the mill that it powered became known as “Daft Mill”.
Q; WHEN do you think the first bottle will be sold? A; Scotch whisky has to be at least three years old before it can be sold. At Daftmill we anticipate that our whisky will be at least 10 years old before coming to market. We use bourbon casks from Heavenhill Distillery in Kentucky
Q; WHAT is the annual total litres distilled? A; it can vary from year to year but we aim to do about 20,000 litres a year
Q: DO YOU have any idea what a bottle will cost? A; not yet
Q; do you have any “special” whisky coming soon? A; It will all be special!
Q; any major plans/announcements coming soon? A; Not that I know of.
Paul McLean; www.mcleanscotland.com www.angelswhiskyclub.com
Depending on your dates and numbers in party, we can take you here for a tour with Francis.
Along with tours to many other Scottish and Irish distilleries – whisky tastings, whisky dinners and whisky schools – all bespoke.
