New Evidence Names Obscure Lowland Distillery As Scotland’s Oldest

Littlemill, a Lowland distillery that ceased operations in the early 1990s, is obscure among the ranks of Scotland’s historic whisky-makers. No grand brand name is attached to it, and it’s placement in the Lowlands is hardly glamorous. That said, evidence has emerged that points to this humble foundation as being the oldest whisky distillery in Scotland.

There was already some physical evidence pointing to Littlemill’s Georgian origins, as a cornerstone on one of its warehouses is dated 1772. However, documents recently discovered in Dumbarton name “Robert Muir of Littlemiln” as the recipient of a license to sell ale, beer and liquor. The license is dated November 2, 1773.

In the days of George III, a license to sell alcohol was the same thing as a license to make it. This is because distilling at the time was perfectly legal at the time, just so long as none of the spirits were sold. Ergo, what a commercial distillery required was a license to sell their products.

Littlemill can now claim to be the oldest licensed distillery in Scotland.

Production was closed at the distillery in 1994, and most of the property was destroyed in a fire in 2004. What stocks of whisky survived the fire are now owned by Loch Lomond (who also own the Littlemill name), and with the discovery of proof that Littlemill is the oldest in Scotland, we can expect more of that remaining stock to be released and to command a much higher price.