Silent Distillery : a distillery that is no longer in operation.
This may be a temporary state or it may be that the distillery has been abandoned or demolished. The terms ‘ghost distillery’ and ‘lost distillery’ are used interchangeably.
Over the centuries demand for whisky has varied enormously. In 19th century Scotland, there were more than 200 distilleries but due to seismic shifts such as Prohibition in Twenties America and market turmoil due to the Pattinson Crash of 1898, around 70 had gone silent by the outbreak of World War II. Further closures followed a period of overproduction in the 1970s, with decisions driven largely by the flavour impact of the whisky in blended Scotch as the single malt market was then in its infancy.
Whatever the reasons, as demand fluctuates supply must adjust, so it was common practice in Scotland to mothball distilleries in times of oversupply or financial constraint. In time some sprung back into production, but others remained silent. Casks would be sold on, but once the spirit was gone, it was gone forever.
With their increasing rarity, casks and bottlings from silent distilleries can gain cult status, and are often priced to match. The market is global, with its own superstars – Midleton Very Rare leads the charge for Irish whiskey with its Silent Distillery Chapter One, Chapter Two and Chapter Three bottlings, while increasingly rare expressions from Port Ellen in Scotland and Karuizawa in Japan are also hugely popular with connoisseurs.
The Loch Lomond Group offer a range of expressions from Littlemill, the first legal distillery in Scotland, sadly now silent.
In their Vanguards and Cask Reflection collections, they offer select bottles of Lowland single malt celebrating the distillery’s storied history.
History may not repeat, but it certainly rhymes.
With the demand for single malt Scotch increasing globally, not only are new distilleries opening all over Scotland, but old workhorses are waking up. Fresh investment in distilleries such as Brora, Dallas Dhu and Port Ellen means the water of life will breath new spirit into these revitalised ghost distilleries.
