The term “whisky loch” has been taken somewhat literally by a recent collection that could potentially have implications for whisky cask ownership in the future, but in the present has courted both curiosity and controversy.
A collection of rare spirit bottles known as Domhayn were matured through the rather unusual method of sinking whisky into Scotland’s most famous body of water.
After being submerged in Loch Ness, the movements of the water, the atmospheric pressure and the effects of hydrostatic diffusion fundamentally change the spirit’s flavour profile, aroma and smoothness in a way that made it taste like a dram more mature than its actual age would suggest.
What Makes The Drowned Whisky Controversial?
Whilst the casks on dry land would be considered whisky, the hydrostatic diffusion process means that they are officially “malt barley spirit drinks” and not Scotch whisky.
The reason for this is that whisky is legally protected, and in order for it to legally be called such, it needs to be produced in a specific way with specific ingredients and in a specific location.
As well as this, the atmospheric pressures 214 metres underwater are so strong that each 72-bottle cask can only be used once, whilst the traditional process often requires that a barrel is used multiple times.
This initial collection might be seen as a one-off limited release, but if it ends up becoming particularly popular or starts to be replicated, it could start to generate questions about the nature of whisky and whether the legally protected process would need to change.
The New Whisky Loch
Alongside people curious about the process or aghast at the iconoclasm, there are also people who are somewhat amused at the irony of literally submerging whisky in a loch less than half a century after the infamous Whisky Loch period of spirit production that silenced so many distilleries.
Following a massive boom period for blended whisky in the 1960s, distilleries were built in record numbers to meet what appeared to be an unprecedented demand internationally, and since whisky takes years to mature, distilleries have to plan for demand a decade in advance.
The problem was that this demand faltered far more quickly than expected; blended whisky lost ground to rum and especially vodka, and the new wave of discerning single malt drinkers had yet to truly emerge.
This, combined with a fuel crisis which disproportionately hits whisky distilleries and a global recession caused in no small part by this led to higher costs and lower returns hitting at precisely the same time, alongside barrel after barrel of whisky intended for blending.
It was said that there was so much surplus whisky that you could fill a loch with it, and the term Whisky Loch has since been used to describe this period of crisis, malaise and the silencing of once-great distilleries.
With the rise of whisky collection since the 2000s, the Whisky Loch has since become a fascinating story, and many bottles from silent distilleries have become highly collectable.
Regardless, with concerns surrounding tariffs and the potential for an economic downturn to create a second Whisky Loch, it is ironic that some manufacturers have taken the term so literally.