English whisky row highlights 'threat' to scotch

A cross-border row has erupted over the definition of single malt whisky after the English version of the drink received protected geographical indication (GI).

Under the UK government's classification confirmed this month, English single malt must be made from UK-grown cereal grain and English water.

The Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) said the rules are too lenient and '"jeopardise" producers in Scotland who "have spent tens of millions of pounds" to meet stricter requirements to produce malts on single sites.

But Paul Abbott, of Grasmere Distillery in Cumbria, said the SWA's "nit-picking objections" showed "they obviously feel English whisky is a meaningful threat to them commercially".

GI ties a product's name to a place and specific production methods.

But while Scotch single malt requires mashing, fermentation and distillation to happen at one distillery, only the distillation stage of English single malt production needs to happen at one site.

The SWA said: "We are profoundly concerned by this decision.

"We do not oppose the principle of an English whisky GI, and indeed have helped in its initial drafting.

"But the text as approved undermines the established definition of single malt, creates confusion for consumers and jeopardises the category which the Scotch whisky industry established and built the reputation of around the world.

"This is about a level playing field, pure and simple."

There are more than 70 whisky distilleries operating in England and Andrew Kaye, who sells a range of both countries' whisky in his shop in Pooley Bridge near Ullswater, said: "It's definitely been a growing market over the past five years."

He said the English drink's new protected status benefits producers both sides of the border because it creates points of difference between each product.

Liberal Democrat MP for Westmorland and Lonsdale Tim Farron said GI would lift the profile of English single malt but the product was too good to be held to a "lower standard".

"It would give our friends and neighbours in the rest of the British Isles a stick to beat us with on the marketing front and I don't want to give them that, as much as I'm a fan of scotch whisky," he said.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said there was no statutory UK-wide definition of single malt and each nation had its own traditions and practices.

Abbott agreed with the traditional method of producing whisky entirely on one site and does so at his Grasmere distillery, but believed the SWA had given English whisky a boost.

He said: "I've had people comment they didn't know there was much whisky made in England until there was a big 'hoo-ha' with the criticism from the SWA.

"In a sense we should all be sending them our thank yous for highlighting to the general public that this is an exciting new category of drinks."

The SWA said: "Following discussions with Defra, we are considering our position and next steps."

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