That's the spirit... fake Islays and regional whiskies to be made illegal

IMITATIONS of Scotch whisky which describe themselves as Highland, Lowland, Speyside, Campbeltown or Islay, are to be made illegal, it emerged yesterday.

The steps to protect the industry against counterfeiting are being put in place by the Westminster government.

At present, the brand, Scotch, is protected as a geographical product, but the regional variations and the different types of whisky are not.

The tightened legislation would supersede the Scotch Whisky Act 1988 and the Scotch Whisky Order 1990, and allow certain designations of Scotch whisky to be added to an EU list of Geographical Indications, which members of the World Trade Organisation would be obliged to protect.

Hilary Benn, the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Secretary, yesterday announced a consultation will take place on bringing in stricter definitions of Scotch whisky in UK law.

Such a move could help support action against counterfeiting in the industry, which has exports worth more than £2 billion a year to the Scottish economy, and employs around 40,000 people.

The consultation will take place later this year, and new laws could be in place by the spring.

If ratified, and applied in international trade agreements, it would mean products such as Islay whisky would enjoy the same protection under European trade law as Champagne, Parma ham, and Roquefort cheese.

The new legislation aims to curb increasing incidences of foreign distillers attempting to pass off inferior products as authentically Scottish, such as Highland Gold Finest Whisky, which is produced in Surinam and the Netherlands, and Islay Whisky Cream, which is distilled in Italy.

The need for revised regulation in the area has long been called for by the Scotch Whisky Association.

Mr Benn said: "This consultation exercise will take us another step closer to strengthening the UK legislation that the Scotch Whisky Association have been telling us they need to help them protect Scotch whisky in export markets.

"The proposed legislation will make special provisions relating to Scotch whisky. The proposals will define tightly the descriptions applied to Scotch whisky - for example 'single malt' or 'blended grain'. They will also tightly define its geographical provenance - such as Highland or Islay - and ensure that if the product uses the name of a distillery then it must also come from that distillery."

The proposed regulations will define five different categories of Scotch whisky - single malt, single grain, blended, blended malt and blended grain.

They also set out five geographical areas - Highland, Lowland, Speyside, Campbeltown and Islay - with whiskies only being allowed to be labelled as coming from these if they have been made entirely in the region.

In addition, the regulations will require all Scotch whisky to be wholly matured in Scotland and will prohibit the export of single malt Scotch whisky unless it has been bottled and labelled.

Des Browne, the Scottish Secretary, said: "This is another example of the UK government working in a reserved area to protect one of Scotland's most important exports.

"Scotch whisky exports are worth over £2 billion to the Scottish economy each year and the industry needs this proposed legislation to help maintain that figure and defend its high-value product from imitation in some overseas markets.

"The Scotch Whisky Association has welcomed our commitment to do this and the UK government has been both committed and responsive to the industry's needs."

DEFRA will consult on legislative proposals later this year.

THE WATER OF LIFE

ESSENTIALLY a distilled spirit drink made in Scotland from cereals, water and yeast, the most popular type of Scotch whisky is blended - the product of as many as 50 individual malt and grain Scotch whiskies.

There are four other types: a single malt, which is stilled at a single distillery; single grain; blended malt, and blended grain.

Scotch malt whisky is usually classified in one of five main categories - Highland, Lowland, Speyside, Islay or Campbeltown - according to the location of the distillery in which the spirit is made.

Unlike the Irish, rye or bourbon varieties, Scotch whisky is distilled and matured in Scotland. Irish distillers tend to favour three distillations rather than two, as generally used in Scotland for malt whiskies, and the range of cereals used by Irish distillers is wider.

Whisky has been distilled in Scotland for centuries. There is some evidence to show that the art of distilling could have been brought to the country by Christian missionaries, but it has never been proved that Highland farmers did not themselves discover how to distil spirits from their surplus barley.