Water and barley are the life blood of the whisky industry, distilleries across the country are quickly running out of both.
Words by Thomas McCann:
Scottish whisky is a highly skilful and profitable endeavour, brining in almost £4 billion every year as a result of exports, not an insignificant amount for the Scottish economy. However, there are several threats to the current methods of production that could change the landscape, but more importantly the flavour, of that world famous whisky.
It is in the more than 100 distilleries of Scotland where you will find whisky without the sacrilegious “e”, and in the true fashion of everything in Scottish history, we can say it may have been invented here.
Whisky production in Scotland dates back to as early as the 11th century. Wine was the latest craze in Europe, but with no access to grapes, the monks of Scotland had to make do with grain. The name is a loose translation from the Gaelic “uisge beatha”, or ”water of life”, a true indictement of Scottish drinking culture.
Since the days of ye olde whisky, the production process has become industrialised, sleek and refined. But here in Scotland, the two major components of whisky are under threat from climate change, which is water and barley.
As the planet gets hotter, it is expected that this will affect rainfall volume and patterns. This future lack of water will then have a knock-on effect on the production of the barley crop. If predictions are correct, the production of whisky could face serious obstacles.
Stewart Bowman, of the Isle of Arran distillery in Lochranza, described the process of making whisky as “water-hungry”.
“Our water levels are very low, this seems to be a more frequent occurrence. The distillery that I was at last, we were at the stage where we were just about to, in probably the last three or four years I was up there, we were on the cusp of shutting down the distillery three or four times because of a lack of water.”
”Climate change is undoubtedly having an impact on the availability of that water, which will absolutely have an impact on us. Not just from a production point of view, but from a quality point of view.”
The problems associated with the water supply do not stop there. Many distilleries close in the summer as the water is too warm to be used, and there is ample evidence to suggest that the weather is getting warmer, and at earlier times. Exhibit A would be the short-wearers in Edinburgh in mid-March.
Stewart also discussed the impacts a bad barley yield can have on the quality of the whisky:
”A few years ago there was a very, very bad crop, because it was a very dry summer...the malt that year was bad. It was hard to process, the yields were down, it was hard to use so we are being much less efficient in terms of our energy usage.”
As is the case with most climate change issues, this is a double-edged sword. Distilleries are under threat from climate change, but many are still not fully eco-efficient. One major reason for this is many do not have the budget to switch to more expensive renewable energy sources.
Many distilleries in Scotland are owned by Diageo, who were recently fined more than £1 million for failing to accurately declare their emission levels. They stated it was an “administrative error”.
So, Scottish whisky could be a victim of climate change, but an inability to switch to renewable energy also makes them unable to become completely eco-friendly. If the effects of climate change are not halted, it could have a damaging impact on the Scottish economy. Exports in whisky could decline, and the famous flavour of your wee dram could be changed forever.
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