The Whisky Wars: Episode VI: Return of the Single Malt

Return of the Single Malt (1920s-1980s)

Through the longest darkness...

The whisky industry entered the 1920s diminished and uncertain. The golden age was a distant memory. War had closed distilleries and disrupted markets. Corporate consolidation had transformed the landscape. Yet ahead lay six more decades of crisis: American Prohibition, the Great Depression, another world war, and the suffocating dominance of corporate blending houses. These were whisky's wilderness years, when survival seemed like victory. But hidden within this long darkness, seeds of renewal were being planted. The single malt, relegated to obscurity for generations, would eventually return to save an industry that had almost forgotten it existed.

American Prohibition

When the Eighteenth Amendment took effect in January 1920, it closed one of whisky's most important export markets. America, which had imported millions of gallons of Scotch annually, became legally dry overnight. For Scottish distillers already struggling after the war, it was another devastating blow.

Yet Prohibition created unexpected opportunities for those willing to operate in grey areas. Whisky could still be legally exported to other countries, and what happened after it left Scotland wasn't the distiller's responsibility. Caribbean islands suddenly developed insatiable thirsts for Scotch. Ships bound for Cuba or the Bahamas carried far more whisky than those small populations could possibly consume. Everyone understood where it was really going.

Did you know?

During Prohibition, tiny Caribbean islands reported whisky imports that would require every resident to drink several bottles daily. Everyone knew it was being smuggled to America, but legally, once it left Scotland, it wasn't the distillers' problem.

The rum-running trade became legendary. Despite its name, rum-running referred to smuggling any alcohol into America, and Scotch whisky was a prized cargo. Fast boats carried cases of Scotch from Caribbean ports to the American coast, dodging Coast Guard patrols in dangerous cat-and-mouse games. Some Scottish distilleries and blending houses quietly profited from these arrangements, maintaining production levels that would have been impossible with legal markets alone. Others refused to participate, either from principle or fear of American authorities.

The quality of smuggled whisky varied wildly. Genuine Scotch commanded premium prices on the black market, but organised crime also produced counterfeits. Fake bottles bearing prestigious Scottish labels were filled with industrial alcohol, sometimes with fatal consequences. This damaged the reputation of genuine Scotch, associating it with bootleggers and speakeasies rather than quality and tradition.

When Prohibition ended in 1933, Scottish distillers hoped for immediate recovery. Instead, they found a changed market. American tastes had shifted during thirteen dry years. Younger drinkers had no loyalty to pre-Prohibition brands. The Depression had left consumers with little money for imported spirits. Rebuilding the American market would take years of patient effort.

The Great Depression

Economic collapse in 1929 devastated whisky just as Prohibition was nearing its end. Consumer spending plummeted. Unemployment soared. Luxury goods like whisky became unaffordable for millions. Export markets contracted as the Depression spread globally. The brief hope that Prohibition's end might bring recovery evaporated in the face of economic catastrophe.

Distilleries that had survived the previous decade now faced another existential crisis. Production was cut drastically. Some distilleries closed again, having barely reopened after the war. Others operated sporadically, producing small batches when they could afford raw materials and had any prospect of sales. The workforce that had been employed during better times dwindled further.

Highland communities that depended on distillery employment faced desperate poverty. The jobs that had provided stable incomes for generations simply vanished. Young people left for cities seeking work. The social fabric built around distilleries during the golden age was tearing apart. Villages that had grown prosperous on whisky wages became shadows of themselves.

The Distillers Company Limited (DCL), which had emerged as the dominant force during earlier crises, increased its control even further during these lean years. Their size and financial reserves allowed them to weather conditions that destroyed smaller competitors. They bought struggling distilleries at bargain prices, further concentrating the industry. By the mid-1930s, DCL controlled an overwhelming majority of Scottish whisky production. The diverse landscape of independent distillers had become a corporate monopoly.

The Second World War

When war erupted in September 1939, the whisky industry faced familiar restrictions with weary resignation. Once again, grain was diverted from distilling to food production. Once again, coal and other resources were prioritised for the war effort. Once again, distilleries closed or operated at minimal capacity under strict government control.

The restrictions were even more severe than during the First World War. Britain faced genuine threats of invasion and starvation. Every resource mattered. Whisky production was seen as a luxury the nation couldn't afford. Many distilleries remained closed for the war's entire duration. Those that operated did so under crushing limitations.

Yet whisky played an unexpected role in the war effort. Churchill himself recognised that Scotch whisky could earn precious foreign currency, particularly dollars from America. Some production was maintained specifically for export, generating revenue that helped pay for war supplies. Whisky became a weapon of economic warfare, earning the hard currency Britain desperately needed.

The government also commandeered whisky stocks for medicinal purposes and troop morale. Warehouses that had carefully aged stocks for years saw them requisitioned and shipped to military bases. Decades of maturation were consumed in months. The industry's most valuable asset - aged whisky - was depleted to dangerously low levels.

When peace finally came in 1945, the industry faced a paradox. Demand was returning, but stocks were catastrophically low. Years of minimal production meant there was little whisky available to sell. Distilleries that reopened faced years of production before they could rebuild inventory. The post-war recovery would be long and difficult.

The Blended Era

Through all these crises, blended whisky had come to utterly dominate the industry. Single malt whisky, once the pride of Highland distilleries, had become almost invisible to consumers. Most malt whisky production went straight into blends, never appearing under distillery names. The great brands were all blends: Johnnie Walker, Dewars, Chivas Regal, Bells. These were what consumers knew as Scotch whisky.

This dominance had commercial logic. Blends were consistent, approachable, and could be produced in enormous quantities. They appealed to international markets and could be marketed as premium products whilst using relatively inexpensive grain whisky as their base. Blending houses had the marketing expertise and distribution networks that individual distilleries lacked.

But this success came at a cost. The distinctive character of individual distilleries was being lost. A generation of consumers grew up never tasting single malt whisky, never knowing that the blend they enjoyed was crafted from dozens of unique malts, each with its own story. The romantic heritage of Highland distilling was being erased from public consciousness, replaced by corporate brands.

Distilleries themselves became anonymous suppliers rather than brands. Their names appeared nowhere on bottles. Their histories were forgotten. The craftsmen who produced distinctive malts had no direct connection to consumers. They were merely components in someone else's product. The pride and identity that had defined distilleries during the golden age had been systematically stripped away.

Did you know?

By the 1960s, less than 1% of Scotch whisky sold was single malt. An entire generation grew up never tasting it, unaware that their favourite blends contained whisky from dozens of distinctive Highland distilleries.

The Quiet Revolution

In 1963, something remarkable happened. Glenfiddich, a Speyside distillery owned by William Grant & Sons, made a decision that seemed commercially insane. They began marketing their whisky as a single malt, selling it under the distillery name rather than supplying it to blenders. Industry experts predicted disaster. Why would consumers buy unfamiliar single malt when trusted blends were available?

The decision was born of necessity as much as vision. Grant's had their own blending business but also had excess capacity at Glenfiddich. Rather than sell this surplus to competitors, they decided to experiment with the single malt market. They designed distinctive triangular bottles. They emphasised the distillery's heritage and craft. They positioned single malt as premium, authentic, and special.

Success didn't come immediately. The 1960s and 1970s saw only modest growth. Most consumers still preferred blends. But slowly, a niche market emerged. Enthusiasts discovered the complexity and diversity of single malts. Each distillery's whisky was unique, shaped by its location, water, equipment, and methods. This diversity was fascinating to those who took time to explore it.

Other distilleries began cautiously following Glenfiddich's lead. Macallan increased its single malt marketing. Glenlivet, which had never entirely abandoned its single malt identity, renewed its emphasis. Small independent bottlers like Gordon & MacPhail began releasing single malts from distilleries that had no intention of doing so themselves. A movement was beginning, though few yet recognised its significance.

DCL's Continued Dominance

Through all these crises, The Distillers Company Limited maintained and expanded its grip on the industry. Their financial strength allowed them to acquire struggling distilleries throughout the period. What had been a diverse landscape of independent producers was increasingly dominated by this single corporate entity.

DCL's approach was ruthlessly practical. They closed distilleries they deemed uneconomical, consolidated production at efficient sites, and prioritised blended whisky that generated reliable profits. Heritage and tradition mattered less than balance sheets. The romantic era of independent Highland distillers was being systematically erased.

Some famous names vanished during these decades. Port Ellen on Islay, which had produced distinctive peated whisky, closed in 1983. Brora in the Highlands shut the same year. St Magdalene, Rosebank, and others joined the list of "lost distilleries" - names that whisky enthusiasts would later mourn, wishing they could taste spirits that no longer existed.

Yet DCL's dominance also brought stability. Their resources kept the industry alive through depression and war. Their investment in modern equipment and quality control improved production standards. The corporate era, for all its cultural costs, provided foundations that would prove essential when better times eventually arrived.

The Long Darkness Ends

By 1980, whisky had survived six decades of crisis. Prohibition, depression, world war, and corporate dominance had fundamentally transformed the industry. It bore little resemblance to the confident, diverse landscape of the golden age. Production was concentrated in fewer hands. Single malts were curiosities rather than mainstream products. Many historic distilleries were permanently closed.

Yet survival itself was an achievement. The knowledge remained, passed from generation to generation despite interruptions. The brands persisted, their reputations intact. The warehouses still held maturing stocks, maintaining continuity with the past. And quietly, almost unnoticed, Glenfiddich's experiment with single malt marketing was beginning to show promising results.

The wilderness years were ending. Ahead lay a renaissance that would transform whisky once again, bringing single malts from obscurity to global prominence. But that rebirth, and the challenges it would bring, belonged to a new era. For now, in 1980, whisky had simply endured. And endurance, after six decades of crisis, was more than enough.

Next time: Episode VII - The Force Awakens, where single malt whisky emerges from obscurity and a new generation discovers Scotland's distilleries.

Go back and read: Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back or start at the beginning with Episode I: The Phantom Spirits

Tasting Notes from the Era: Whisky from the corporate-dominated era emphasised consistency and accessibility. Classic blends like Johnnie Walker Black Label, Chivas Regal 12, or Bells represent the period when blends were synonymous with Scotch. For single malts that maintained their identity through these dark decades, try Glenfiddich 12 or Macallan 12 - these represent the patient pioneers who kept single malt alive when few believed in its future.