Thieves who made off with 12,000 bottles of craft whiskey in a rare U.S. liquor heist this summer season did extra than simply snag almost $1 million value of product — additionally they spirited away almost half the inventory of a single malt distillers had labored for greater than a decade to make.
Now the Skagit Valley Sheriff’s Workplace is investigating, and whiskey aficionados are questioning if — and the place — the coveted bottles of Westland Distillery’s first 10-year Garryana whiskey would possibly flip up.
The bottles disappeared July 31, when somebody in a freight truck confirmed up at Westland Distillery’s warehouse in Burlington, Washington, holding the paperwork that purportedly gave them the suitable to select up a cargo of Westland single malt, Watchpost blended, and Garryana whiskies certain for New Jersey.
However the bottles by no means arrived at their supposed vacation spot, and the “subtle, fraudulent provider scheme” was found every week later, mentioned Jason Moore, the managing director of the Seattle-based distillery.
The tenth anniversary version bottles of Garryana are irreplaceable, mentioned Moore.
“That is an unlucky and fairly extraordinary scenario,” mentioned Moore.
The Skagit County Sheriff’s Workplace did not instantly reply to a cellphone message left by The Related Press.
It might be tough to promote the stolen items, mentioned Mark Gillespie, the host of the WhiskyCast podcast who has printed greater than 3,800 tasting notes for various whiskey varieties.
“It may be actually exhausting for whoever took this to truly get this onto the market, as a result of what they took was so uncommon that everyone is aware of about it,” Gillespie mentioned. “We see these thefts often in Scotland, the place thieves will steal a trailer filled with whiskey — and it normally leads to Russia.”
However getting 12,000 bottles out of the U.S. might be tough as a result of the bottles are uncommon and recognizable, and flipping them within the U.S. could also be powerful due to the nation’s three-tier system for alcohol sales. Distilleries usually must promote liquor to distributors or wholesalers, who then promote to retailers and eating places and bars. Promoting alcohol on the secondary market — equivalent to when people purchase up widespread bottles after which resell them for a revenue — is mostly unlawful.
That is not true in a lot of Europe, the place public sale homes and different companies concentrate on secondary market gross sales.
“The windfall of the Garryana is essential as a result of it is their first 10-year-old whiskey,” Gillespie mentioned. “Mainly, age statements state how outdated the whiskey is, and on this nation you’ve quite a lot of craft distilleries that are not fairly 10 years outdated. So for a craft distillery to have the ability to launch a 10-year-old is an accomplishment.”
Westland focuses on single-malt whiskeys, a method of liquor comprised of barley, much like a Scotch whiskey. However Moore says Westland has labored exhausting to seize the terroir of the Pacific Northwest inside every bottle, utilizing regionally produced grains, peat harvested from an Olympic peninsula bathroom and a selected kind of yeast chosen to deliver out the regional flavors.
That’s what makes the Garryana particular, he mentioned — it is aged in casks comprised of the Quercus garryana oak tree, which grows primarily within the Pacific Northwest.
The limited-edition whiskey often wins awards, mentioned Gillespie, and the 2023 version was named the third finest whiskey on this planet by Whisky Advocate journal. The Garryana sells out yearly, Gillespie mentioned, and with 3,000 of this yr’s 7,500-bottle launch gone, the value on the secondary market can be pushed up.
Moore mentioned the corporate has taken further steps to guard its provide chain, and proper now they’re specializing in serving clients as a substitute of the investigation.
“What occurs from there may be exterior of our management, and we get enthusiastic about sharing our whiskey and fascinating with the supporters we’ve,” Moore mentioned. “That is a particularly uncommon factor, and whereas it is a setback, we’re assured that we’ll get to share this whiskey. We’re proud to make one thing folks take pleasure in.”
Shedding $1 million in inventory would put quite a lot of distilleries out of enterprise, however Gillespie mentioned he expects Westland to make it by means of the loss, partially as a result of it was acquired by the Paris-based Remy Cointreau Group in 2016. Nonetheless, he has some recommendation for folks wanting to get a style of Westland’s merchandise: Follow the authorized provide chains.
“If anyone tries to give you a case of Westland whiskey proper now, I might name the cops,” Gillespie mentioned.
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