Three bars on Vancouver Island have been involved in a series of coordinated whisky seizures in B.C. that have been described as Prohibition-style raids.

The Grand Hotel in Nanaimo had specialty whisky seized, while in Victoria, Little Jumbo and the Union Club received surprise visits from liquor control agents, but neither business reported having any liquor confiscated.

"Our hotel was part of a coordinated raid that the liquor board had done across the island and in Metro Vancouver," said Odai Sirri, vice-president of operations for the Grand Hotel. "At 10 a.m., we were hit along with other hotels and bars that serve the kind of high-end unique whisky products that we do."

Sirri said the family-run business was shocked when agents swept in and seized 11 bottles of high-end single-malt whisky.

"It's 2018 and it shines another spotlight on how archaic the liquor laws are in British Columbia. Year after year the issue does not get addressed," he said. "We're talking aout a year where marijuana is being legalized, and the government is spending resources on whisky."

He said the business is still unclear why the products were seized, but all were obtained from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society of Canada, not provincial liquor suppliers.

Fets Whisky Kitchen, a bar in Vancouver, said it had hundreds of bottles seized and detailed the experience in a Facebook post Thursday.

"The government inventoried, catalogued, sealed and removed 242 bottles of whisky from the Scotch Malt Whisky Society worth about $40K," the business said.

"Every cocktail bar in the province has a few specialty products in their shelves, yet only these 4 bars were raided and the only product removed was the SMWS bottles," said Fets, which cboasts Canada's largest whisky selection, according to its website.

SMWS Canada sent out a tweet Friday saying its brand was "attacked in BC yesterday in surprise prohibition-style raids of our 4 partner bars in Vancouver and Victoria."

The society said it was "stunned" after liquor inspectors seized more than 250 bottles in total worth more than $40,000 "from small, family-run businesses," with the bulk of those seizures taking place at Fets Whisky Kitchen.

Rob Carpenter, the co-founder of the society, said his company sells unique single-cask whiskies that should be considered above board in the eyes of the law.

"We've never heard of anything like this happening in this industry," he said. "All of our products in the province are brought in, entirely legally registered with the province. All taxes are paid. The bars that carry our products are very responsible."

B.C.'s Ministry of Attorney General provided a statement to CTV News on Friday that did not specifically comment on the seizures, but indicated the products were confiscated because they weren't purchased through the Liquor Distribution Branch.

"The [Liquor Control and Licencing Board] operates independently in terms of the General Manager's supervision of licensees, and enforcement decisions cannot be directed by the Attorney General," the ministry said. It added that all liquor sold by bars and restaurants must be purchased through the branch and must be documented in the establishment's liquor register.

Sirri said whlie he's unclear exactly what the problem was with the whisky seized by agents, it could have been worked out in a less dramatic fashion.

"It leaves a sour taste in everybody's mouth," he said. "This could have been addressed with a simple letter, a phone call or a meeting."