Small Saanich distillery in David vs. Goliath fight with Scotch Whisky Association
The founder of Macaloney’s Caledonian Distillery is being accused of branding his whisky as too Scottish by the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA), based in Edinburgh, Scotland.
“Officially, they are saying that we’re using too many Scottish sounding names on our whisky, like my name Macaloney,” said Graeme Macaloney, the distillery’s founder.
The names of two of his whiskies are Glenloy and Invermallie. Again, too Scottish for the association, but meaningful for Macaloney, who is from Scotland.
“Glenloy and Invermallie is where my family lived for a thousand years, so it’s a nice story to tell,” said Macaloney.
Last year, the SWA filed a lawsuit to prevent Macaloney from using his name and other Scottish-sounding names in the branding of his Canadian whisky.
Now, the fight has escalated, and it’s going to hurt the award-winning distillery’s business.
“Just a month ago, (the SWA) threatened our German importer with a lawsuit to force them to stop bringing our Canadian best single malt into Germany,” said Macaloney.
Macaloney says the German importer was his growing distillery’s portal into the European Union. Now, he has to find a new importer, but that takes months. And, if an importer was to take him on, the SWA would make it difficult on that new importer, too, Macaloney says.
“They would set the lawyers on that person too,” said Macaloney.
That leaves Macaloney is a tough spot. The young company and its 750 shareholders had plans to distribute their whisky in 25 countries around the world. With this new wrinkle, those growth plans are now on hold.
“People are scared of the SWA in this industry,” said Macaloney.
The distillery founder has reached out to the SWA in hopes a compromise can be reached, but he said he has gone to mediation with them in the past, to no avail.
A letter-writing campaign has started, and so far, Canadians have sent more than 1,000 letters of support for the Saanich distillery to the SWA. Macaloney hopes that will persuade the association to back down and come to an agreement, because he says he’s not willing to give up his name, or the name of his Canadian whisky.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
CRA no longer requiring 'bare trust' reporting in 2023 tax return
The Canada Revenue Agency announced Thursday it will not require 'bare trust' reporting from Canadians that it introduced for the 2024 tax season, just four days before the April 2 deadline.
Full parole granted to man convicted in notorious 'McDonald's murders' in Cape Breton
The Parole Board of Canada has granted full parole to one of three men convicted in the brutal murders of three McDonald's restaurant workers in Cape Breton more than 30 years ago.
Incident on Calgary's Reconciliation Bridge comes to safe resolution
Nearly 20 hours after a man climbed and remained perched on top of the Reconciliation Bridge in downtown Calgary, the situation came to a peaceful resolution.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
'We won't forget': How some Muslims view Poilievre's stance on Israel-Hamas war
A spokesman for a regional Muslim advocacy group says Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre's stance on the Israel-Hamas war could complicate his party's relationship with Muslim Canadians.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.