The Herald reported on Sunday that residents in the Isle of Skye have a bone to pick with expansion plans for Talisker, a Scotch brand owned by Diageo. Diageo intends to demolish Talisker’s current facilities and create a large, fully-automated distillery that would make it “nearly twice the size of the biggest building on Skye,” according to a local. To add insult to injury, the project would not add any jobs to the community.
“It just seems to be Diageo being greedy and wanting to double production,” Resident Adrian Trendall said, according to The Herald. “It’s going to be out of proportion to any other building not just in the village but on Skye.”
According to The Herald, the distillery will occupy 3,100 square meters. The proposal claims that it will double production, according to an architect named Ian Grant.
“It’s out of proportion to the context,” Grant expressed. “Carbost is quite a small highland village and the proposal makes the distillery building much bigger than it is now, making it one of the largest buildings on the island in a context that, I would say, doesn’t really support it.”
News of Diageo’s efforts to demolish the old Talisker Distillery and replace it with updated facilities first made headlines in October. Just Drinks reported that the spirits conglomerate submitted a Proposal of Application Notice (PAN) that claimed Diageo would expand Talisker’s production capacities.
“As a business we continually review our production footprint in support of our long-term growth ambitions for Scotch and the Proposal of Application Notice (PAN) for Talisker Distillery allows us to explore and evaluate potential options. A public consultation will form part of the PAN however at this point in time we have no firm plans for investment.”
A Maritime Scotch With a Rich History
Diageo acquired Talisker in 1997, but the whisky brand famous for its briny scotches dates back to 1830. Two brothers founded the brand: Hugh MacAskill and Kenneth MacGaskill.
The distillery is considered the oldest on the Isle of Skye. It takes its name from the Norse word “Thalas Gair” which means Sloping Rock. The scotch brand’s calling card very much stems from its close proximity to the sea. Fans of the brand’s whiskies claim they possess a smoky, salty quality.
Diageo’s aim to amp up production implements sustainability in mind. The drinks conglomerate claimed it would add drainage, road improvements and make adjustments to the landscaping. The company claimed that details would be available for the community to provide feedback, and the feedback appears to be none too kind. Diageo apparently revised the plan, yet residents weren’t pleased.
“Their proposal now is to widen the tarmac outside the distillery and for about 100 metres up the road from it, and put in a passing place further up the village to ease traffic flow,” said Grant, according to The Herald. “I don’t think they’ve responded in any way to the needs of the people in the village. I think that’s a very disrespectful attitude for a big company like Diageo to take towards a small village which hosts one of its profitable brands,”
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