Remains of illicit whisky still found in Scottish Highland

"Volunteers and experts from the National Trust for Scotland discovered the copper alloy piece in an excavation of the remains of a stone structure in Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve (NNR). The tapered collar matches an old illustration that identifies it as An Gearradan, the part that connects the lyne arm and the head of a still. The excavation also unearthed a well-constructed hearth with evidence of burning, a stone-capped drain that run under the floor and a roof support timber that was buried when the walls of the structure collapsed."

"These features confirm that the small stone building was a bothy, a structure made for the purpose of distilling whisky away from the prying eyes of the law. There are five other known bothies on the Ben Lawers NNR, but this is the only one of them where a piece of the copper still has been found."

"Invented by medieval monks in Ireland or Scotland, whisky spread out the monasteries and by the 17th century, private distillation was a central feature of the life of tenant farmers in the Highlands. The first taxes on whisky were imposed by the Scottish Parliament in 1644, but it was in the 1780s when laws were passed requiring all distilleries to be licensed that home stills went underground, or rather, upland into bothies where they could be quickly moved around should excise men get a whiff of them."

"In the early 19th century, illicit whisky distilling in these hills became a real battle of wits between excise officers and distillers. To find the remains of stills in these upland areas, you need to think like an excise officer. Those who distilled spirit in this bothy will have picked the locati"

A copper alloy piece from an illicit whisky still was found in the Highlands of Scotland during an excavation in Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve. The tapered collar matches an old illustration identifying it as An Gearradan, the connector between the lyne arm and the still head. The excavation also revealed a well-constructed hearth with burning evidence, a stone-capped drain running beneath the floor, and a buried roof support timber from a collapsed stone structure. These remains indicate the building was a bothy used for distilling whisky away from legal scrutiny. Five other bothies are known in the reserve, but this is the only one with a still component recovered. Whisky distillation spread from monasteries, and licensing laws in the 1780s pushed home distilling into hidden upland bothies.

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