WHISKY DISTILLERS’ DIFFICULTIES.

Pahiatua Herald, Volume XXVII, Issue 31385, 14 February 1923, Page 3

WHISKY DISTILLERS’ DIFFICULTIES.

SHORTAGE OF STOCKS. Electric Telegraph—Press Association Copyright. (Australian-N.Z. Cable Association.) London, February 12. According to the “Daily Express,” the Scottish whisky distillery will soon have a monopoly of two or three groups, one being the Distillers Company, with a capital of £3,000,000, and another the Bucliana-n-I Invar combination with a oapitatl of £6,649,000. Th© force behind the movement of buying up independent distilleries is growing. Their© is a. shortage of matured whisky. At least five years are necessary to mature whisky. Though there are millions of gallons in bond, they will not he ready for drinking until the end of 1924. The difficulty in' financing large stocks of n.ew whisky is increased by the high duty of 72s 6d per gallon, compared with 14s 9d before the war, which must be paid to the Government before the wli/isky is released from bond. A bottle of wliisky now carries a duty of ever Bs. Only the export trade keeps the trade from bankruptcy.