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Unlike other
distilleries which adopted to new techniques,
Locke's were proud to use the same methods as had
been used for generations, a stance also adopted by
many other distilling companies throughout Ireland.
High taxes and market forces along with economic
depression reduced the demand for whiskey in Ireland
during the 1920s and 30s.
The American market
was also closed during this period due to
prohibition from 1920-1933 when it was illegal to
sell alcohol in America. During this time some
illegal whiskey or "Bootleg" of poor quality was
sold in America under the Locke's label even though
it had not come from Ireland. After prohibition
Locke's were unsuccessful in their export attempts
to America as during prohibition the Bootleggers had
given Locke's whiskey a bad name.
History has shown that
the Irish distillers also made the mistake of
regarding blended whiskey produced by the Scotch
distillers as an inferior product. This cheaper
method of production and the "lighter" taste of
these blended whiskeys however developed a following
in both the British and American markets. During the
second world war. American soldiers developed a
taste for these blends which they brought back with
them on their return from the war.
Once again the Irish
pot still distillers were handicapped by their
reluctance to change to these new methods of
production resulting in further decline of the Irish
Whiskey industry. The general picture of whiskey
distilling in Ireland over the last 100 years is a
sad one of steady decline. The number of
distilleries in Ireland decreased from 26 in 1924 to
only 5 in 1937 Until recently when Cooley Distillery
was opened in the mid 1980s only two other
distilleries remained in production, the Old
Bushmills Distillery in county Antrim, part of the
Diageo Group, and the
Middleton Distillery in Co. Cork both owned by
Groupe Pernod Ricard |
