The Whisky Maltings

Continuing on the theme of the last few blips – drink, drink and more drink - this is a shot of the Port Gordon Maltings. A malt house, or maltings, is a building where cereal grain, such as barley, is converted into malt by soaking it in water, allowing it to sprout and then drying it to stop further growth. The malt is then used in brewing beer, whisky and in some foods. The traditional malt house was largely phased out during the twentieth century in favour of more mechanised production such as this factory near Port Gordon which in many ways reminds me of the iron works of the Clyde Valley.
The Whisky industry would have us imagine a solitary but loving and caring craftsman skilfully tending his copper still before hand bottling the end product prior to the sticking on of a wee label reading “Hand Made in Bonny Scotland by Angus McDrouth.”
Nothing could of course be further from the truth of the matter. The making of whisky is an industrial process from start to finish. From the field to the maltings to the distiller, the water of life is subject to the factory processes which are necessary in order to satisfy consumer demand.
Mind you, there are rumours of a few illicit stills in the shire manned by just a few skilled folk who just make a few drams on the side for those in the know.