A whisky by any other name

An independent distiller's clear spirit may be made from Scotch and taste like a good whisky, but it cannot call itself by the name, a High Court judge ruled yesterday. United Distillers and Allied Domecq - two of the world's biggest drinks firms - won an undertaking from the Isle of Man producers of Glen Kella not to label it as Manx Whiskey in the United Kingdom.

Mr Justice Rattee decided that even though the product is originally Scotch Whisky which is redistilled to remove the yellow colouration, it cannot be called a whisky because it does not comply with the legal definition of the drink. He said "the essential point" was that to call itself whisky it must have been matured after distillation for at least three years and this spirit had not.