During the Tuesday night shift at Chivas Brothers located in Dumbarton, Scotland, workers who were cleaning out waste water accidentally flushed out thousands of liters of whisky, reported BBC.
That's a lot of booze and money down the drain.
It was a thought anyone in Scotland would cringe at, the beloved blends and bulks of Scotch whisky was supposed to make its way into The Clachaig Inn or The Old Forge. Instead 6,000 gallons are gone for good. How could anyone mistake booze for water?
Apparently, sewage workers who caught the stench reported it immediately.
Chivas Brothers has 600 workers at its factory. Ballantine's is the world's second -biggest selling brand of Scotch whisky and the number one selling ultra premium and prestige whisky in Asia.
The plant is now under investigation. The brand or brands of whiskey accidentally released is unknown.
"We are currently investigating an accidental loss on the 26th of February at our Dumbarton site, where some spirit was released to the local water treatment plant," the company said in a statement. "There has been no release of spirit to the River Leven or any other local water course. We have informed Scottish Water and all other relevant authorities."
According to the BBC, Scottish Water released a statement:
"Staff at our waste water treatment works were already aware of a problem and were working to identify the source when contacted by Chivas Brothers. Our trade effluent team have now visited the company to get an oversight into its failure investigation so that we can ensure all possible precautions are being taken to prevent a repeat.Discharging large volumes of alcohol into the sewer network can have an adverse impact on waste water treatment processes, particularly during dry, cold weather. We are continuing to closely monitor our Dumbarton waste water treatment works to ensure treatment has not been compromised."
While the investigation is underway, the head of Chivas Brothers, Christian Porta, announced he will swap jobs with Laurent Lacassagne, chief executive of Pernod Ricard Europe, reported Scotsman.
