Glenora Distillers is a

distiller Distillation, also classical distillation, is the process of separating the component substances of a liquid mixture of two or more chemically discrete substances; the separation process is realized by way of the selective boiling of the mixt ...

based in Glenville,

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, on

Cape Breton Island Cape Breton Island (, formerly '; or '; ) is a rugged and irregularly shaped island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The island accounts for 18.7% of Nova Scotia's total area. Although ...

. Their most prominent product is Glen Breton Rare whisky, made in the Scottish-style in that it is a single malt

Canadian whisky Canadian whisky is a type of whisky produced in Canada. Most Canadian whiskies are Blended whiskey, blended multi-grain liquors containing a large percentage of corn spirits and are typically lighter and smoother than other whisky styles.

, not a rye, as is traditional in Canada. The distillery also makes several specialty whiskies and rum, and operates the Glenora Inn & Distillery as a tourist attraction and

bed and breakfast A bed and breakfast (typically shortened to B&B or BnB) is a small lodging establishment that offers overnight accommodation and breakfast. In addition, a B&B sometimes has the hosts living in the house. ''Bed and breakfast'' is also used to ...

Brands

Glen Breton single malts

Glen Breton Rare is the signature whisky brand of Glenora Distillers. The 10-year-old whisky is aged in American oak casks.Glenora Distilleries
Whisky Offerings
. Accessed December 18, 2018. It was featured in the book, ''101 Whiskies to Try Before You Die''. In November 2000, an 8-year-old version of the Glen Breton Rare was released. By 2018, it offered a wide range of whiskies up to 25 years old.

Glen Breton Rare Ice

Glenora Distillery produces a single malt whisky aged in oak barrels used for Jost Vineyard's Ortega Ice Wine. The Glen Breton Rare Ice is available in 10, 15 and 17-year-old versions.

Litigation

The "Glen Breton" name was put into question before it had ever sold a bottle. The

Scotch Whisky Association The Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) is a trade association, trade organisation that represents the Scotch whisky industry. The Scotch whisky industry is an important part of the Economy of Scotland, Scottish economy, and particularly the Scottis ...

(SWA), an organization representing 57 different Scotch whisky companies from Scotland, claimed that the whisky was misleading potential international buyers by using the term “Glen” in its name — a term used almost exclusively on Scotch whisky labels. The trademark name "Scotch" does not appear on the bottle anywhere, and the label states it is a product of Canada and clearly displays a red maple leaf. On January 24, 2007,

CBC News CBC News is the division of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation responsible for the news gathering and production of news programs on the corporation's English-language operations, namely CBC Television, CBC Radio, CBC News Network, and CBC ...

reported that the Canadian

Trademarks Opposition Board A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a form of intellectual property that consists of a word, phrase, symbol, design, or a combination that identifies a product or service from a particular source and distinguishes it from oth ...

, an arm of the

Canadian Intellectual Property Office The Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO; French: ''Office de la propriété intellectuelle du Canada, OPIC'') is responsible for the administration and processing of the greater part of intellectual property (IP) in Canada. CIPO's areas ...

rejected the arguments of the Scotch Whisky Association, clearing the way for the distillery to continue to use the Glen Breton Rare label. The SWA responded that the ruling was inconsistent with international case law, and that it would file an appeal. On April 3, 2008, the

Federal Court of Canada The Federal Court of Canada, which succeeded the Exchequer Court of Canada in 1971, was a national court of Canada that had limited jurisdiction to hear certain types of disputes arising under the Parliament of Canada, federal government's Canadi ...

ruled in favour of the SWA's demand that the word Glen be dropped from the product's name. On December 18, 2008, Glenora Distillers appealed to the

Federal Court of Appeal The Federal Court of Appeal () is a Canadian appellate court that hears cases concerning federal matters. History Section 101 of the Constitution Act, 1867 empowers the Parliament of Canada to establish "additional Courts for the better Admi ...

in Ottawa and on January 22, 2009, the court overturned the lower court's ruling. An application for

leave to appeal In law, an appeal is the process in which cases are reviewed by a higher authority, where parties request a formal change to an official decision. Appeals function both as a process for error correction as well as a process of clarifying and ...

to the

Supreme Court of Canada The Supreme Court of Canada (SCC; , ) is the highest court in the judicial system of Canada. It comprises nine justices, whose decisions are the ultimate application of Canadian law, and grants permission to between 40 and 75 litigants eac ...

, filed by SWA on March 23, 2009, was dismissed with costs on June 11, 2009. In June 2010, a 15-year-old version of the Glen Breton single malt whisky was released. It was named "Battle of the Glen", commemorating the distillery's legal battle over the use of the word "glen".

References

External links