Archaeologists unearth evidence of illicit centuries-old whisky still in Scotland

Archaeologists have unearthed evidence suggesting a stone bothy in the Highlands was secretly used to distil whisky around two centuries ago illicitly.

The team have recovered a piece of a copper still at the site in Ben Lawers National Nature Reserve (NNR), as well as a well-constructed hearth and evidence of burning.

Many distillers and smugglers went to great lengths to evade detection by authorities after unlicensed private distillation was made illegal in the late 1780s.

Some transferred their operations to hidden bothies in upland areas to avoid being discovered, with five known illicit whisky bothies on the Ben Lawers NNR, which is cared for by the National Trust for Scotland (NTS).

During last month's dig, the NTS archaeologists and volunteers also found a substantial stone-capped drain that ran beneath the internal floor, and a timber roof support post, which appears to have been buried when the walls collapsed.

Derek Alexander, NTS head of archaeology, said: "This is a wonderful example of how archaeology can tell a gripping story of spirit smuggling that would otherwise have been lost to time.

"In the early 19th century, illicit whisky distilling in these hills became a real battle of wits between excise officers and distillers.

"To find the remains of stills in these upland areas, you need to think like an excise officer. Those who distilled spirit in this bothy will have picked the location carefully to make sure they were well hidden.

"This bothy is well concealed along one arm of the Lawers Burn, nestled in a burn gulley where there's a slight bend in the burn to shield the site from both upstream and downstream.

"The people who distilled here knew what they were doing and it's possible the still was never seized by the authorities."

Mr Alexander said had it been found by the excise officers, the still would have been "taken away and destroyed".

He added: "So, the fact that we've found this connecting piece here suggests the still was dismantled in a hurry and its components whisked away by the smugglers as they dispersed. The connecting piece may have been forgotten in the rush and left behind.

"Distillers of illicit whisky would've travelled light and left little trace of their activity, and so a find like this is especially rare and exciting.

"It gives us a glimpse into an activity that was once rife in the hills of Ben Lawers and which was seen by many as an act of community resistance."

Read more from Sky News:
Dua Lipa sues Samsung for $15m
Bodies of hikers found in each other's arms after volcano erupts

The bothy could have been in use anytime in the late 18th and early 19th centuries following the 1788 Excise Act, experts said.

The piece of copper discovered is thought to have been used to connect the lyne arm and the head of the still.

The site is one of the five known about at the NNR but is the only one where a piece of copper still has been found.

The dig was the latest in a series undertaken as part of The Pioneering Spirit project supported by The Glenlivet.

(c) Sky News 2026: Archaeologists unearth evidence of illicit centuries-old whisky still in Scotland