Edinburgh distillery wins trademark battle with Port Institute

The Douro and Port Wine Institute moved to prevent Scottish distillery The Port of Leith from using the word ‘Port’ on its product labels. However, a court has ruled in favour of the whisky maker, db discovers.

The European Intellectual Property Office has ruled that an Edinburgh distillery may partially continue to use the phrase ‘Port of Leith’ on its bottles after an attempt was made by an association of Port winemakers to ban it. The ruling states that the distillery is permitted to use the term ‘Port’ on its registered spirit products, but not on any future Port or Sherry products.

“This is not only an important decision for us but also for other UK beverage firms using ‘Port’ in their brand name,” said distillery founder Ian Stirling.

It was claimed by the Douro and Port Wine Institute that consumers would be “confused” by the distiller’s use of the word ‘Port’ and that the whisky makers would unfairly benefit from the positive historical association with the fortified wine.

Representatives of the distillery successfully argued that the term refers to the name of the geographical location the Port of Leith, which is a buzzing waterfront district in Edinburgh.

The Port of Leith Distillery does in fact market and sell its own Port of Leith Port, a Reserve Tawny Port made in the Douro, as well as a White Port, the future of which is now unclear. The distillery is proud of its ties with Port-making history, stating on its website that:

“Casks of Port arriving into the harbour at Port of Leith would be decanted into locally manufactured bottles. Whisky merchants then bought up the empty casks to store their spirit in the dozens of bonded warehouses that once lined the shore. They soon discovered that it transformed their spirit and a major innovation in whisky production was born on our doorstep….

“Historically, Leith merchants would sell their own brands of Port to Edinburgh residents up the road, while the cask went to local whisky merchants looking for vessels to store their whisky.”

The two Port products available from The Port of Leith Distillery are produced by Martha’s Family Estate in the Douro, and are both priced at £21.50 per bottle. The distillery also launched a trio of Sherries in November 2023 via The Leith Export Co.

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