[arethuza]

Just in case anyone is wondering - whisky isn't made from peat, it is made from malted barley that was often dried over a peat fire and this very distinctive aroma was imparted to the malt and then to the spirit.

NB When I was as student I used to have a summer job in a maltings that made malt from barley that was used by a number of distilleries. Note that most maltings are actually fairly large industrial plants - not really the normal image people have of the Scots whisky industry although lots of higher end distilleries do make their own malt.

[Torn]

Saying that, supplies of highland & Islay peat are dwindling - in a few hundred years they won't be using local peat to dry out the barley

[arethuza]

I don't think there is any lack of peat in Scotland - I guess what there is a lack of is areas where people are happy to ruin the landscape to harvest peat.

e.g. The Flow Country of Caithness and Sutherland:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flow_Country