Undoubtedly, after an epic bull market, the whisky industry has been facing some major headwinds. Whisky sales fell in 2023, and then even more in 2024, marking the first consecutive declines in more than two decades. Further uncertainty looms, too, thanks to the threat of tariffs and a potentially prolonged trade war.

The ongoing responses by the industry—production pauses, layoffs, and closures—have evoked echoes of previous whisky downturns, when sales slumped and distilleries shuttered. While we’re very far from the lows of the bad old days that took hold in the 1970s, there’s been a mounting turbulence that isn’t behind us quite yet. Whisky Advocate has a look at some of the biggest pauses, job cuts, and closures announced in the past calendar year.