Thieves steal $1M worth in craft whiskey from Washington distillery

Thieves who made off with 12,000 bottles of craft whiskey in a rare U.S. liquor heist this summer did more than just snag nearly $1 million worth of product -- they also spirited away nearly half the stock of a single malt distillers had worked for more than a decade to make. Now the Skagit Valley Sheriff’s Office is investigating, and whiskey aficionados are wondering if — and where — the coveted bottles of Westland Distillery's first 10-year Garryana whiskey might turn up. The bottles disappeared July 31, when someone in a freight truck showed up at Westland Distillery’s warehouse in Burlington, Washington, holding the paperwork that purportedly gave them the right to pick up a shipment of Westland single malt, Watchpost blended, and Garryana whiskies bound for New Jersey.