‘Whiskey fungus’ is dividing a Maine resort town—and rankling alcohol giants

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Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. As whiskey ages, a small amount evaporates, a loss that has long been poetically called the “angels’ share." But in the resort town of York, Maine, residents see the vapor as far from romantic. At a town meeting last year, Beth Downs held up photos from Tennessee and Kentucky, showing stop signs and trees covered in an ugly black mold called whiskey fungus.

“This could be York," the 61-year-old resident warned the room. “This is what happens—we know this, we’ve seen it." For the past two years, battle lines have been drawn in this coastal town of some 13,000 people. In one camp is a family-owned business—Wiggly Bridge Distillery—which wants to age its whiskey for longer in hopes of improving its flavor.

In the other are hundreds of residents worried about the implications of whiskey fungus, in which ethanol vapors turbocharge a species of fungus called Baudoinia, leaving black stains on buildings and plants. The neighbors believe Wiggly Bridge’s expansion will cause mold similar to fungus seen near warehouses owned by whiskey giants such as Diageo, Brown-Forman and Beam Suntory in Scotland, Tennessee and Kentucky. Though the fungus has no known health effects, the residents fear it could cause property values to drop, as well as hurt tourism in a town that draws visitors to its sandy beaches, eclectic gift shops and whitewashed lighthouse, which locals affectionately call “Nubble Light." “I don’t think vacationers want to see whiskey fungus staining as they arrive at their summer homes," said Downs, a retiree.