New Delhi: Indian single malts such as Amrut, Paul John, Rampur from Radico, Indri from Piccadilly have out sold Scotch in the domestic market. In the last three years, the volume of sales of Indian single malts has increased threefold, according to the Godrej Food Trend Report. For the industry, this rise reflects how the Indian consumer has evolved over the last decade.
“Whisky consumption earlier was largely brand-driven, but today people are more curious about provenance, production methods, flavour profiles, and storytelling,” Nikhil Agarwal, Founder, All Things Nice, a wine and spirits consultancy, told ThePrint.
According to Agarwal, single malts offer individuality and discovery, which resonates strongly with the modern Indian drinker. He further highlighted increasing interest in American whiskeys and craft cocktail culture, driven by initiatives like American Craft Cocktail Week, where consumers engage with whisky in more contemporary and approachable ways.
“It’s less about status today and more about exploration and understanding what’s in the glass,” Agarwal added.
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Bigger market for booze
Figures released by Confederation of Indian Alcoholic Beverage Companies (CIABC), place spirits export in FY24 at $400 million, a 30 per cent jump over pre-pandemic numbers. The number of alcohol bottles/cases exported also increased, rising by 52 per cent to 8 million cases. Out of these exports, Indian single malt whiskies made up around 150,000 cases, showing that premium Indian whisky brands are becoming more popular internationally.
Multinational companies are also entering the segment, through brands like Godawan by Diageo, and L77 by Pernod Ricard. This rapid growth is driving expansion across production and maturation facilities, brand portfolios and marketing efforts, signalling a continued growth for the Indian single malt category.
CIABC’s Director General Anant Iyer was quoted in the Godrej report, saying, “Some of India’s super-premium single malts are giving well-known global labels stiff competition even in traditional markets like Europe, the US, and the Gulf nations.”
Regions like Australasia and the Americas, which have a strong concentration of the Indian diaspora and large disposable incomes, are key export markets.
Apart from an increased international presence, the ready availability of Indian spirit brands on domestic retail and airport duty free shelves has also translated into an uptick in sales, as additions to the home bar as well as gifts and souvenirs.
“We have always been selective with our offerings at Bangalore Duty Free. But several Indian brands, across whisky, agave spirits, liqueurs, vodka, gin, and wine have entered the market over the last 3-4 years, and to keep up, we’ve had to increase our selection to 2.5 times what it used to be,” said Dilpreet Singh Mehta, Country Commercial Director, Dufry Retail India Pvt Ltd.
(Edited by Theres Sudeep)