Demand for Indian single malt catching up with rivals from Scotland

The sales of Indian malt under Amrut brands have crossed the sales of Glenlivet 12 years old, which was the highest-sold Scotch in 2022

Amid rising demand for homegrown brands, the sales of Indian single malt whisky has caught up with its rivals from Scotland, The Times of India (ToI) reported on Tuesday, citing industry data.

From 15 per cent five years ago, the market share of Indian brands has jumped to nearly 33 per cent as of March 2022. The report added that in 2022, the sales of Indian malt jumped 340 per cent, while the sales of Scotch rose 35 per cent.

The sales of Indian malt under Amrut brands have crossed the sales of Glenlivet 12 years old (YO), which was the highest-sold Scotch in 2022.

Another Indian single malt, Paul John, is also among the top-selling brands in India.

Vinod Giri, director general of the Confederation of Indian Alcoholic Beverage Companies (CIABC), was also quoted in the report as saying, "CIABC is working with the domestic industry and government agencies to evolve product and process standards that ensure product quality uniformly and consistently for Indian malt whiskies."

The overall whisky market in India has been pegged at 242 million cases, around two-thirds of the overall spirits market. Moreover, Indian consumers are willing to spend more on alcohol, and this has led to a jump in sales of malt whiskies. However, as compared to the sales of other spirits like beer and wine, the sale of malt whisky is still very low.

Amrut's managing director, Rakshit Neelkant, was also quoted by TOI as saying that Indian players are making competitive whisky and "things might change" due to the upcoming expected free trade agreements.