Demand for Indian single malt now rivals Scotch

Sales of Indian single malt whisky are catching up with Scotch, showing a leap of 340% last year, according to reports.

As reported by the Times of India (TOI), demand for Indian single malt has grown its market share from 15% five years ago to nearly 33% as of March 2022 with data citing that in 2022 sales of Indian malt soared 340% while sales of Scotch rose just 35%.

Sales of Indian malt under Amrut brands have reportedly overtaken sales of Glenlivet 12 years old, which was the highest-sold Scotch in 2022, while another Indian single malt, Paul John, has also been identified as one that is now among the top-selling brands in India.

In the report findings cited by the TOI, Vinod Giri, director general of the Confederation of Indian Alcoholic Beverage Companies (CIABC) said: “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.”

According to the TOI, Amrut’s managing director, Rakshit Neelkant has said that Indian spirits businesses are now making competitive whisky and yet “things might change” due to the nation’s upcoming expected free trade agreements.

The whisky market in India has been estimated to currently stand at around 242 million cases, which represents approximately two-thirds of the overall spirits market. Added to this, Indian consumers have been cited by local sources as more willing to spend more on alcohol which has, in turn, been rumoured to have contributed to a jump in sales of malt whiskies. However, despite this, compared to sales of other alcoholic drinks such as beer and wine, the nation’s sale of malt whisky is said to still be very low.