Indri Whisky Triumphs as the World’s Best: A Spirited Revolution in India’s Whiskey Landscape
How do Indians prefer their drinks? Shaken, swirled, on the rock, and lots of it! India is one of the largest consumers of alcohol, which may seem unsurprising given the country’s expanding population. And in India, whiskey reigns supreme.
India’s love of whiskey has resulted in significant sales of some of the country’s most popular brands. McDowell’s Whisky is the best-selling whiskey brand and the third-best-selling alcohol brand overall, according to Drinks International’s The Millionaires’ Club 2023 report.
Given that India is currently the world’s most populated country, it is not unexpected that it is also amidst the most rapidly expanding markets for alcohol sales. Furthermore, India has eclipsed France as the top market for Scotch whiskey.
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Which Indian Whisky Has Been Ranked the World’s Best?
Oak barrels, previously used to keep bourbon and wine, are piling up in a distillery outside New Delhi, packed with maturing whiskey, as workers produce nearly 10,000 bottles a day of Indri, the world’s best whisky.
Sugarcane and mustard fields, not peat bogs, surround the distillery, where Piccadilly, the owner of the two-year-old Indian brand, is scaling up production and creating a three-hole golf course to entice whiskey aficionados and tipplers in the whisky-loving nation.
As India establishes itself as a producer, rather than just a consumer, of whiskey, its single malts are altering the country’s $33 billion alcohol business.
Established worldwide brands like Glenlivet, produced by Pernod Ricard in France, and Talisker, produced by Diageo in the United Kingdom, compete for shelf space with local rivals Indri, Amrut, and Radico Khaitan’s Rampur.
Unlike many Asian nations where beer is the most popular alcoholic beverage, India is primarily a whisky-drinking nation. According to industry leaders and experts, global accolades, rising income, and a flood of drinkers discovering new brands while cooped up during COVID-19 have disrupted India’s whiskey scene.
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People’s Response
Indian whiskey provides a sense of national pride and goes well with Indian cuisine. People believe in Indian malts when it comes to pairing them with rich, spicy Indian food.
Indri’s Diwali Collector’s Edition ($421) received “Best in Show” in the Whiskies of a World Awards blind tasting in San Francisco in August, beating out Scottish and American competitors.
As a result of the drink-India trend, multinational brands that formerly focused on single malts matured in Scotland are looking to Indian whiskies to capitalize on the rise in one of the world’s largest whiskey markets.
Pernod unveiled its first made-in-India single malt, the $48 Longitude 77, with intentions to expand sales to Dubai and ultimately the rest of the world.
Conclusion: A thing of the future
Diageo, Pernod’s major rival, introduced Godawan last year, named after a giant, endangered Indian bird, and sold in five overseas countries, including the United States. Pernod’s Glenlivet, long India’s top-selling single malt, was dethroned last year by Amrut, which increased 183% in volume despite a 39% increase.
According to the IWSR Drinks Market Analysis, Indian single malts will increase by 144% in 2021–22, outpacing Scotch’s 32% growth. It anticipates that consumption of Indian malts will expand at 13% per year until 2027, compared to 8% for Scotch.
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Piccadilly Distilleries plans to increase capacity by 66% to 20,000 liters (5,300 gallons) per day by 2025, expanding beyond the 18 overseas markets that account for 30% of its sales.
It intends to increase the number of barrels at the huge distillery in a rural belt 160 kilometers (100 miles) north of India’s capital to 100,000.
In stores in New Delhi, Indri starts at $37 (Rs 3,000) per bottle, Amrut at $42 (Rs 3,400), and Rampur at $66 (Rs 5400). Pernod’s Glenlivet, on the other hand, ranges in price from $40 to $118, depending on age.
