Indian whisky

History

Scotch whisky drinking reached India during the British Raj in the nineteenth century. Edward Dyer moved from England in the late 1820s to establish India's first brewery at Kasauli, which was soon relocated to Solan due to abundant spring water; the Kasauli site became India's first distillery, now run by Mohan Meakin. Grain shortages hampered alcohol production from grain, and using grains for alcohol remains controversial in India because of poverty and alcohol's reputation. Economic liberalisation in the 1990s moderately reduced import duties to about 35%, giving distillers better technology.

Amrut Distilleries pioneered whisky from malted grains in 1982, procuring barley from Haryana, Punjab and Rajasthan alongside molasses, and launched Prestige Blended Malt Whisky in 1986 through the Canteen Stores Department. The first single malt batch was ready within 18 months, but lacking a local single malt culture, the company blended it with sugarcane alcohol to create MaQintosh Premium Whisky. Amrut Distilleries launched Amrut, India's first single malt whisky, on 24 August 2004, using surplus aged malt. Master blender Surinder Kumar estimated that one year of barrel ageing in India equals three years in Scotland due to climate differences.

Definition

India has no compulsory definition of whisky, and its voluntary standard does not require distillation from cereals or maturation. The Scotch Whisky Association noted in 2013 that very little Indian whisky qualifies as whisky in the EU because of molasses or neutral alcohol use, limited maturation, and flavourings. On 20 February 2025, the Indian Malt Whisky Association requested a geographical indication requiring whiskies to be made from malt barley and distilled in a copper pot still at a single distillery.

Domestic market

India is the world's largest whisky consumer by volume, with whisky accounting for nearly 60% of the Indian-made foreign liquor market. The tax structure is complex, with central import taxes and varying state-level taxes; some states prohibit alcohol sales. In 2010, India represented nearly half the global whisky market by volume, and the market is divided by price segments.

Trade controversy

Tariff barriers of up to 150% on imported whiskies encourage consumption of native molasses-based whisky, with imported Scotch bottled under its own brands holding only 1% market share. The Scotch Whisky Association has called this pure protectionism, while Indian distillers accuse the EU of trade barriers by forbidding molasses-based spirits as whisky. In 2006, the Delhi High Court enjoined Indian manufacturers from using 'Scot' or 'Scotch' on labels, but the Supreme Court ruled in 2008 that Khoday India Limited could keep its Peter Scot trademark. In 2019, India was the world's second largest Scotch whisky market by volume and seventh by value.