Amrut Distilleries Pvt. Ltd, makers of the Amrut single malt, is looking to expand the company’s production capacity in Bengaluru by 30% in FY25. The whisky maker aims to ramp up capacity to cater to the unprecedented demand seen for its premium and high-end products.
At present, the demand for single malts is outstripping supply, Thrivikram G. Nikam, the company’s executive director told Mint. The company makes 45 variants or ‘expressions’ of single malts which it exports around the world. About seven of those are sold in India. It expects to close the year at a gross revenue of ₹480 crore.
Nikam said this segment of the business is a higher margin one and the company will look to grow this further in the coming years. The capacity expansion will also help increase the production of its popular entry-level whisky, MaQintosh.
The company, an early entrant in the Indian malts business, first began making this category two decades ago in 2004, at a time when the demand for this product was next to zero.
“We decided to explore the export market that time primarily in the UK where single malts were popular. Later, in 2010, we started to receive international recognition and awards and began to sell the spirit in India as well,” he said. In the next few years, the company plans to sell its Indian malts across 75 countries. At present, it is available in 57 countries.
The premium single malt business, which contributes over 120,000 cases (12 bottles a case) and its premium gins, rums and blended whisky contribute to around 70,000 cases per annum. On an annualized basis, it expects to close the year with a sale of 5.8 million cases. The export of its Indian malts accounted for 60,000 cases this year. In 2018, the company expanded its capacity from 300,000 litres per annum to 1 million litres with an investment of ₹25 crore excluding the space it purchased in Bengaluru.
In a phased manner, the company will next look to triple its capacity to 3 million cases per annum in the coming years using internal accruals. By FY25, in the first phase of expansion, it will increase the capacity by 30%. This will largely be devoted to Indian malts like premium vatted whisky, Amalgam, and premium rums and gin.
Since the pandemic, the demand for Indian malts has skyrocketed. Amrut competes with brands like Paul John, Indri, Gianchand and others. The definition of a single malt is one that is a product of a single distillery but the malt can be matured in different casks. According to industry body Confederation of Indian Alcoholic Beverage Companies (CIABC), India sold about 675,000 cases of single malt whiskies in 2023, a little over half of which were produced in India.
This is an aggregate volume growth of 16% over the previous fiscal year when the reported number was 5.77 lakh cases.
In India, spirits age three to four times faster compared to other countries. Current Indian regulations on single-malt and single-grain whisky, issued by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) in 2018, define them broadly as distillates sourced from a single distillery. The definition allows for both malted barley and malted or unmalted grains as mash ingredients, and mandates pot still distillation.
However, industry experts contend that this definition is excessively broad and leans towards regulatory language. They advocate for tailored, practical standards that acknowledge the specific needs and challenges of whisky production in India. This, they believe, would better serve the industry’s growth and ensure quality within this distinctive category.
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Published: 10 Jan 2024, 10:35 PM IST