Word: scotch
(lookup in dictionary)
(lookup stats)
Dates: all
Sort By: most recent first
(reverse)
...Scotch exports had a record year in 2006, with almost $5 billion worth shipped--a quarter of all food and drink exports from Britain. Asia's new rich are a big market--Chinese consumers imported $115 million worth of whisky last year, up from $3 million in 2000--but it is India that's driving distillers to stack the barrels high in warehouses from Islay to the Highlands. India is the biggest consumer of whisky in the world, putting away 70 million cases last year. With an 80 million-- strong middle class and an economy growing more than...
...problem for scotch producers is, it's still only potential: 99% of the whisky sold in India is made locally. Imports of scotch have grown from 5.5 million bottles in 2000 to nearly 20 million last year, but it is still a tiny sliver, less than 1% of the overall whisky market. Scotch sales are stifled by punishing taxes and duties on imported spirits and wines--totaling anywhere from 200% to 550%. Gavin Hewitt, chief executive of the SWA, describes the charges as "discriminatory" and "pure protectionism...
...discussing only one thing: India. Rekhi opened his speech by demanding that the E.U. redefine whisky to accommodate molasses-derived brands. "There should be no definitional barriers based on geography or substrates," he says. "Whisky cannot ring-fence itself." Yes it can--and should--according to rebuttals from the scotch side. "Rules are there to protect consumers," said Mike Keiller, CEO of Morrison Bowmore. "I would have grave difficulty for something called Indian whisky made that way to sit alongside my Bowmore...
...further. Last year Mallya was so incensed by the SWA's whisky edicts that he called a press conference to vent. "This imposition of British imperialism is unacceptable," he said. Maybe he'll tell the SWA so himself at its next board meeting. Now that he owns 9% of scotch production, he is eligible to join the group. "I'm sure the rest of the industry would welcome him to the table," says Hewitt. "But it's not a free ride...
...Mallya's billion-dollar investment will get him more than a seat in the clubhouse. "It really gives him a good portfolio," says Alan Gray, author of the Scotch Whisky Industry Review for Edinburgh analysts Sutherlands. "It has brands like Whyte & Mackay. And the Isle of Jura and the Dalmore single malts are the icing on the cake." The acquisition also provides UB with a ready supply of scotch to blend into Indian whisky and to export to India and China. UB plans to double production at the Invergordon distillery within a year, creating the biggest whisky plant...