The first thing that comes to mind when someone says ‘single malt’ is probably not India, though Indian whiskies are showing more and more promise each year. While the majority of what is made and sold within India as ‘whisky’ is molasses based spirit blended with grain based spirit, and therefore is not considered whiskey by European standards, the single malts are the real deal. Produced in the same way as the single malts in Scotland, Indian single malts are carefully crafted from malted barley, distilled in pot stills, and aged for at least 3 years before being released.

Paul John, one of the leading producers of Indian single malt, is located in Goa in the southwestern part of the country and sources their summer harvested barley from the foothills of the Himalayas. The barley typically comes from the north where the climate is a bit cooler, and transported to distilleries throughout the country. Traditional copper pot stills are the number one choice for single malt producers, followed by aging in oak sourced from all over the world.

The growth of Indian whisky has been steady, with many experts projecting an inevitable boom that sees the category take off, perhaps similarly to Japanese whiskey. In 2017, one of the four entries from Paul John, the Peated Select Cask, won the World Whisky Chairman’s Trophy with 96 Points. A whiff of meaty barbecue aromas on the nose give way to damp earth with plenty of malty sweetness and a hint of dried fruit. Oak spice and barbecued sausage linger on the finish.

The intellectual bias against Indian whisky is likely the biggest hurdle to overcome for producers of single malts. Because of our blind tasting methodology, the superior balance, flavor and composition of these fine spirits are getting fair recognition in an ever growing sea of spirits. As more producers enter into competitions that catch the public eye, it will propel the overall success of the category forward.