Whisky, Scotland’s Recession Buster

By Maltmannie

With the world’s economy in freefall it is very reassuring to see Scotland’s Whisky industry booming. The home market is sadly in decline, but the export market is skyrocketing.

Barrels of whisky stacked high

Whisky Boom

The Whisky Boom has seen whisky sales in China increase 7000% (yes, seven thousand percent) in 7 years. Russians have also finally discovered that whisky is superior to Vodka and have swapped tatties for barley. The increase in sales is a beacon of hope for Scotland in today’s harsh financial climate.

Scotland’s Whisky being a recession buster, at a time when economic news is almost exclusively apocalyptic, has a sweet aftertaste.

Effects Of The Whisky Boom

There’s a fixed amount of whisky currently maturing in warehouses. This creates a problem when demand rises sharply. As demand rises so does the price, but a greater problem arises when distillers no longer sell their whisky to blenders but keep it to sell as single malt. This will have the effect of driving the price of even blended whisky up as blenders compete to buy casks.

Distilleries Reactions

Distillers are reacting to the Whisky Boom and it’s consequences in a variety of ingenious ways. The Macallan distillery has increased production by a third to 8 million litres per year. Ardbeg distillery previously had 10 years or older single malts, now has 6, 8 and 9 year old malts. Glenmorangie is increasing production by 50%, and Glenlivet by 100%.

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