Our body has 70% water. The Earth is surrounded by 70% water, human beings consume water to the maximum amount. After water the most common drinks are tea & hold your breath Liquor– also called Alcohol, sharaab, daru etc.
Highest Per capita consumption of alcohol on pure basis in ethanol in the world is in Czech Republic- 9 litres in the beer consumption format. In France it is 8 litres in the wine format & in South Korea it is 10 litres in spirit format.
In India about 300 million cases of alcohol is sold (one case is 12 bottles of 750 ml) & majority sales is for spirits, followed by beer. The largest per capita consumption of alcohol is in the states of Kerala 8.5 litres & Punjab stands next at 8 litres, beer consumption is highest in Andhra . After liberalization the average income of Indians has increased & so has the alcohol consumption.
Types of Alcohol
The alcoholic beverages are generally classified on the processing method, fermentation (as in for beers ), grape fermentation (as in for wines) & fermentation followed by distillation (as in for sprits).
Lower percentage of alcohol are from fermentation process like beer & wines, whilst high alcohol content is in whisky’s & the fermentation process is followed by distillation.
Brandy is generally distilled from mashed fruit grapes & is aged in oak barrels, it is served at room temperature or slightly warm & is available in 80 proof, equivalent to 40 % alcohol volume by volume .
Gin is a clear dry spirit made from grains; it is served mostly with juices & ice & is considered as noon drink.
Rum is the macho drink & has its origin to the Caribbean. It is distilled from sugar molasses & aged in oak barrels. The counties which have large cane sugar crop, are large producers of sugar & molasses is the byproduct & converted to rum. Mostly white rum is the iconic produce of the Caribbean’s & after distillation the caramel is added to make dark rum & matured in a slow process to get the bold character in oak barrels.
Vodka is the only alcoholic beverage which has no odor, is tasteless & falls in clear class; it is distilled from fermented broth of grain, potatoes and molasses. The origin of Vodka is from Portugal, but Russians are the major consumers & today Vodka is known more as Russian drink. Vodka is the new women consumption drink in growing economies.
Whisky is the highly consumed overall drink in the class of alcohol. In Europe it is spelled whisky & in America as whiskey. The basic source for Scotch whisky is grain mash distilled & aged in oak barrels. The Scottish whiskies are doubled distilled & aged, the taste aroma is based on the process. Single malts are with just one malt. The American whiskeys are known as bourbons & are from corn (51% ) or rye (51%) these are generally processed at Tennessee.
Beers are mostly classified as Lager or Ale, the basic difference is the temperature of fermentation. Ale manufacturing is top fermenting & the temperature is 18 to 22 degree Celsius whereas in lager manufacturing it is bottom fermentation & the temperature is 4 to 14 degree Celsius.
The compounded annual growth rate for spirits is 8% & whisky is the major category of growth (above 50% consumption of spirits is in whisky segment ). This is followed by rum. Males dominate the category with 21% share of the population whereas the fairer sex- female patrons to alcohol is also in rise, 2% share of the population. The average age of drinkers has come down drastically in the last five years from 21 to 13 years.
Though the category is not advertised directly in television, radio & print but surrogate advertising is leading to more awareness followed by consumption. The liquor companies advertise the brand with extension to acceptable product category as mineral water, music album, organize fashion shows & advertise the brand with extension to acceptable product category water, music, airline etc.
The liquor industry is complimented by travel, hotel, restaurants, snacks shop, glass industry and soft drinks like soda, tonic water, juices etc.
Every liquor company has number of brands in their product portfolio but there is only one globally famous brand among Scotch whiskies Johnnie Walker that has extended the parent brand label with same name with suffix of color and is aimed at drinkers who cherish & appreciate the character of the brand.
Types of Johnnie Walker whisky
The suffix for color starts with JOHNNIE WALKER RED LABEL, the brand full of character with a blend of 35 grain & malt whiskies. BLACK LABEL, a blend of 40 whiskies, rich & smooth; GREEN LABEL a distinctive flavor, a blend of four single malts drawn from four corners of Scotland & each malt whisky is matured for a minimum of 15 years; GOLD LABEL a rare single malt a blend of 15 single malts & matured for 15-18 years; PLATINUM LABEL was a private blend & aged for 18 years & available for Asian markets only; BLUE LABEL: Johnnie Walker’s premium blended brand, having rich peaty taste combined with silk smooth malty flavor, the only brand in the family with no age declaration on the label. Each bottle is serial numbered to trace its origin, it is the costly brand in the Johnnie walker label suffix icons . The latest entrant to the Johnnie walker color suffixes is , DOUBLE BLACK LABEL naturally smoky & extra ordinary brand having heavily peated malts & aged in deeply charred oaks.