Single Malt's poster child

According to a recent report in the UK (2005 Scotch Whisky Industry Review), single malt is continuing it's growth spurt. In 2004 single malt sales increased by 10% over 2003 sales, while the export growth rate soared to 12%.

It's apparent that whisky consumption is swinging towards single malts as well. In 1984 only 1 in 40 bottles of whisky consumed in the UK was a single malt. In 2004 the figure had increased to 1 in 10 bottles. Export growth is equally impressive: almost 5 times as much single malt is exported as is consumed in the UK. In 1984 1 in 50 bottles of whisky consumed outside of the UK was a single malt. In 2004 it had increased to 1 in 17 bottles.

Within two decades, UK single malt consumption had tripled from 2.6% of all whisky drunk to 10.5% – while blended whisky has fallen by a third.

UK sales of Single Malt whisky now contributes £100m to the UK government - £62m in Excise Duty and about £38m in VAT - and it is guessed that about a similar amount is lost in cross border smuggling, owing to excessive Excise Duty discrepancies with neighboring countries.

Smarten up, Britain and lower your whisky taxes.

And if you like peat, then you'll be happy to hear that the Islay category is the fastest growing sector. Between 2000 and 2003 it expanded at 27% outperforming the UK industry growth rate twice over.

And my friends at Bruichladdich, are happy to let me know that they are the fastest growing single malt distillery in the UK, with case sales having grown 500% in the same period (2000-2003). In the UK they are growing 36 times faster than the industry average.

Andrew Gray, Bruichladdich Sales Director, calls it "a remarkable achievement." And he's right. Bruichladdich is selling a line of comparatively expensive single malts, with a very small sales team and an equally small marketing budget - the smallest in the industry, in fact.

Bruichladdich’s "Think different" approach to single malts is paying off. Bruichladdich stands out on the shelf with colorful, distinctive packaging and a varied product line. And their natural approach to whisky distillation (bottled on Islay, using only Islay water, non-chill filtered, no added coloring, and using ONLY Scottish barley) is obviously hitting a nerve with the consumer.

Am I sounding like an ad for Bruichladdich? Probably. But as long as Bruichladdich is the poster child for Scotland's whisky industry, I don't have a problem with it.

Full disclosure - I have NEVER received any free whisky from Bruichladdich, but they have been very helpful in providing me with photos for my book.