It’s no secret that Scotch whisky is booming. The industry posted record-breaking exports in 2017, according to a report by the Scotch Whisky Association, growing in both volume and value (by 1.6 percent and 8.9 percent, respectively) to a total of £4.37 billion ($6.65 billion)—the equivalent of 1.23 billion bottles exported globally. Single-malt Scotch saw 14 percent year-over-year growth to £1.17 billion, the second year in a row to break the billion-pound threshold, reflecting a trend toward premium products in global markets.
And at auction, it’s proved a gangbusters alternative investment, far outpacing fine wines, according to Bonhams Hong Kong. In May, the record for the most expensive bottle ever sold was smashed back-to-back when a rare 60-year-old Macallan whisky fetched HK$7.96 million ($1.01 million) only to be broken by a second bottle going for $1.1 million hours later at the same event. Young, affluent Chinese consumers are particularly hot for the spirit.
As a result, money is pouring into its expansion, with distilleries in Scotland opening at a rapid rate, be they reclaimed historical brands to totally new operations. In the past two years, Julie Trevisan-Hunter, marketing director at the Scotch Whisky Experience in Edinburgh, counts more than 50 that are either functioning now, in the pipeline, or in discussion across the country. The reason for this growth is simple, she says: “Globalization.”
“Every town now has the same shops from New York to Edinburgh, and we are so closely connected and our pace of life is simply incomparable to what it was just 20 years ago,” says Trevisan-Hunter, who’s also the youngest female “Master” in the Keepers of the Quaich (pronounced “Quake”), a knighthood of sorts in the world of whisky. “There is a real hankering for tradition, something crafted, from the land, that has a sense of place.”
Just like appreciating the story behind your Filson bag or Red Wing boots, each distillery has a history you can feel connected to when ordering a drink at your local bar. A seriously in-depth new book, Single Malt: A Guide to the Whiskies of Scotland (out Oct. 16) provides the history, science, and a buyer’s guide for more than 330 expressions alone. And Trevisan-Hunter reeled us in with her romantic description of the taste: “The oak casks breathe in the Scottish air, which is very different in every glen and valley where the whisky is made. While many drinks can be made anywhere with no heritage or longevity, Scotch has a distinct locality.” It’s the Harris Tweed of booze.
Scotch is a long game due to the aging requirements, changing the mindset of the business, she says. People setting up distilleries today won’t make money for many years, which means there are quite a number of people putting down capital simply from a passion for the product.
“It’s a fantastic mixture of big distilleries right down to one single person investing,” says Trevisan-Hunter. Here are six new and nearly opened Scotch distilleries she recommends we keep tabs on for the coming year.
Isle of Raasay Distillery
Opened: September 2017
Touting the first legal distillery on the Isle of Raasay, which sits between the Isle of Skye and the Scottish mainland, the team is hoping to create the finest Hebridean single-malt whisky using a combination of virgin American oak casks and casks previously used for high-rye-content bourbon and wine. The mashup of new and reclaimed Victorian buildings contains a five-bedroom luxury hotel, so you can drink your drams till the wee hours.
The Clydeside Distillery
Opened: November 2017