AMRUT - THE GREAT CHURN: THE GLOBAL STORY OF INDIA'S FIRST SINGLE MALT
By Sriram Devatha
PAGES: 267
ABOUT THE BOOK:
One fine day in Ooty, Bangalore-based businessman Neelakanta Rao Jagdale mixed single malt whisky with peated whisky, both crafted in his family-owned distillery. This blend would put Amrut on the world map, succeeding beyond Jagdale’s wildest dreams. He had crafted nectar fit for the gods, much like the one that rose out of the great churn of the Puranas, a whisky that would captivate connoisseurs worldwide—Amrut Fusion.
India is a land of whisky-drinkers—of the sort made from molasses, yes, but also premium Scotch. For the latter lot, anything Indian was anathema. Jagdale, a visionary, dared to dream beyond the molasses-based whiskies that India was known for. His strategy was for Indian whisky to be acceptable to Indians, it would first have to be accepted by the Scots. And thus began the journey of Amrut Whisky and its many expressions, the most popular of which remains the Amrut Fusion.
Business storyteller Sriram Devatha follows this exhilarating story, from Newcastle bars, where Rakshit Jagdale conducted blind whisky tastings, to UK sales head and chief distiller Ashok Chokalingam’s travels across the UK trying to sell Amrut. The book covers a lot of ground—Amrut’s branding strategies, alcohol regulation in India, the dynamics of a family business, the Western bias against Indian whisky in the early days, the economic imperative towards premiumisation and, most importantly, the science and creativity that goes into distilling world-class whisky.
Amrut—the Great The Global Story of India’s First Single Malt is the tale of how a home-grown brand attained international cult status. But it is also more than the story of an India that not just consumes global products, but makes for the world—a tale of resilience, innovation and the pursuit of excellence.
BOOK REVIEW:
This book is something different from what I usually read most of the times but I love reading books like this every once in a while. In addition to breaking cultural and literal stereotypes, the book explores the bravery of introducing India's first single malt, made in Bengaluru, to the most demanding whisky drinkers in Scotland and beyond.
It starts in the early days of Amrut Distilleries, which were established by the Neelakanta Rao Jagdale. India's whisky industry was renowned for decades for its mass-produced, familiar and reasonably priced molasses-based spirits. However, just malt? Scotland, Ireland, and a few Western distillers who had mastered the craft through centuries of tradition were the only countries with that level of expertise. This book is so captivating because of this. It's the story of a distillery that dared to ask, "Why not us?" and a brand that started without a plan. Their journey wasn't easy either.
As a reader, we all can appreciate the scope of what this family-owned business achieved. You see them transition from making regional brandy and rum to pursuing an idea that the majority of the Indian beverage industry didn't even believe was feasible. What makes this book stand out isn't just about it's buisness Story but also for the way Devatha combines heritage and a global perspective. In reference to the mythological Samudra Manthan, where gods and demons churned the ocean to uncover hidden treasures, the title itself is The Great Churn.
The author takes us to Newcastle, England, where Amrut's team held blind tastings to compare their whisky to that of Scotland. Imagining a bottle from India standing next to renowned labels from the Highlands and Islay, imagine the tension of that moment. The responses were invaluable. The fact that it was Indian surprised a lot of tasters. Some even thought it was Scottish. That moment was about changing the story, not just about being validated. The author makes the readers comfortable with the narrative, he describes the technical process that went into Amrut Fusion. The passion is clearly seen in all the pages, even if you have never tasted whisky. You can see why this experiment and blend marked a change for Amrut and India's standing in the world spirits market.
The book is all about heritage entrepreneurship, which is creating something of the highest caliber while maintaining a local foundation. We learn how Amrut handled India's intricate alcohol laws, taxation obstacles and low level of domestic acceptance through Devatha's narration. In India, whisky was primarily valued for its affordability for many years rather than its flavor. The market wasn't prepared to spend a lot of money on an Indian single malt. However, the Amrut team refused to sacrifice the quality. This teaches a valuable lesson that innovation frequently requires time to mature.
For someone who loves to read about history, culture and heritage, this book is invaluable. It tells the story of India reclaiming its heritage in addition to that of a distillery. From weavers & sculptors to spice traders & perfumers, india reclaim it's cultural spotlight. Amrut carries on that tradition, demonstrating that creativity isn't just found in traditional crafts but also develops, adapts and modernizes.
This story has cultural weight because of Indian barley, Indian weather and Indian water. This is a genuinely Indian invention that also happens to satisfy international standards, not a Westernized Indian product. For readers who value India's multi layered legacy, it serves as a proud reminder that our customs can flourish in fields where we haven't traditionally been represented.
All of these things makes the book more than a corporate success story. It’s more of a cultural textbook, the author balances his research and avoids overwhelming the readers with technical terms and copious amount of business information.
Finally this book is a great gift to someone who enjoys stories of Indian grit and glory.
Sriram loves telling brand stories across mediums, from an Instagram reel to a 200-page volume of narrative non-fiction. His writing is influenced by his learnings as a senior brand manager at a start-up, visiting faculty teaching storytelling for entrepreneurs and even delivering lectures on German grammar and audio engineering. As Consulting Editor at Your Story, he probes the nuances of crafting memorable brands through conversations with founders. In his downtime, Sriram enjoys swimming with his children, teaching them to bubble and even count for their plunges into the pool. He lives in Bangalore.
