The whisky world has changed dramatically in the past 10 years. Once defined almost exclusively by Scotch, it now encompasses more than 20 countries from Denmark to Taiwan, Israel to Australia.
The spectrum of styles has broadened too, as distillers unshackled by Old World regulations find themselves free to experiment with new raw materials, cask types and ageing techniques.
Scotch whisky continues to flourish overseas — annual exports recently hit a record £4.7bn. But in the UK, market growth is coming from the “ New World”: bourbon, Japanese whisky, European single malts. Irish whiskey has also been revitalised. Meanwhile, whisky drinkers are getting younger, and more of them are women.