People are drinking more

By Modesto P. Sa-onoy

If there is one luxury that people can continue to engage in despite the pandemic and the consequent quarantine, it is imbibing their favorite drink. Denied the chance to get out and into the bars or their favorite watering holes the drinkers are not restricted in their homes where fellowship may be missing but the drinks can be easily had while watching their favorite games (replay) or movies.

In fact, some consider drinking alcoholic drink as a way of “killing” the coronavirus. If the virus can be killed by the mere spray of alcohol in the hand, common sense can claim it can be killed inside the body.

That is the reason I am not surprised at the news that Whyte and Mackay Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Emperador in the United Kingdom, reported a 34% growth in sales volume for the first six months of this year, driven mainly by Whyte & Mackay Blended Scotch, which consistently ranks the No. 2 most-selling standard whiskey in Scotland. The company owns and operates five whiskey distilleries in various parts of Scotland.

Scotland is the origin, thus the name of this kind of whiskey (Scotch) where warriors of old consider the drink part of their manhood and energy in battle so they continued to drink to their golden years.

Note the rise in sales – right at the beginning of the corona-virus pandemic in Europe but is also reported to be on the rise in the United States, Sweden, Spain and even Indo-china which is comprised of six countries: Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam.  Also included is China where the drinking of alcohol is also a past time. With the rising financial capacity for imported goods, the Chinese are taking more sips of the Blended Scotch.

In general, the Chinese and those in the countries with heavy Chinese influence, people are tea drinkers but with more money the taking of imported alcohol became a sort of status symbol.

Included in the list of countries with increased consumption is Russia whose alcohol intake is probably the highest in the world. The Emperador is better than Russian vodka which is merely a combination of water and ethanol.

And speaking of alcohol drinking, during World War II, the guerrillas and evacuees in the mountains had their favorite drink called “bomber”. It is also ethanol or denatured alcohol mixed with kalamansi juice and sugar. A shot of the mixture is enough for the drinker to quickly fall into a deep sleep despite the cold and mosquitoes in the mountain. It is like being hit with a bomb, thus its name.

Whyte & Mackay report also says that “whiskey sales in Russia were up by 69% during the first half of 2020, driven by strong commercial and marketing fundamentals. Several premium brands under Whyte & Mackay such as Jura were driving growth in the Russian market. Jura, the single malt Scotch whiskey brand, has been known for its traditional whiskey-making craft in the scenic island of Jura on the southwestern part of Scotland.

Aside from whiskey, the untamed island where Whyte & Mackay owns the one and only distillery, has been popular for its soaring mountains, wildlife, and swirling whirlpools.

On the other hand, China has maintained resiliency to the effects of the pandemic. Amid the lockdown across China due to the pandemic since the start of the year, Whyte & Mackay’s business yielded a remarkable portfolio growth.

Large orders for The Dalmore and Fettercairn range were experienced across China as the country eased up its quarantine lockdowns during the second quarter. A shot or two of Emperador was probably a way of celebrating during days of detention.

“China has bounced back quickly after it re-opened its economy. We are pleasantly surprised at China’s remarkable resilience and its strong preference for luxury and super-premium goods has returned so quickly as it began its V-curve recovery. In fact, our sales orders for June and July alone are 125% more than the same period last year. We are very optimistic that our Whyte and Mackay full-year revenues in China will more than double this year,”” says Glenn Manlapaz, chief executive officer, Emperador International.

Well, the new Chinese “strong preference for luxury and super-premium goods” is not surprising, more so for imported drink than the bland tea.

Cheers drink to that!