Brown-Forman is intensifying its India play, doubling down on Jack Daniel’s and Woodford Reserve while expanding into new spirit categories, as premiumisation gathers pace across metros and tier-II markets.
“ We are increasing our push behind Jack Daniel’s as a brand and Woodford Reserve We also rolled out our first scotch single malt called The Glendronach in Delhi and Bombay in January. We want to expand our portfolio into other categories, be it tequila or scotch malts, positioning ourselves as a serious premium spirits player across gin and rum,” said Gaurav Sabharwal, Managing Director, Brown-Forman India.
He added that Brown-Forman is the fifth-largest international spirits company by turnover, with Jack Daniel’s contributing the largest share of its global business. The India MD highlighted that Woodford Reserve, its bourbon offering, is seeing strong traction and rising engagement, albeit on a smaller base.
While India does not currently rank among Brown-Forman’s top 10 markets, the company expects to enter that league over the next few years with the right focus and investment.
Gaurav Sabharwal, Managing Director, Brown-Forman India
The opportunity is driven not only by the size of the market but also by post-COVID premiumisation, improved accessibility and affordability, and rising consumer preference for higher-quality products — positioning India as both a large whisky market and a fast-growing premium whisky market.
Brown-Forman is present across key metro and tier-II markets, though it is yet to enter states such as Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand. The company plans to deepen its focus on core markets, including Delhi NCR, Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Goa, while evaluating expansion into Andhra Pradesh, where policy and distribution constraints had earlier limited its presence, alongside Kerala.
The company plans to deepen its focus on core markets, including Delhi NCR, Karnataka, Maharashtra, and Goa, while evaluating expansion into Andhra Pradesh, where policy and distribution constraints had earlier limited its presence, alongside Kerala.
Northern India currently drives the bulk of volumes, led by Delhi NCR — particularly Haryana, Chandigarh, and Delhi. At the same time, the company is seeing strong traction in tier-II cities such as Lucknow, Noida, Agra, and Kanpur in Uttar Pradesh, as well as Nagpur in Maharashtra. While metros will continue to account for the majority of sales, growth on a smaller base will come from tier II towns.
“With respect to market share, it is high single digits in the premium whisky space across the board. We are also looking at doubling our business this year and over the next 2-3 years as the consumers welcome new flavours,” Sabharwal added.
Post-COVID, there has been a clear shift in consumer behaviour, with younger cohorts increasingly experimenting across spirit types and flavour profiles.
Over the past six to seven years, premium Indian whiskies have been increasingly breaking legacy stereotypes. A similar openness is visible toward Japanese whiskies and bourbons, reflecting a broader willingness to explore beyond traditional category boundaries.
“With increasing experimentation of flavours, the timing is right for us to build on the Brown-Forman portfolio. Globally, we are present in tequila, a category of interest in India. Gins remain exciting for people, and so are premium rums. For instance, Diplomático Rum is among the top super premium rums in India today. These are some interesting categories besides whiskeys,” he said.
Published on February 28, 2026