Indian craft distillers are exploring an incredibly diverse botanical landscape today. You are seeing ingredients like Deodar wood, Gondhoraj lime, Kashmiri lavender, curry leaves, cacao nibs, tulsi, pine tips, local citrus peels, juniper sourced from different regions, and native spices being used in very creative ways. What makes Indian gin exciting is that these ingredients are not being added just for novelty, but for structure and flavour depth.
Gin also allows enormous room for innovation. Across the category, distillers are exploring forests, regional spices, flowers, citrus, herbs, and local terroir in very different ways.
The best craft gins understand that juniper cannot become secondary, because that is still the backbone of gin. The challenge is not about overpowering juniper with local ingredients, but building harmony around it. Indian distillers are increasingly using regional botanicals to add layers and texture rather than dominate the spirit.
Regional distilleries are increasingly creating spirits that reflect the landscape and culture around them rather than producing generic products. Goa, for instance, offers access to forests, tropical climate, spice influences, and a strong hospitality and cocktail culture, all of which naturally shape experimentation and flavour philosophy.
There is also a strong possibility that premium and above segments could account for nearly a quarter of the overall gin category in India over the next five years as consumers increasingly trade up from mass-market products. The next phase of growth will likely come from newer Indian cities, stronger on-trade experiences, travel retail, and exports.
Read the full story that first appeared in Esquire India here:
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