Whisky: As good as gold, or art
Last year R1.78bn of Scotch was imported to SA, indicating a growing appreciation
It was once the tipple of your grandfather; now whisky has become the tipple of choice for a wide cross-section of South Africans.Last week, the largest whisky festival in the world was held in Sandton at which, remarkably, ten bottles of a limited edition, 60-year-old premium scotch whisky, Glenfarclas, were sold for R360,000 apiece.This is testament to the growing appreciation for the golden liquid within this country. But the sale won’t surprise those who have tracked SA progress in becoming the fifth-largest export market in the world for Scotch whisky. Last year, as much as £122m — or about R1.78bn — worth of Scotch whisky was imported to SA.That translates into about 35,280l or 47,026 bottles, says Emily Stockden, chief operating officer of the Whisky Live Festival."The industry is flourishing — incidentally at the expense of the traditional SA spirit of choice, brandy. Whisky is the most-consumed spirit in SA with 4.1m South Africans drinking it, while the number of brandy dr...
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