Amrut Kadhambam

It evokes emotion.

The aptly named Amrut distillery (Amrut is Sanskrit for “the elixir of life”) is the first Indian company to have produced single malt Whisky; it may not have the longest tradition, but it certainly won over many foreign markets, fans and critics in the last decade. It started with very successful blind tests in Scotland – where they were often compared to Speyside malts – and went on to have their Whiskies ranked among world’s best on multiple occasions.

The distillery, established in 1948 in Bangalore, is also particular in its decision against using computers and automation; they prefer to offer more jobs to the people, so everything down to bottling and tightening the caps is done by hand. Today, they produce a range of 11 core product and their dedication to traditional craftsmanship is something you can taste in the every product they make.

On the other hand, the distillery is known for their innovation and experimentation when it comes to maturation and Amrut Kadhambam is a testament to that. The base, which is a mix of Amrut Single Malt and a small portion of Amrut Peated Single malt, has been matured in 3 different casks – Bangalore Blue Brandy, Rum and Oloroso Sherry Butts. You see, Kadhambam means “mixture” or “combination” and Amrut certainly doesn’t mess around.

Now, with technicalities out of the way, we can finally talk about the flavor. Full and complex, this unique combination of novelty and tradition with layers of different flavors certainly intrigues and provokes. A mixture of wild temper and subdued integrity, if you will. Will some of you find it a bit too much? Perhaps. But the opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference. And we can certainly promise that this dram will leave no one indifferent.