Spring 2025 Banquet

Rising spirits in Türkiye

  • Gavin Smith
  • January 13 2025

Turkey

How did Türkiye become one of the world’s fastest growing export markets for Scotch? Two Istanbul-based Keepers help Fraser Allen explore a success story against the odds

You might think whisky could prove a hard sell in Türkiye. After all, almost 90 per cent of Turks identify themselves as teetotal (World Population Review 2024). And under the leadership of President Erdoğan, the government has pushed back on the secular, western outlook favoured since Atatürk founded the republic in 1923. Indeed, in 2013, it imposed a blanket ban on the advertising of alcohol. Still in place today, it’s the kind of retrograde step that might have led Atatürk, an enthusiastic imbiber, to pour himself a stiff glass of rakı.

And yet the Scotch Whisky Association figures for the top 10 export markets in 2023 tell a very different story. Türkiye is flying high in tenth place. And even more strikingly, it’s the fastest growing market on the list. Since 2019, sales of Scotch to Türkiye have soared by an astonishing 178 per cent.

Selçuk Tümay is CEO for Pernod Ricard in Africa and the Middle East (including Türkiye) and the first Turk to be made a Keeper of the Quaich. He believes that the pandemic lockdown altered the drinking culture among Türkiye’s higher socio-economic consumers, with many taking to enjoying a glass or two of spirits at home, rather than only when visiting a bar or restaurant. And as well as alcohol consumption increasing in general, interest in Scotch has gained momentum through social media and brand ambassadorial work.

“The number of ABCs in Türkiye who say they drink alcohol has risen from 25 per cent in 2018 to 43 per cent in 2023,” says Selçuk. “Whisky is a big part of that growth. In the three years before Covid, it grew as a category by 14 per cent. And in the three years since, it has grown by 30 per cent. It’s now the number three category in Türkiye after beer and rakı – ahead of wine. Whisky now accounts for around 10 per cent of total alcohol consumption, whereas 10 years ago it was less than one per cent.”

The top brand in Türkiye is Pernod Ricard’s Chivas 12, clocking up almost a quarter of sales across the country. “One in every five bottles of Chivas in the world is now consumed in Türkiye,” says Selçuk. Ballantine’s Finest, another Pernod Ricard brand, is third on the list. Second and fourth spots are taken respectively by Diageo’s Johnnie Walker Red Label and Johnnie Walker Black Label, according to the stats provided by Selçuk.

 

The Instagram effect

Burkay Adalığ, a spirits author and prolific blogger who also became a Keeper of the Quaich following a nomination from Selçuk, sees four key drivers behind this growth. The first, perhaps surprisingly, lies in the alcohol advertising ban. The ban was introduced around the same time as Burkay launched Türkiye’s first whisky blog and, from his new vantage point, he noticed that drinks brands quickly moved to support online content, particularly with the rise of social media influencers.

“The population of Türkiye is 85 million and yet we now have 57 million Instagram users,” he says. “Of course, some of them are double accounts but, with people spending hours on Instagram every day, images of whisky bottles are appearing on feeds all the time. It’s hugely increased awareness.”

The second reason is pricing. Burkay believes that the alcohol duty regime in Türkiye has led many younger consumers to regard whisky and other spirits as a ‘better value’ choice than beer – and far more so than wine, which has become ‘exceptionally’ expensive.

“Then there’s the great job that the big brands are doing in terms of advocacy and brand management through activities such as training, whisky dinners and events.” This is opening the eyes of many traditional rakı drinkers to the option of Scotch, with its premium feel and intriguing provenance.

Indeed, Burkay believes that ‘premiumisation’ is the fourth key driver. “Nowadays in Türkiye we don’t have much of a middle class,” he says. “People have become either poor or rich, and rich people don’t care if a bottle of whisky costs £2,000 – they will buy it. The market here has become similar to China in that respect.”

And with almost 40 per cent of the Turkish population aged under 25, there is plenty more scope for growth. “Türkiye is a very modern country compared to its image in the West, and a young country,” says Selçuk. “We’re projecting double digit growth. Maybe not at the pace of 25-30 per cent that we’ve been experiencing in the last three years, but maybe at around 15 per cent. That would still mean doubling the market within five years. There is a lot happening.”

Selçuk highlights the announcement in April that Efes, the largest beer company in Türkiye, has become William Grant & Sons’ distribution partner. “I think it will be beneficial for the industry,” he says. “That’s a big player with a big reach, investing in Scotch Whisky. Our salespeople think it’s a threat, but I believe it’s an opportunity.”

 

Ankara Viski

The other big player in the Turkish drinks market is of course Diageo, where Selçuk, an accountant by profession, began his drinks career. He joined Mey Diageo, the company formed in 2011 when Diageo paid $2.1bn to acquire Mey Icki (the spirits business spun out of former tobacco and alcohol monopoly Tekel).

And state-owned Tekel, the roots of which can be traced back to the Ottoman Empire, had a whisky adventure of its own. In the early 1960s, Professor Turgut Yazıcıoğlu of Ankara University was commissioned to set up a small unit within Tekel’s Ankara brewery. The aim was to launch Türkiye’s first ever whisky.

The project was deemed a success and, when the spirit was ready for launch, a reputable whisky expert from Scotland was said to have been invited to Türkiye to sample the wares. However, any hopes that the Scotsman would endorse the whisky backfired. Announcing it to be a pleasant drink, he then enquired as to what kind of spirit it was.

Burkay Adalığ has investigated the story and is disappointed to find little to support its veracity. Yet what is certainly true is that the whisky created by Yazıcıoğlu and his colleagues went on to be a success. Ankara Viski was a popular brand for decades and, as far as Burkay can ascertain, established Türkiye as only the sixth nation on earth to commercially distil whisky.

However, as the growing availability of Scotch and American brands in the 21st century increased competition, Ankara went through changes of ownership before ceasing production in 2011 under the auspices of Mey Diageo. The Elgin-crafted copper stills it was produced in can now be found making Virginia single malt in America’s Blue Ridge Mountains.

 

“Oh my God, I’m a physician!”

Just like Ankara Viski, Burkay began life in the Turkish capital, originally training as a doctor. He then studied business management and moved into senior roles in pharmaceuticals. Yet away from work, he was developing a passion for whisky.

“10 or 12 years ago, I decided to start a blog called Meleklerin Payi, Turkish for ‘the angels’ share’.” he says. “I was just a beginner and didn’t know anything like as much about whisky as I do now but I realised that a lot of people were reading blogs. Then I thought ‘Oh, my God, I’m a physician – I need to give correct information’. So, I started reading extensively. I now have what I believe is the biggest whisky library in Türkiye.

“But I also realised there were some discrepancies in the books so I decided I should go to Scotland and see what’s going on,” he adds. “And over the years, I’ve seen maybe 40-45 distilleries in Scotland, and 10 in Ireland. I love Scotland – I visit four or five times a year.”

The depth of knowledge that came with the research only drew more visitors to his website. “The blog was doing so well that I decided to quit pharma and work full-time as a writer specialising in whisky and other distilled spirits,” he says.

Several books have followed, including Maltin Pesinde – Iskocya Viski Damitimevleri (In Search of Malt –Scotland’s Whisky Distilleries). He has also diversified into providing courses and training, as well as becoming Türkiye’s first independent whisky bottler. The new year will see the launch of his Project W, a series of limited edition single malts opening with a Mannochmore cask yielding 276 bottles.

 

Fifth anniversary

Selçuk’s interest in whisky flourished as his career developed and, after becoming Türkiye’s first Keeper of the Quaich in 2019, he led the move to establish
a Turkish chapter. The launch was celebrated with a dazzling party in February 2020 at Istanbul’s Pera Palace (originally built in 1892 to accommodate passengers from the Orient Express). However, the pandemic lockdown saw activities put on hold until the past year, with 15 or so members and guests attending a handful of chapter events.

Selçuk is hoping to stage another large party to mark the chapter’s fifth anniversary in February 2025. And Burkay is sure to be there. “I really appreciate being a Keeper of the Quaich,” he says. “They tested me hard on the metrics of what I do, and that’s why

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