Whisky, vodka and beer have long dominated India’s alcohol market, shaping not just what people drink but also how they drink. But the menu is beginning to look different. Gin, tequila, agave spirits, ready-to-drink (RTD) cocktails and low-alcohol beverages are steadily finding space on backbars and retail shelves, fuelled by a growing appetite for experimentation and premiumisation.
According to global beverage alcohol market research firm IWSR, RTD cocktails are expected to be among India’s fastest growing alcobev categories over the next decade, while imported spirits recorded a 16 per cent CAGR between 2019 and 2024 as consumers increasingly traded up to premium offerings.
Unlike legacy categories, however, these newer entrants don’t come with established rituals or widespread familiarity. Before brands can persuade consumers to pick one label over another, they first have to convince them to pick the category itself. The challenge is no longer just building brand awareness, but creating new drinking occasions, simplifying unfamiliar products and changing long-established consumer habits.
Building a category before a brand
For marketers, the biggest competitor isn’t another bottle on the shelf but decades of established drinking behaviour.
“These categories aren’t just competing with other brands; they’re competing with deeply established drinking habits,” says Vishal Prabhu, Creative Director – Strategy, White Rivers Media. He adds, “Whisky and beer already have well-defined occasions in India. Consumers instinctively know when they’ll order them. Gin, tequila and agave spirits have had to create their own space by becoming associated with experiences like brunches, cocktail evenings, premium dining and social celebrations.”
The shift is forcing marketers to rethink the traditional branding playbook.
“The playbook inverts completely,” says Masuma Siddique, Founder and Chief Strategist, InkCraft Communications. “Legacy categories market into existing memory. An emerging category has to create the ritual first. The language becomes educational before it becomes aspirational, while storytelling focuses on provenance, craft and how to drink it rather than status alone.”
Harish Bijoor, Brand Guru and Founder, Harish Bijoor Consults Inc., believes this is how every emerging alcobev category evolves. “You build the category first, then within that category you build a lifestyle, and within that lifestyle you build the brand,” he says, pointing to how Bacardi first created a culture around white rum in India before building strong brand equity. That approach, he believes, continues to guide the marketing of newer premium spirits.
The shift also changes who brands speak to first. Siddique notes that category building often begins with bartenders, food writers and enthusiasts, whose recommendations help unfamiliar categories gain credibility before they reach the mainstream consumer.
Turning curiosity into trial
If education sounds like hard work, brands have found a simpler route—make consumers curious enough to educate themselves.
For Indian craft gin brand Nisaki, that curiosity comes in the form of an indigo gin that changes colour when tonic is added.
“Consumers don’t necessarily want to be educated; they want to be engaged,” says Nidhi Kedia, Co-Founder and CMO, Nisaki. “The colour-changing transformation naturally sparked curiosity. Instead of asking consumers to understand the category first, we gave them an experience they wanted to explore. Once they engaged with the product, conversations naturally shifted towards the craftsmanship, botanicals and flavour profile.”
The idea reflects a broader trend across the industry, where the first interaction is increasingly designed to be memorable rather than instructional.
Experiences over advertisements
Unlike FMCG products that can be understood through advertising alone, premium alcobev categories rely heavily on trial. Consumers need to taste them, see them served and understand where they fit into their lifestyle.
Consumer education isn’t driven only by campaigns. Bijoor argues that changing perceptions around white spirits have also helped newer categories gain acceptance. “One of the biggest influences in moving people from beer and even whisky and rum onto white spirits is the thinking that white spirits are much more friendly on you than the darker spirits”, he says. More importantly, he adds, “The most effective marketing levers are simple—word of mouth and the influence of the bartender.”
That explains why experiences have become central to category building. Prabhu believes the strongest marketing ecosystem combines multiple touchpoints rather than relying on one. He adds, “Experiences continue to have the biggest impact because premium spirits are ultimately products that people need to taste. Cocktail festivals, bar collaborations and curated tastings reduce hesitation. Bartenders influence decisions at the point of consumption, while creators sustain that interest by making cocktails and serving rituals feel approachable.”
That influence extends well beyond bars. According to Ansh Khanna and Samarth Prasad, Co-Founders, Himmaleh Spirits, guided tastings and bartender recommendations have played a critical role in introducing consumers to their brands, Kumaon & I and Jin Jiji. “We’ve found that the best way to build familiarity is by making craft gin approachable through experience rather than education. Guided tastings, simple cocktail serves, and bartender-led recommendations allow consumers to discover the category without feeling overwhelmed.”
The founders add that storytelling around Indian botanicals and provenance gives consumers a reason to remember the experience long after the first sip.
Selling an occasion, not just a drink
The same philosophy is shaping the craft beer segment, where brands are also trying to differentiate themselves from mainstream offerings.
“We don’t lead with technical brewing language. We lead with an accessible entry point and let curiosity do the rest,” says Aditya Ishan Varshnei, CEO, Latambarcem Brewers. “Once someone tastes the difference, they want to understand it.”
Beyond the brewery, the company has focused on food pairings and collaborations to build occasions around its products. Pairing Belgian Blanche with beer-battered onion rings or collaborating on a chocolate fermented using Honey Ale transforms the beverage into part of a larger culinary experience. “Experiences build categories because they turn a product into an occasion,” Varshnei adds.
That sentiment is echoed across the industry. Whether it’s a cocktail masterclass, a tasting dinner or digital content showcasing easy serves at home, the objective remains the same—make unfamiliar categories feel accessible rather than intimidating.
When does category building end?
As awareness grows, marketers are also grappling with a new question: when should brands stop investing in the category and start focusing on themselves?
Siddique believes the answer depends on the maturity of the market. “Consumers cannot prefer what they do not yet understand,” she says. “But there comes a point where differentiation becomes the sharper investment. The best brands educate consumers while making their own provenance, experiences and identity unmistakably theirs.”
Prabhu believes India’s premium spirits market is entering a new phase where category education alone is no longer enough. “Consumers today have far more choice than they did even a few years ago. That means differentiation is becoming increasingly important. Authenticity, craftsmanship, provenance, flavour profiles and the overall brand experience are starting to influence purchase decisions much more than before,” he says.
Bijoor believes the industry has already crossed an important milestone. “You build the category first, then within that category you build a lifestyle, and within that lifestyle you build the brand,” he says, recalling how Bacardi helped create a culture around white rum in India. Today, however, he argues that several premium categories have moved beyond basic education. “Every brand must now focus on building its own appeal, its own consumption moments and its unique consumption proposition.”
The evolution of India’s alcobev market suggests that the industry's next phase won't be defined simply by how many new brands enter the market, but by how successfully they reshape consumer behaviour. For emerging categories, the real victory isn’t securing shelf space or even market share. It’s becoming the instinctive choice when someone walks up to a bar and places an order.
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