Overview: The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has prohibited the sale of several popular spirits, including Old Monk and McDowell’s No 1 Rum, following lab tests that detected neutral alcohol and added flavourings. This regulatory action in August 2026 highlights ongoing concerns regarding ingredient transparency within India’s liquor industry. The ban specifically targets variants such as Old Monk’s The Legend and Gold Reserve, which were found to contain less than 5 per cent matured rum spirit.
The Full Story
The FSSAI has prohibited the sale of several popular IMFL brands, including McDowell’s No 1 Rum, Bagpiper Deluxe Whisky and three variants of Old Monk. On the list were Old Cask Deluxe Rum and Royal Challenge Whisky. The ban followed lab tests found they were using neutral alcohol and added flavour to mimic the real deal. India’s liquor industry has always had a sticky underbelly involving cheap sugarcane molasses distilled into a flavourless liquid and then spiked with artificial flavourings and colour to pass for fine whisky and aged rum.
Experts say anything with this base cannot be called a whisky. In the case of rum, molasses is a legitimate base, but the promises of ageing on the label don’t always reflect reality; often, it is ENA with added flavour and only a small amount of barrel-aged rum. Old Monk’s “7 years old blended” rum, for instance, contained less than 5 per cent matured rum spirit, according to the FSSAI’s statement. While some consumers are circulating conspiracy theories about sugar-lobby politics, others label the FSSAI’s actions as “long overdue” in increasing transparency and quality control in Indian-made foreign liquor.
The ban has opened up a much bigger question for India’s spirits industry: what goes into the bottle? Peel back the label on the majority of what India drinks, and the starting point hiding underneath most is sugarcane molasses, fermented and distilled into a nearly flavourless, colourless, high-proof liquid called Extra Neutral Alcohol, or ENA. The Uttar Pradesh Excise Policy 2026-27 regulates how molasses is allocated to licensed distilleries, stored and processed. It also stipulates that molasses-based alcohol can only be used for country liquor and rum, while grain-based alcohol must be used for all other Indian-made foreign liquor.
Production & Profile
Production methods vary significantly across the sector. At John Distilleries in Goa, single-malt whisky starts with six-row Indian barley and is double-distilled in copper pot stills before maturation in charred American oak and selected sherry casks. Conversely, newer rums like Camikara are distilled from fresh sugarcane juice rather than molasses. Molasses itself is a byproduct of sugar crystallisation containing roughly 40-50 per cent fermentable sugar, which is diluted and fermented with yeast to create rectified spirit or Extra Neutral Alcohol (ENA).
The process is fairly uncomplicated according to experts. Molasses is first diluted and fermented with yeast, which converts its sugars into alcohol. The fermented wash is then distilled into rectified spirit. This can be further purified through redistillation to make Extra Neutral Alcohol (ENA). This versatile spirit formed the cheap base of India’s mass-market liquor business for decades. In the 2000s, some of the country’s biggest whisky brands, including McDowell’s No.1, Royal Challenge, Officer’s Choice and Bagpiper, were associated with the mass-market blended-whisky segment.
Brand & Industry History
The history of Indian spirits is deeply intertwined with sugarcane molasses. Old Monk was launched in the 1960s and became a nostalgic classic sold in several countries abroad. However, international markets long ago cottoned on to the reality that molasses-based alcohol did not qualify as whisky under global standards. In 2002, the European Union told India it could sell its molasses-based whisky in Europe only as rum. A year later, the EU rejected India’s demand for greater market access for its whisky, saying molasses-derived alcohol did not qualify. The Wall Street Journal captured this in a telling 2006 headline: “Where ‘Whisky’ Can Be Rum.”
What This Means
This crackdown signals a shift toward transparency and quality control in Indian-made foreign liquor. While the majority of consumers still prefer affordable options, premium spirits saw significant growth in 2025 with volume up about 9 per cent and value up 12 per cent. The industry is seeing an evolution on both sides of the bar: producers are making more characterful, ingredient-led spirits, and consumers are learning to appreciate what is inside the bottle. Regulatory bodies like the Uttar Pradesh Excise department now enforce strict policies regarding molasses allocation and processing.
Consumer Takeaway
The FSSAI’s prohibition of specific variants like Old Monk’s “7 years old blended” and McDowell’s No 1 Rum offers a clear warning to the drinker regarding ingredient composition. Consumers must be aware that labels promising ageing on bottles often do not reflect reality, with some products containing less than 5 per cent matured rum spirit. The ban serves as a definitive indicator of what goes into the bottle, distinguishing between legitimate aged spirits and neutral alcohol with added flavourings.
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