The Scotch whisky sector and wider spirits market have endured a bruising stretch of months, with a string of negative headlines raising serious questions about the industry’s future.
Data from restructuring firm BTG warned that nearly one in five of Scotland’s distilleries were facing financial distress, a total of 69 distillers flagged as being in trouble.
A further 217 distilleries across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland were identified as experiencing significant or critical financial stress in the second half of 2025.
The outlook darkened further when Chivas Brothers, the Scotch whisky division of drinks giant Pernod Ricard, reported a five per cent decline in sales across its portfolio.
Edrington Group, the owner of The Macallan, Highland Park, and The Glenrothes, then reported a 23 per cent decline in pre-tax profit, with sales falling 14 per cent across the business.
Shortly after, Ian Macleod Distillers reported pre-tax profits down 45.8 per cent, with bulk whisky demand declining at a “significant double-digit rate.”
Visitor experiences have also taken a hit, with Diageo saying it is closing the Aviation Gin visitor centre in Portland after buying the brand for up to $610 million in 2022.
Diageo has also proposed shutting the visitor centre at its Clynelish Distillery in Brora, while English wine producer Nyetimber permanently closed The Lakes Distillery’s visitor centre, bistro, and shop in April 2026.
However, taking these developments at face value as evidence that people are simply drinking less tells only part of a far more complicated story.
Research by BGS Kantar, highlighted in Diageo’s fiscal half-year results, found that households in the US, UK, India, and Mexico were actually consuming spirits more frequently between 2024 and 2025.
In the UK specifically, household penetration was up 1.2 percentage points and frequency of consumption rose 16 per cent, even as servings per occasion dipped modestly.
IWSR forecasts that global spirits consumption will fall by just two per cent by 2035, a far more modest decline than the 14 per cent drop projected for wine over the same period.
What appears to be happening across the market is not a broad collapse in demand but rather a meaningful shift away from premiumisation toward mid-range and flavoured products.
Diageo has seen increased spending on Scotch whisky leader Johnnie Walker, particularly on special editions, alongside strong growth in Guinness and Crown Royal Canadian Whisky in a blackberry flavour that has become a social media sensation.
Edrington’s own results support this trend, noting that sales of 25- and 30-year-old Macallans costing more than £1,000 fell, while the cheaper 12-year-old recorded double-digit percentage growth.
The Artisanal Spirits Company, owner of the Scotch Malt Whisky Society, reported that while overall SMWS sales “grew marginally,” bottle sales in the USA were “particularly strong” at up roughly 10 per cent, and Australia “was up double digits.”
SMWS bottles typically sit in the £70 to £120 price range, a sweet spot that appears to be resonating with consumers looking for quality without extreme outlay.
The ready-to-drink category is also a growing force, with the segment expected to grow at a compound annual rate of 11.5 per cent through to 2035.
Diageo’s new CEO Dave Lewis has noted, “As economic pressure has found its way into the US category, we see a downtrading to smaller pack sizes,” prompting producers to lean into miniatures and RTD cans.
Bacardi-owned Patrón has even installed a miniature-bottle dispensing vending machine inside London’s 77 nightclub, signalling that demand for premium spirits persists but at lower volumes and price points.
At the other end of the spectrum, 30 unique lots at the Distillers One of One auction raised £2.3 million against an estimate of just £1.4 million, proving that serious collectors remain active and willing to spend.
The picture that emerges is one of de-premiumisation and reallocation rather than outright decline, presenting both a warning and a genuine opportunity for brands agile enough to respond.