Profits double and sales hit £3m as drinkers choose Arran

ARRAN Distillery has revealed record results as whisky drinkers in 35 countries develop a taste for one of Scotland’s newest malts.

Now in its 16th year of trading, Arran topped £3 million in sales for the first time in 2011, while profits more than doubled to £250,000.

The increases were driven by exports, which grew 25 per cent thanks to the brand’s increasing popularity in Taiwan and North America. Rival firm Pernod Ricard is also expanding its output by 25 per cent.

Arran managing director Euan Mitchell said he expects international demand for Scotch to keep growing, saying single malts like Arran will eventually benefit from the determined expansion of larger brands into emerging markets.

Diageo, Scotland’s largest distiller, said last week it would invest a further £1 billion in its whisky operations to meet growing demand in Asian and Latin American countries in the decades to come.

Mitchell said: “Forging more paths into emerging markets represents great news for us, as many consumers will begin by drinking blended whisky and then eventually move on to try single malts, which is where we’ll really see the benefit.”

With most whisky matured for at least ten years before it reaches the customer, Arran is also ramping up production, from 350,000 to 400,000 litres in 2012, while a new warehouse will double its storage capacity on the island.

Mitchell said: “We’re thinking long-term and are laying down extra stock now to ensure we can capitalise on the increased demand for single malts ten years down the line.”

Arran is planning to launch an 18-year-old malt in 2014, using stock laid down in the first years of production.