Maltese getting the taste for premium spirits

Maltese drinkers have acquired a taste for more premium brands and fancier cocktails, according to retailers and importers who spoke to MaltaToday who said the trend was to steer clear of cheap vodkas and opt for more expensive and finer spirits.

Matthew Marshall, owner of StrEat whisky bar and new restaurant Electro Lobster Project in Balluta, Sliema, said that the trend was towards premium tequilas and gins. “Whereas before tequila was considered something you would only take one shot of and wince, we are now seeing more people beginning to appreciate and enjoy the beverage,” he said.

Marshall said his ideas in creating new bars, as Valletta’s StrEat whisky bar, always follow in the footsteps of international trends. 

“Electro Lobster Project boasts a wide variety of gins and tequilas, with around 15 and 20 different kinds respectively, and a wide selection of cocktails, which are all prepared from scratch.”

His inspiration in opening a whisky bar also came from abroad. “People are beginning to understand there are very different variations of whiskies,” Marshall said, pointing out that whisky is still one of the biggest things in the local alcohol scene.

His views are confirmed by NSO statistics that show that whisky imports during 2012 and 2013 increased by 20.18% and 21.68% respectively, showing double-digit growth from one year to the other and higher quantities imported than vodka. 

These views were shared by Timmy Grech, of Charles Grech & Co. Grech, who said that cocktails were seeing a rise in popularity at the moment and that single malts were particularly strong at present, specifically Japanese whiskies that are currently the trend.

Grech and Marshall both pointed out that these drinks remain popular with a 30-50 age group with greater disposable income. “Beer remains a very popular choice across all age groups, but the most popular spirit with 18 to 30-year-olds remains vodka,” Grech insisted.

“However, there seems to be a current trend towards super premium brands in all age groups and all alcoholic beverages,” he added.

The trend that is taking back consumers to whiskies and tequilas rather than vodka is actually an international one, with vodka sales slowing down substantially in the past two years after years of booming growth. The Wall Street Journal reports that many young drinkers feel that the colourless, odourless spirit has become too mainstream.

But the GRTU’s president for tourism, hospitality and leisure division Philip Fenech, one-time owner of the BJ’s jazz club in Paceville, says tastes are all a matter of context.

“Many young people in the clubbing scene still prefer vodka as it is more easily mixed with other flavours, but within a different, more sophisticated context, there is a general push for more distinctive drinks,” he said.

“Many people within the 30-50 age group and those in village bars prefer to drink whisky.”

Fenech also adds that another possible reason for the increase in imports of whisky in Malta is tourism itself, with the range of whiskies and deluxe whiskies available at Maltese airports being much cheaper than they are internationally.  “A lot of tourists fall within a certain age group that appreciates whiskies over vodkas, and they would prefer to buy bottles from Maltese airports, where even deluxe brands are cheaper than they are in most other countries.”