Nagaland One of the largest producers of maize in India. In fact, maize crop here is second only to rice, and it is grown in almost every district of the state. You can do a lot of things with corn, and that includes making whiskey.
Vicky Chand launched Castle Hill Dark Knight in Assam in late 2019, a whiskey made with 100 percent corn. But then the Covid pandemic hit and everything went quiet, including the work on launching it in more states. Vicky Chand intends to complete the unfinished business this year and his corn whiskey will be available in Maharashtra and Goa by the middle of this year. But this whiskey is available in Assam.
Make 50,000 liters of spirit every day
According to a Moneycontrol report, Vicky Chand runs Radiant Manufacturers, which is one of the largest distilleries in the North-East. Vicky Chand started small with a liquor shop in Dimapur in the 1970s. Today, they have a distillery in Khatkhati, Karbi Anglong, which produces over 50,000 liters of spirit from grains per day. He has two bottling plants in the state. This distillery is only a short distance from Assam’s border with Nagaland.
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Whiskey has been made from corn in America for 300 years
Americans have been making whiskey from corn for over 300 years, and corn defines American whiskey. Bourbon, ‘America’s Native Spirit’, is made with a mash bill of at least 51 percent corn. You’ll find 100 percent corn whiskeys like Balcones Baby Blue as well as high corn bourbons in the US. In the United States, the legal definition of corn whiskey is a spirit consisting of a fermented mash with at least 80 percent corn.
Radiant Manufacturers’ distillery at Khatkhati in Karbi Anglong produces over 50,000 liters of spirit per day.
Vicky Chand is a fan of Jim Beam
Dark Knight is aged in new oakwood casks and filtered through bamboo charcoal. Vicky Chand, who is a big fan of Jim Beam, describes his whiskey as ‘small batch’. Work on the whiskey began about eight years ago with the help of a master distiller, John McDougall. John McDougall not only made whiskey but also managed distilleries in Scotland and the United States. Vicky Chand says, “We set up a full-fledged unit and started experimenting with spirits made from both broken rice and corn grains. When we tasted the corn whiskey we liked it.”
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North-East’s best-selling whiskey
In 2013, the distillery introduced Castle Hill Rare Reserve Whiskey, a blend of fresh spirits produced on site and Scotch malt from Scotland. Subsequently, they unveiled the Castle Hill Dark Knight 2-Year-Old and Castle Hill Dark Knight 4-Year-Old editions in 2019 and 2021, respectively, after maturing grains made from corn and broken rice. Castle Hills Dark Knight is the North-East’s best-selling whiskey. The price of two year old Castle Hills Dark Knight is Rs 1200 and that of four year old is Rs 1550.
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Tags: alcohol, Assam news, liquor, Nagaland News
FIRST PUBLISHED: March 18, 2024, 11:00 IST