Indian single malt has moved quickly from curiosity to a fully fledged, globally recognised category. But the most interesting producers are not simply chasing recognition. They are building a point of view.
For Indri, that begins with location: Karnal in Haryana, near the foothills of the Himalayas, where seasonal extremes shape the whisky from the start.
Speaking with Surrinder Kumar, what emerges is not just a set of production notes, but a clear philosophy. Climate, barley, maturation, and cask management all play a role, but they are tied together by a consistent way of thinking about how whisky should reflect where it is made.
That perspective feels particularly relevant as Indri brings its Diwali Collector’s Edition 2025 to the UK, offering a chance to understand not just the whisky itself, but the ideas behind it.
Indri’s Origins: Haryana, Terroir, and Climate
The conversation begins where Indri itself begins: with place. Before casks, before blending, before limited editions, there is Haryana and the very particular intensity of a whisky made there.
Perhaps the single biggest influence on how Indri matures is the climate.
In Karnal, Kumar explains, “intense seasonal variations” define the whisky’s character, with summers reaching up to 50°C and winters dropping close to freezing.
These extremes accelerate maturation as the wood expands and contracts, allowing the spirit to move deeper into the cask and extract colour, flavour, and structure more quickly than in cooler regions. The result is a whisky with “richer textures, bolder flavours and greater depth.”
In many traditional whisky regions, time feels like the dominant force. Here, climate is actively shaping how flavour develops from the outset.
For Kumar, though, climate is only part of the story. I asked how he thinks about terroir at Indri.
At Indri, according to Kumar, terroir encompasses not just climate, but also the use of locally sourced six-row barley and the wider sub-Himalayan environment, including air, humidity, and seasonal shifts.
Just as important is how those elements are interpreted through “distillation choices, cask selection and blending decisions,” translating place into a consistent house style.
In that sense, terroir becomes what Kumar describes as a “holistic imprint of place,” shaped as much by human intent as by environment, and resulting in a whisky that could only be made in this part of India.
Six-Row Barley vs. Two-Row Barley
If Haryana provides the setting, the barley defines how that environment is expressed in the spirit.
Indri uses indigenous six-row barley grown in Rajasthan, a variety more common in Indian whisky than in Scotland, where two-row barley dominates. The difference is not just agricultural, but structural in how the spirit develops. Six-row barley contains more protein and less starch, producing a spirit with greater weight and texture from the outset.
I asked Surrinder Kumar what challenges this presents from a blending perspective and why Indri continues to use it.
For him, the appeal starts with flavour. The barley brings “naturally sweet, fruity notes” that sit comfortably alongside the influence of the climate, creating a profile that feels specific to its origin.
From a technical standpoint, it also changes how the spirit behaves. Six-row barley produces a spirit that is “more robust, cereal-forward and textural,” though not without its challenges in terms of extract efficiency and refinement.
That added weight becomes particularly valuable during maturation. It creates what Kumar describes as “a strong, structured base,” allowing the spirit to carry more active cask influences, including sherry and wine finishes, without losing definition.
The trade-off is that balance becomes more deliberate, requiring careful cask selection and integration.
Ultimately, he sees six-row barley as an advantage, offering “a richer, more characterful canvas” from which Indri can build whiskies that are layered, expressive, and distinctly Indian in style.
Indri’s House Style, Maturation, and Blending
At the new make stage, Kumar describes Indri’s spirit as “light, fruity and delicately floral,” with a clean, elegant profile shaped by long fermentation and careful distillation.
That balance at the spirit stage provides the foundation for everything that follows.
Once the spirit goes into wood, the challenge is control. In Haryana’s climate, cask influence builds quickly, and balance has to be actively managed.
Indri Trini, the distillery’s flagship expression, is, for example, matured in a combination of bourbon, wine, and sherry casks.
Through what Kumar describes as “stringent cask selection and continuous maturation monitoring,” the aim is to preserve Indri’s signature fruity and floral character while allowing the whisky to develop depth and structure.
For Kumar, this is second nature. Having worked in India’s climate throughout his career, he treats maturation as something active and responsive.
The spirit evolves more quickly here, shaping decisions around timing, cask composition, and blending. As a result, casks have to be very closely monitored to prevent the whisky from becoming over-oaked.
By balancing bourbon, wine, and sherry casks with this careful management, Kumar guides the whisky towards what he calls “depth, harmony and character” while reflecting both the environment and the distillery’s house style.
I came across Indri Trini for the first time last year, thanks to a friend who passed me a sample. It’s fruit-forward and velvety on the palate — pineapple, mango, brown sugar, honey — with a weighty oakiness underneath that anchors everything nicely.
The finish brings sherry notes from the PX casks, baking spice, and chocolate, and it lingers in that almost fizzy way that I find myself thinking about long after the glass is empty.
I kept coming back to the texture. The six-row barley gives it a real presence and weight, but it never feels sluggish — the tropical fruit notes keep it feeling bright and alive.
I’d half expected so many different cask types to make it feel a bit confused, like too many cooks. But it’s beautifully layered instead, everything sitting comfortably together. I suspect the increased wood interaction has a lot to do with that.
A Diwali Release With Global Intent
Indri Trini establishes the distillery’s core approach to maturation and blending, balancing multiple cask influences while preserving a clear house style.
The Diwali Collector’s Edition builds on that foundation, taking the same principles and pushing them in a more expressive direction, while also drawing on the cultural significance of the festival itself.
I asked Kumar what sets this year’s edition apart, particularly as it launches in the UK.
For him, the Diwali series has always been a space for exploration, “our most experimental and contemporary series,” while still rooted in the distillery’s core style.
The 2025 release continues that approach, built around Marsala wine casks sourced from Sicily, bringing what he describes as “a unique richness and depth” to the whisky.
The result is a layered profile, with notes of stewed apricots, cherries, chocolate, and warming spice, sitting alongside the naturally fruit-forward character of Indri’s six-row barley.
Bottled at cask strength, it delivers both intensity and balance, carrying the weight of the cask without losing definition.
As with previous editions, the whisky is shaped not only by flavour, but by the meaning of the festival itself.
Kumar describes Diwali as “a celebration of light, renewal and shared moments,” and the intention is to reflect that in the whisky as much as in the presentation. The aim is to create something “vibrant, layered and celebratory in the glass,” designed to be shared.
That balance between expression and identity runs through the entire series. When I asked whether these limited editions are driven more by innovation or by reinforcing Indri’s core style, Kumar was clear: “core identity comes first.”
Innovation, in this context, is not about changing direction, but about exploring within defined boundaries. Each decision is made to complement, not overshadow, Indri’s “fruity, floral elegance and balance.”
“Innovation is the vehicle,” he says, “but it is always anchored” in that house style. These releases are variations, what Kumar describes as “expressions of it through different lenses.”
Indri’s Identity & Place in the Indian Whisky Landscape
Indri’s identity is clearly defined. What matters now is how that identity translates beyond India, particularly as the category continues to evolve.
I asked Kumar what he believes has resonated most strongly with international judges and consumers.
For him, the answer begins with clarity. Indri has always aimed to build something “authentic, enduring and rooted in purpose,” rather than chasing trends or short-term recognition.
That focus runs through every stage of production, shaping a whisky that feels deliberate rather than reactive.
At the same time, there is a balance between tradition and environment. Kumar points to a respect for established whisky-making methods, alongside an understanding of what India’s climate makes possible. By working with those conditions, Indri is able to create whiskies with “distinctive richness, balance and complexity.”
That combination of place and precision appears to be what connects most strongly with a global audience. As Kumar puts it, people respond to “a strong sense of place” paired with a level of quality that stands comfortably alongside established whisky regions.
It also brings into focus some of the lingering assumptions around Indian whisky.
One of the most persistent misconceptions, Kumar explains, is that India has not historically produced premium whisky, or that it is largely defined by molasses-based spirits. While that may reflect part of the category’s past, it no longer captures where Indian whisky is today.
At Indri, the focus is firmly on single malt, produced from 100% malted barley and guided by what Kumar describes as a strong emphasis on “craftsmanship, maturation and quality.”
The aim is not to replicate other whisky traditions, but to establish a style that is confident in its own identity.
In that sense, Indian whisky is no longer positioned as an alternative. It is defining its own place on the global stage, shaped by its environment, its materials, and the decisions made in the distillery.
Read the full article at Meet the Master Blender Bringing Himalayan-Influenced Single Malt to the UK
