How this Goa-based rum startup is re-inventing India s favourite brown liquor yourstory.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from yourstory.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Anjali Shahi and Lavanya Jayashankar
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While Maka Zai rum and Rahasya Vodka were launched in January this year, Matinee Gin will be launched on March 13
There’s change rippling through the Indian alcobev industry with 2021 seeing women take the helm at the Indian arms of two of the largest alcohol companies in the world: Diageo (in July 2021) and Moet Hennessy. Women also have key positions across most beverage multinationals, reflecting not just increased diversity, but also the changing face of their consumer.
The other seismic shift that has taken place is in the craft spirits space in the country, where a slew of mostly young entrepreneurs of both sexes have captured the zeitgeist, and made Indian brands cool and aspirational. However, while there have been changes in the producer profile, the actual business still gets done via distributors, retailers, and bars and pubs. These are largely male-run and owned, with women being allowed
These craft rum makers are creating a buzz in Goa
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February 16, 2021 17:00 IST
Stilldistilling Spirits came up with the newest Indian craft rum offering this year. We speak to founder Kasturi Banerjee about her journey from banking to blending
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Stilldistilling Spirits’ team: Founder Kasturi Banerjee with Anurag Bhatnagar and Abhirup Bhattacharyya
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Stilldistilling Spirits came up with the newest Indian craft rum offering this year. We speak to founder Kasturi Banerjee about her journey from banking to blending
Kasturi Banerjee does not believe in half measures. Leaving behind an illustrious career in banking spanning 16 years, the former director of Compliance at an MNC bank, has taken the spirit industry by storm. She is the founder and CEO at Stilldistilling Spirits, based in Goa, that sprung into 2021 with Maka Zai, (‘I want’ in Konkani), a homegrown duo of white and gold rum with a distinctly
Meet the former banker who just launched her first rum
Standard Chartered veteran Kasturi Banerjee expects Maka Zai to fill the gap in the Indian market for a smooth, classy rum.
Maka Zai white and gold.
The world’s best rums come from the tropics, so Kasturi Banerjee has a point when she says that India, which is also among the largest producers of sugarcane, should ideally be making more good rum. If we were to get over our bias towards Old Monk, there really is no standout homegrown rum. Banerjee, though, is doing her bit to remedy the situation.