South Korea’s millennials and Gen-Z’s love for whisky and high balls has driven the country’s whisky imports to record high, accordin to official data from the Korea Customs Service.
The country imported 8,443 tons of whisky from largely the UK and US in the first three months of this year, up 78% from the prior-year period, according to data from the Korea Customs Service. It marks the biggest first-quarter increase in the figures that go back to 2000 and the second-highest level after the end of last year, the data shows.
The change according to a Bloomberg report is reflective of the country’s younger consumers’ drinking habits. Whisky imports have been rising steadily since the end of Covid restrictions when young Koreans switched to the darker and heavier grain beverage that can be mixed with soda to make a highball or used in cocktails.
More than one-third of whisky sales last year were to people in their 20s and nearly half to people in their 30s, according to Yonhap News, citing data from GS25, a major convenience store operator in the country.
Despite rising popularity of whisky, beer remains king, with the volume of imports about seven times that of whisky in the January-March period.
