【英语国际】苏格兰威士忌风靡全球

With Scotch whisky emerging as a fashionable drink in markets like China and Brazil, multinational liquor companies such as Pernod Ricard SA and Diageo PLC are investing in production facilities in Scotland at a level not seen since the 1970s.

Last Friday, a kilted Prince Charles presided over the opening of Pernod Ricard's newly expanded Glenlivet single-malt whisky distillery in Scotland, which has increased its production capacity by 75% thanks to a GBP 10 million ($14.6 million) investment.

This autumn, Diageo plans to open its 28th whisky distillery in Scotland -- the country's first new, large-scale whisky distillery in three decades, according to the company.

Known as Roseisle, the facility cost Diageo GBP 40 million and will distill up to 10 million liters of single-malt whisky a year. The liquor will be used to produce blended whiskies such as Johnnie Walker and J&B.

In the past three years, liquor companies have spent about GBP 600 million to expand whisky production facilities in Scotland.

The investments are being driven by rising Scotch whisky exports to the U.S., its biggest export market by value, as well as by increasing demand in the developing world.

Despite the recession, Scotch whisky exports from Scotland rose to record levels in 2009, according to the Scotch Whisky Association.

Exports rose by 3% to GBP 3.13 billion on the back of a 13% jump in the value of exports to France and the U.S., a 44% rise in the value of exports to Brazil, an increase of 25% in the Scotch whisky shipped to Mexico and a 7% rise in the value of exports to South Africa. The volume of exported Scotch whisky increased 4% in 2009.

In the last 10 years the value of Scotch whisky shipments going to China has grown to about GBP 80 million from around GBP 1 million, though much of the product is shipped through other Asian hubs, according to the association. A reduction in tariffs on alcohol helped.

'The proportion of Scotch whisky consumed in developing countries has dramatically increased' since 2000, says Christian Porta, chairman and CEO of Pernod Ricard's whisky and gin business Chivas Brothers, which runs the Glenlivet. 'Five years from now this industry will be even bigger and more international.'

The investments come as big premium liquor companies look to raise the cachet and appeal of their spirit brands internationally to drive sales. Scotch whisky, long associated with upper-class luxury and discernment, is a prime 'aspirational' liquor for consumers in emerging markets.

Whereas vodka and gin can be distilled anywhere and bottled immediately, Scotch whisky must be made in Scotland and aged for a minimum of three years. There are single-malt varieties, such as Glenlivet and Glenfiddich, as well as blended whiskies, such as Johnnie Walker and Chivas, all falling on a sophisticated matrix of tastes and maturation dates.

Because Scotch whisky is often aged in wooden barrels for more than a decade, liquor companies invest in production facilities based on forecasts of what demand will be down the line. Diageo, for example, undertook a major econometric study a few years ago that analyzed everything from political stability to social strata to Gross Domestic Product, all in a bid to determine how much whisky countries will be drinking over the next few decades.

'What we saw was enough to convince us that we did need to invest in capacity to meet longer-term demand,' says Ken Robertson, head of corporate relations for Diageo's Scotch whisky business. 'The industry has run into challenges in the past with its forecasting, but I think there has been much more rigor applied now than during the last big wave of expansion in the 60s and 70s.'

It's not only changing tastes in the developing world that are driving Scotch whisky exports, but also the influence of multinational companies, which now dominate the whisky industry and boast the large-scale distribution networks and marketing departments necessary to push Scotch whisky further into countries such as Brazil, Venezuela, Russia and China.

Both Diageo and Pernod Ricard have used advertising and promotions to cultivate a love of Scotch whisky in the developing world. Diageo's global Johnnie Walker campaign 'Keep Walking,' for example, was adapted to the Chinese market to emphasize collective success instead of individual achievement.

While the American advertisements emphasized the personal journeys of famous men like actor Harvey Keitel, the Chinese version showed a group of young men toasting with glasses of Scotch whisky and making a collective pledge: 'Keep Walking.'

在中国、巴西等地，苏格兰威士忌正在逐渐成为一种时尚的饮品，保乐利加（Pernod Ricard SA）、帝亚吉欧（Diageo PLC）等跨国酒业公司也应势而动，在苏格兰增设酒厂，力度之大，自20世纪70年代以来是绝无仅有的。

Pernod Ricard英国查尔斯王子在品尝格伦利物威士忌相关报导据苏格兰威士忌协会的统计，过去十年间，中国进口苏格兰威士忌的市值从起先的100万英镑增至8,000万英镑，不过其中很大一部分是通过亚洲其他国家的大城市转运的。这其中，酒类关税的下调起到了很大的作用。

克里斯汀•波尔塔（Christian Porta）是保乐利加下属经营威士忌和杜松子酒业务的芝华士兄弟公司（Chivas Brothers）的主席兼首席执行官，格伦利物威士忌业务便是由这家公司负责的。波尔塔表示，自2000年以来，“发展中国家消费的威士忌在总消费量中所占比重有了惊人的增长。再过五年，这个产业还会更庞大、更国际化。”

占据市场主导地位的大公司着力提升威士忌的品牌形像，向全世界推广其品牌精神，进而促进销售的增长，因而有了上述的投资行为。一直以来，苏格兰威士忌都是极致奢华与品位的象征，在新兴市场被视作最佳的“成功人士”饮品。

伏特加和杜松子酒可以在任何地方酿制，之后马上装瓶，而苏格兰威士忌却只能在苏格兰酿制，而且必须经过至少三年的陈化才可装瓶。苏格兰威士忌家族中有格伦利物和格兰菲迪等单一麦芽威士忌，也有包括尊尼获加和芝华士在内的混合型威士忌，成熟时间各有差别，有着千变万化的微妙口味。

苏格兰威士忌通常都需要在木桶中贮存十年以上，因此酒业公司对于酒厂的投资都是建立在对于未来需求的预期之上的。帝亚吉欧在几年前开展了一项大规模的计量经济学调查，分析了从各国政治局势、社会阶层构成到国内生产总值的一切相关要素，从而判断出未来几十年间各国的威士忌消费量走势。

帝亚吉欧威士忌业务公关主任肯•罗伯特森（Ken Robertson）表示，“根据我们了解的情况，我们认为有必要加大投入、提高产量以满足长远的需求。过去我们的预测能力也遇到过挑战，不过比起六、七十年代需求大扩张时期，目前的挑战愈显严峻。”

发展中国家消费者口味的改变是推动苏格兰威士忌出口量增长的因素之一，另外还有一个因素就是跨国公司的影响力，这些公司主导着现今的威士忌行业，拥有庞大的分销网络以及营销部门，有能力将苏格兰威士忌推向巴西、委内瑞拉、俄罗斯、中国等市场。

帝亚吉欧和保乐利加公司都在发展中国家投放广告、开展营销活动，培育消费者对苏格兰威士忌的认可与喜爱。比如，帝亚吉欧公司在全球投放的尊尼获加“Keep Walking”系列广告，在中国市场投放时便做了相应的调整，强调集体的成就而不是个人的成功。

尊尼获加在美国的广告着眼于演员哈维•凯特（Harvey Keitel）等名人的个人历程，而其中国版本则是：一群年轻人在举杯同庆，发出一个共同承诺：“永远向前。”