The oldest distillery in Asia is the Mohan Meakin distillery. One would always associate the name with Old Monk Rum, the most loved Rum in India.

The history

It all started in the year 1820 when Edward Dyer moved from England to India to setup the first brewery. This was then renamed as Dyer breweries in 1855. The brewery was set up in Kasauli in Himachal Pradesh, North India. The brewery was initially setup to produce the IPA’s (Indian Pale Ale), a style of beer that was loved by the British. The first beer of Asia (bottled lager) was produced here in 1855. It was named Lion Beer. This beer is still available in the Indian retail markets.
Later, the brewery was moved to Solan, near Shimla- the erstwhile summer capital of India. The brewery was then made a distillery and more breweries were setup in the regions nearby.

A business man by the name of H.G Meakin bought the Solan distillery and nearby breweries from Edward Dyer later. In 1937, the group of companies was called Dyer Meakin breweries, a public limited company in the London Stock Exchange. Following the independence of India in 1947, Mr N.N Mohan, raised funds and bought a majority stake in the company. The name was thus changed to Mohan Meakin Breweries in the year 1967.

They then diversified into other fields of manufacturing like cereals, juices and mineral water too.

The distillery:

Not one of the largest distilleries, but yet the oldest ever operating distillery does help produce enough liquor (along with other distilleries setup by the company).

The original distillery is located at Kasauli. Below are snapshots of the location

The distillery

Entrance to the distillery

The Maturation room

Stainless steel tanks for storage of Alcohol

The Executive Director- Rakesh (Rocky) Mohan

The chairman- Kapil Mohan

Brands produced

Today, Mohan Meakin's principal brands are Old Monk Rum and Golden Eagle Beer. Its other products include Diplomat Deluxe, Colonel's Special, Black Knight, Meakin 10,000, Summer Hall and Solan No 1 whiskies, London Dry and Big Ben gins, and Kaplanski vodka. Asia’s original beer, Lion, is still sold in northern India.

Lion Beer

Golden Eagle beer

Solan No-1 Whisky and other brands

Variants of Old Monk- the cult rum

The third largest selling rum in the world, Old Monk Rum or simply OMR as it is called and I do know people who call it OM rum, are available in many variants and various sizes. The most consumed is the Round cut glass bottle. However, there are other variants like the Gold Reserve, of which I have become a big fan lately, The 7 years blended, Supreme XXX rum, Old Monk Legend- the limited edition expression and most recently available in Bangalore- The Old Monk White Rum.

International Presence

When I had carried a bottle of the drink with me to Switzerland, I was asked if this is the Indian Cognac. When I asked my friend more about it, he took me to a store which sold Old Monk Rum as Indian Cognac at close to 25 CHF. I did feel a lot proud about the drink that I had been an ardent follower ever since I started drinking alcohol.

Brands of the distillery are exported to various countries in Europe, Australia and Africa.

The brands have also won major awards in the international market. Solan No 1 Whisky as well as the beers have won great appreciation, world over.

Mohan Meakin also has a plant setup in Kenya. They manufacture and bottle alcohol. A very catchy brand is the Afrika Safari Whisky where the bottle is in the shape of the African Continent.

Like all fans of the ‘Cult Rum’ say- Happiness is Old Monk and Coke

Gulp Responsibly! Socialize Liberally!!