Indian spirits brand "Smoke Lab" formally entered the UK market in July 2026. It is operated by NV Group, based near Delhi. A vodka made from basmati rice, it already has a sales track record in the US and UAE, and this London landing effectively rounds out its presence across the major developed markets. What's worth focusing on is not the product itself but how it's being sold. The design of "turning a native Indian ingredient directly into the basis for a premium claim" reads as a template that Japanese food businesses wanting to sell Kyoto-grown dried vegetables or domestic fruit overseas can apply as is.
Smoke Lab is a spirits brand under NV Group, launched in 2019 by second-generation operators Varun Jain (founder and CEO) and Sanya Jain. Its raw material is Indian basmati rice, finished through five rounds of distillation. Billed as gluten-free and vegan-friendly, its lineup ranges from the standard Classic to "Liquid Gold," which seals in 24-karat edible gold leaf, alongside flavors such as saffron, aniseed, and green chili mango — all putting Indian spices and ingredients front and center.
It launched in the US in 2020 and added derivative products such as saffron in 2022. With this UK entry, its sales footprint now spans four markets: India, the US, UAE, and the UK. What forms the backbone of this product is that it cuts into vodka, a staple Western category, using basmati rice, a staple Indian ingredient, as its material.
This is not a one-off story; it is part of a larger trend of India-born spirits going after top shelf space in developed markets. Single malt labels such as Amrut, Paul John, and Indri have racked up recognition at international competitions, and the sight of Indian-made spirits on bar shelves from London to Tokyo is no longer unusual. What they share is a stance of using local ingredients — Himalayan juniper, turmeric, kokum — as their differentiating axis.
Market data backs up this trend too. Industry research puts India's craft spirits market at about $3.2 billion in 2025, with growth of more than 20% a year expected through 2034. On the export side, one tally shows India's alcoholic beverage exports growing from about $325 million in 2022 to about $375 million in 2024 (both figures are based on private-sector research and vary by source). NV Group itself has stated a goal of raising global sales volume by 40% over the next 18 months and has announced a policy of significantly expanding its international distribution network. The company has a 25-year track record in distilling and is a mid-sized group with manufacturing partnerships across multiple distilleries, with Smoke Lab positioned as the flagship of its export push.
Sorting out Smoke Lab's method reveals elements that can be transferred directly to Japanese food exports. It's a three-step structure that premiumizes a generic category product using a distinctively local ingredient.
| Element | Smoke Lab's move | Translation for Japanese food exports |
|---|---|---|
| Ingredient | Puts Indian basmati rice at the center as the main ingredient | Puts Kyoto-grown or domestic vegetables and fruit at the center as the main ingredient |
| Story | Can be told in one line as "India's first basmati rice vodka" | Narrow origin, variety, and method down to a form that can be told in one short line |
| Entry point | Uses affluent-crowd events as an entry point, coming in through top shelves in developed markets | Uses trade shows and premium retail as an entry point, getting chosen on ingredient, not price |
The key point is that it chose vodka, a well-established category. Rather than educating the market about a brand-new category from scratch, it slips into a shelf where demand already exists, as "a bottle with a different ingredient." Trying to export a completely new eating habit is heavy going for Japanese dried vegetables and domestic dried fruit too, but placing them on an existing shelf as "an item with a clear ingredient provenance" makes things move faster.
On landing in the UK, Varun Jain commented, "London has long remained a global hub for culture, creativity, and premium spirits. Being able to launch Smoke Lab here is a proud moment." The brand is choosing a narrative that borrows the prestige of the market itself to raise its own standing.
The tone of trade media coverage tends to treat Smoke Lab as "a symbol of Indian craft spirits entering the export phase." Interest among bartenders and reviewers tends to gather around easily understood visual and aromatic elements such as gold leaf and saffron, and derivative flavors also appear to be an entry point for buzz on social media. At the same time, taste ends up being judged on the same footing as standard Western vodka, and there is a persistent, level-headed view within the industry that the ingredient story alone is unlikely to drive a second purchase.
Boiling the implication for Japanese companies down to a concrete action for one company, the first question to ask is: "can your main ingredient be told in one line in your export market?" Smoke Lab made a flag out of "basmati rice," an ingredient name everyone already knows. A business exporting Kyoto-grown dried vegetables should first test whether it can stand on the shelf with a single phrase — "place name plus ingredient name" — before laying out explanations of nutrition or process. Overseas buyers don't read into the background. Without one phrase to serve as the flag, the product falls into the shelf fighting on price.
Next comes designing the entry point. Smoke Lab chose an affluent-crowd event as the stage for its UK debut, entering through an experiential venue rather than mass retail. For Japanese food businesses too, rather than aiming straight for a major mass-retail shelf, entering through a small number of "entry points that will evaluate the ingredient" — local specialty food shops, restaurants, trade shows — makes the ingredient's story less likely to dilute. The case of Indian dried potatoes pitching procurement at Japan's JFEX trade show is a useful reference as the reverse-direction version of this, an approach that puts the ingredient itself center stage in the negotiation.
Third is separating the ingredient's story from quality assurance in your thinking. Story sells the first purchase, but it's quality that sells the second. Rather than making efficacy claims, you need to first set up a system that can show buyers in your export market, in numbers, the stability of your supply and the smallness of your quality variation.
The trend of India-born brands going into developed markets through "native ingredient x premiumization" is, for Japan, both a competitor and a map. In the beverage world, a move in the opposite direction is also happening: Asahi's case of bringing Calpis into the Indian market for the first time chose a lightweight entry, teaming up with a local partner rather than building its own factory. Smoke Lab, which speaks through ingredient, and Calpis, which enters through brand, are a study in contrast, and Japanese food businesses have room to use these two models depending on the export market.
In fresh produce too, the case of Pune retailer Origin Fresh putting Japanese apples on its shelves shows that the origin "made in Japan" itself is starting to function as a basis for a premium claim, just as this article shows. By the same logic as Smoke Lab attacking developed markets with Indian basmati rice, Japanese ingredients can be positioned for the affluent and middle classes overseas as "an item with the country of origin as its flag." Now that the market has entered a phase of valuing the story of native ingredients, Japanese food with a clear ingredient provenance has the wind at its back.
What Japanese food businesses should take away from Smoke Lab's UK landing comes down to three points. First, polish your main ingredient into a "flag" that can be told in one line in your export market. Second, enter through ingredient-evaluating entry points — premium retail, trade shows — rather than mass retail. Third, design a system that separates capturing the first purchase through story from capturing the second and beyond through quality assurance. The realistic first step is to start by narrowing down, for your own flagship product, a single sheet to hand overseas buyers to "place name plus ingredient name plus a one-sentence story."
RECENT
2026.09.24Bridgestone India’s 30th-anniversary film builds on the founder’s motto2026.09.24Flipkart’s move: putting the two meanings of "BBD" on Kolkata buses2026.09.24Veteran fertilizer maker KICL enters beverages with coconut water, starting in three South Indian states2026.09.24Pinit delivers saris in under 45 minutes, setting up a mirror and lighting at the customer’s home to choose fromCONTACT
Considering entering the Indian market?
Building on the developments on the ground covered in this article, we will suggest an approach that fits your products.
Book a free consultation →SOJAPAN
We support Japanese companies entering India, from market research through local partner development, test sales, and import.