History
The Black Dog brand was first blended and bottled in Scotland in 1883 by James MacKinlay, a second-generation blender of the Leith-based family of Scotland[9] to meet an order placed by Herbert Musgrave Phipson, owner of Phipson & Co. Wine Merchants from Bombay (now Mumbai), India.[10][11] He was assisted in this task by Walter Samuel Millard (1864–1952), a 19-year-old British employee of Phipson- who was responsible for dispatching the consignment back to India- arriving in 1884. The brand was named Millard Black Dog and legend has it that he named it after his favourite salmon fishing fly, known as the Black Dog.[12] There is no proof or evidence to this effect, or that Millard, a 19-year-old employee of Herbert Phipson had a brand of Scotch Whisky named after him.[13]
McDowell & Co (now known as USL) and United Distillers formed United Distillers India Limited in 1992, creating India's first joint venture in the alcoholic beverages industry.[14] It began bottling operations in Nashik to produce Black Dog for the Indian market.[14][15]
In April 2004, it was reported in the media that USL (then named McDowell & Co) was planning to sell Black Dog in Pakistan, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Thailand.[16] Black Dog had been sold in Pakistan during the British Raj, prior to the Partition of India.[17] In October the same year, it was reported that McDowell & Co was negotiating with a company in Pakistan to manufacture Black Dog. According to Vijay Rekhi, then managing director of McDowell & Co, and then President of the UB Group's spirits division, "It will only be a small set-up as just three per cent of the Pakistani population is permitted alcohol consumption. But we are looking at the opportunity as we are trying to widen our footprints in the SAARC region." Rekhi also stated that bottling was already underway in Sri Lanka and the company was looking to expand to Bangladesh, Malaysia and Myanmar.[18][19] Even that small percentage (mainly tourists, expatriates, Parsees, Christians and non-Muslims), is discouraged from consuming alcohol during the Muslim month of Ramadan. Consumption of liquor by Muslims was banned by the Bhutto Govt in Pakistan in the mid-70s. [20]
2006, McDowell & Co Limited, Herbertsons Limited, Triumph Distillers and Vintners Private Limited, Baramati Grape Industries India Limited, Shaw Wallace Distilleries Limited and four other companies are merged to form United Spirits Limited.[21]
