Turkey’s spirits industry is entering 2026 with more depth than most buyers give it credit for. For years, sourcing conversations around Turkey began and ended with raki. That view is now outdated. Buyers who still approach Turkey with a raki-only lens are overlooking where the real growth is taking place.
A combination of factors drives this shift:
- Rising domestic alcohol taxes are pushing producers to prioritize export markets.
- At-home consumption habits, which accelerated during the pandemic, have held steady rather than reverting.
- A younger, more experimental base of domestic drinkers is reshaping product development, and that shift is now carrying over into export catalogs.
A 2025 Ipsos study quantifies this trend well. Whisky consumption in Turkey rose 155% since 2020, while raki, still the country’s most-consumed traditional spirit, grew 31% over the same period. Gin and tequila also recorded meaningful gains.
Market data supports this trajectory. The Turkish spirits market was valued at approximately $2.8 billion in 2024, with consumption volume growing at close to 9% annually between 2019 and 2024. This is a market expanding in scale, not contracting, despite a challenging tax environment.
The 6 Categories Worth Watching
As the Turkish export trends are reshaping faster in 2026. Here are 6 categories worth watching to get a thorough understanding of the market:
1. Whisky
This is the standout category. Turkish producers have leaned into blended whisky made with certified Scotch whisky stock. It’s bottled and labeled to Scottish Whisky Association standards.
Why buyers are paying attention:
- It lets a Turkey-based supplier offer a whisky product without competing head-on with single malt heritage brands.
- Pricing is more competitive than most Scotch-origin blends.
- Domestic demand has more than doubled since 2020. That kind of appetite at home usually shows up in export catalogs within a year or two.
2. Gin
Gin has quietly become one of the more interesting categories coming out of Turkey.
- Botanical and craft-style gins are showing up more in off-trade retail.
- Buyers looking for something beyond London Dry are finding Turkish producers willing to experiment with local botanicals.
- Pink gin and flavored expressions are pulling in a younger, more casual drinker.
- This matters most for buyers targeting bars and retail, not just traditional spirits shops.
3. Liqueurs and Flavored Spirits
Flavored spirits are having a moment globally, and Turkey is no exception.
- Fruit liqueurs built around local produce, banana, sour cherry, pomegranate, fig, give buyers something different to put on a shelf.
- This category also feeds the ready-to-drink trend, since flavored liqueurs work as an easy base for RTD cocktails.
- It’s a low-risk way for buyers to test a new SKU without committing to a full new spirit line.
4. Vodka
Vodka has historically been a strange spot for Turkish producers.
- The country has plenty of installed distilling capacity but hasn’t exported much of it.
- Vodka is a commodity category, and Turkey wasn’t pricing or positioning competitively before.
- That is changing. Producers now use vodka as a private-label entry point, clean, neutral, and easy for a buyer to rebrand.
5. Raki
Raki isn’t losing ground. It’s premiumizing.
- Aged raki, longer-fermentation expressions, and gold-tier bottlings are pulling in buyers who want more shelf appeal than a standard bottle.
- Raki carries a protected geographical indication status in Turkey. It must be made from Turkish grapes and anise.
- That gives buyers a real authenticity story to sell, not just a label claim.
6. Ready-to-Drink Spirit-Based Beverages
This is the newest category on the list, and arguably the fastest-moving.
- Spirit-based RTDs and hard seltzers barely existed in Turkey five years ago.
- Now there are dozens of active brands using local base spirits, raki, vodka, and gin as the backbone.
- Analysts project healthy growth in this segment through the next decade.
Turkish co-packers with can-line and cold-fill capacity are becoming attractive partners for brands that don’t want to build that infrastructure themselves.
What’s Actually Driving the Shift
A few forces are working together here, not separately.
Premiumization is real. Turkish buyers at home are trading up. That behavior is reshaping what gets produced at scale, which then becomes available for export.
Tax pressure is pushing producers to look outward. Special Consumption Tax increases inside Turkey now happen more than once a year. Every hike squeezes domestic margins a little more. Export becomes a more attractive release valve when the home market keeps getting taxed.
E-commerce is opening doors too. Online alcohol sales in Turkey are expected to make up close to a fifth of total beverage sales by the end of 2026. That same digital-first buying behavior is showing up on the export side, with buyers sourcing suppliers online rather than through trade shows alone.
What Buyers Should Look For in a Turkish Supplier?
If you’re building or refreshing a spirits portfolio, 2026 is a good year to widen the net beyond raki. Here are some common points to look for in a Turkish supplier:
- A supplier with real production control, its own vineyards or grain sourcing, and in-house distilling saves you a lot of friction compared to a trading company reselling someone else’s bottles.
- A supplier who covers more than one category cuts down shipping costs and simplifies your product catalog.
- Export experience matters just as much as product quality. Shipping, paperwork, and compliance take practice, and a supplier who’s done it for years makes the process easier on your end.
Mey İçki’s Position Across the Fastest-Growing Categories
Mey İçki has been producing spirits from its own facilities since 1975. The company covers most of the categories on this list, all under one roof.
Production Footprint
- Mehmetçik facility in Iskele: Raki and zivania, built on the company’s own vineyards.
- Turgutlu facility in Manisa: Raki production using traditional copper stills.
- Edirne facility: gGrape processing and distillation, close to the European border.
Product Range Across the Growth Categories
- Raki: Anadolu Raki and Asina Raki, including a premium Gold tier.
- Whisky: Real Crystal Whisky, made with certified Scotch whisky stock and bottled to SWA standards.
- Gin: the Cornaro line, including a classic London Dry and a lighter Pink Gin.
- Vodka: Anadolu Vodka, positioned for both retail and bar supply.
- Liqueur: Anadolu Banana Liqueur, with more flavored options in development.
- Zivania: Othello Zivania, made in three styles and rooted in centuries of Cypriot tradition.
Beyond production, Mey İçki also runs a private label service for buyers who want to build their own brand without setting up their own facility, plus a dedicated export team and wholesale operation for larger-volume orders.
For a buyer trying to widen a spirits portfolio without adding five different suppliers, that combination of categories, ownership, and export experience is worth a closer look.
Conclusion
Turkey’s spirits export story is no longer just about raki. Whisky, gin, liqueurs, vodka, and ready-to-drink spirits are all picking up real momentum, driven by changing habits at home, tax pressure pushing producers outward, and a market that keeps growing in volume even as it faces higher costs. Raki still matters, but it’s premiumizing rather than standing still.
For buyers sourcing from Turkey in 2026, the smart move is to work with a supplier that covers more than one of these categories and has the production and export experience to back it up. If any of the six categories above fit where your portfolio is heading, Mey İçki’s export team is a straightforward place to start that conversation.
