Distillers Kyrgyzstan
A one-page guide to Kyrgyzstan for the spirits trade: the country, its people, its economy and how it drinks.
At a glance
- Capital
- Bishkek
- Official languages
- Kyrgyz (state language), Russian (official)
- Currency
- Kyrgyzstani som (KGS)
- Time zone
- UTC+6 (no daylight saving)
- Area
- 200,105 km²
People
- Population
- 7.2 million (2025)
- Population growth
- 1.7% a year
- Living in towns and cities
- 34.7%
- Aged under 15
- 31.9%
- Aged 65 and over
- 6.0%
- Life expectancy
- 72.4 years
Economy
- GDP
- US$22.6 billion (2025)
- GDP per person
- US$3,131 (2025)
- Economic growth
- 11.1% (2025)
- Inflation
- 8.2% (2025)
Climate
Varies by altitude: the Fergana Valley in the southwest is extremely hot in summer, the northern foothills are temperate, and the Tian Shan ranges from dry continental to polar. Mountain winters are long and cold, which affects road freight.
Alcohol
- Alcohol is
- Legal
- Legal drinking age
- 18 (Law No. 269 of 2009 on state regulation of alcohol production and sale, art. 13.2, as cited by Wikipedia)
- Alcohol per adult a year
- 3.29 litres of pure alcohol (2024)
- Traditional drinks
- Kumis (fermented mare's milk, low alcohol)
Sources: World Bank (population, economy and demographics), WHO Global Health Observatory (alcohol per adult and drinking mix); Wikipedia - Legal drinking age; Wikipedia - Kumis; Wikipedia - Kyrgyzstan; State Customs Service; 24.kg (May 2023): Kara-Balta Distillery export plans; Akchabar (Jan 2026): vodka production and consumption; Kaktus.media - Kyrgyz Konyagy complaint to antimonopoly agency over Ayu cognac (3 Mar 2016); Kaktus.media - Underground workshop faking well-known vodka and cognac brands raided (12 Jul 2019). Figures are the latest each source publishes; the year is shown beside each one.