The Taiwan Tobacco and Wine Monopoly Bureau had a monopoly on the manufacturing and distribution of tobacco and alcohol until 2002, when Taiwan joined the Wold Trading Organization WTO). Subsequently the state-owned Taiwan Tobacco and Liquor Corporation (TTL) was formed, which owns two breweries and seven distilleries, one of them being the Nantou distillery (founded in 1978), the only state-owned distillery with malt whisky production (since 2008).

KAVALAN, the first privately owned whisky distillery was founded by the food cooperation King Car Group in 2005.