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Vinitally will be in Mumbai on January 17th and in Delhi on January 19th to promote the best Italian wine and food products through presentations of a huge selection of such produce. The events will take place at the Mumbai Taj Lands End Hotel and the New Delhi Taj Palace Hotel. The events are organized by Veronafiere.
Dom Perignon's latest cookbook is packed with recipes by the best chefs in the UK, but don't expect to pick it up at your local bookstore on your way home from work. According to Decanter Magazine, it is bound in the ultra-rare hide of a Japanese ray, and packed with recipes, reminiscences and portraits by the world's most bankable celebrities. And yes, it costs £1000 per copy.
‘‘Everything was very unusual—the monsoons, grapes, grape-growing culture,’’ says the Australian who is setting up Terroir India Wineries. ‘‘I had tasted some not so good Indian wine in London, but one trip here and my opinion on everything just changed. India is reiterating the stand of New World wines—that good wine does not just come from France," says John Robert Worontschak in an Indian Express article about three foreigners making their home in India's wine business. It is fair to say that India is certainly becoming a popular home for wine production and consumption.
Attend the seminar on the Indian Wine Industry at Krishi, 2005 the fourth Indian Agriculture Trade Fair. Vineyard tours and wine tastings are also being organized for the general public and business visitors. Speakers include representatives from the leading wine producers and the government.
Ashwin Deo, Managing Director, Moet Hennessy India Pvt Ltd told Business Line that though the consumer base for premium wines was growing, market accessibility was still a constraint. He believes that high import duties are limiting growth and consumption at homes - the place where 80% of the spirits are consumed. Read the full article.
Daniele Raulet Reynaud, a French Sommelier and Sopexa Wine and Cheese lecturer was recently interviewed by The Indian Express. She believes that Tandoori Chicken goes well with Gewurztraminer and Rogan Josh goes with Haut Medoc because full bodied wine blends well with the complex flavours of this dish. Read her interview. Do you agree?
Champagne Indage, is in talks to acquire a wine trading company in the UK. According to Ranjit Chougule, executive director of Champagne Indage, " The target company has a turnover in the vicinity of £7-8m and a bottomline of about £0.7m." The move will ensure better accessibility for Indage's wine brands and provide them with a ready list of clients in the UK market. Read the full article at The Economic Times.
Did you know that Maharashtra has four wine bars? Well, the good news is that you're not going to have to go hunting across the state in search of them. Champagne Indage is supporting 50 entreprenuers who want to start wine bars. The wine bar licences will be available at rates between Rs 5,000 and Rs 37,500 a year depending on the location. The state government wants to do everything to support the local wine industry so it will be granting the licenses quickly. Visit The Hindu Business Line to learn more.
According to Decanter Magazine, a century and a half of tradition is to be swept aside as Christie's takes over the running of the Burgundy barrel auctions. The auction takes place this weekend, and for the first time since it started in 1859, private buyers will be able to bid directly, when previously the only way they could buy would be to contact a negociant and instruct them to bid. Read the full article at Decanter Magazine.
Here in India we may seem to be a long way from barrels of wines being auctioned off by Christie's. But our wine industry is growing at a frantic pace and hopefully bulk purchasing and distribution will continue to get easier. It is needed for the industry to grow and mature.
The International Food, Drink and Hospitality Exhibition will be held in hall 7 of the Pragati Maidan Exhibition Centre in New Delhi, India between December 8th and 10th. Exhibitors will display the latest innovations in the Food, Drink and Hospitality Industry. Conferences and features will uncover new ways of doing business and improving current processes, and will give you tips on expanding the horizons of your business.
This is a wine and art event being held in conjunction with Hyatt Regencey Hotel and Foundation for Arts. Pots, designer pots and paintings by Pratyoosh Seal will be on display. Four wines from Trivento (owned by Concha y Toro) , Argentina will be on offer along with cheese and snacks. Wines will include the Golden Reserve and the Reserva range. Pre-registration is mandatory.
According to Businessline, India will soon cultivate organic grapes and export them, a top official of International Competence Centre for Organic Agriculture (ICCOA) has said.
India's Finest Wine Show - Wine Park at Krishi 2005, International Agriculture Trade Fair, Nashik, Maharashtra,India will be held between November 30th and December 5th, 2005. This will be a great opportunity for wine producers, machinery, accessories, suppliers and project consultants to meet one another. Sommelier India is a media sponsor of the event.
Sula Wines is inviting wine enthusiasts to taste wines from its international and domestic collections at Trafalgar Chowk on Sat 19th and Sun 20th November, 5pm onwards as part of the "Celebrate Bandra 2005" festivities. Trafalgar Chowk is located at Agnelo Building, Khadeshwari Mandir Marg, Off St. John the Baptist Road, Bandra West, Mumbai 50
Ph: 2645-9151 / 2640-4115.
For the first time since 1976, Americans are drinking more red wines than white, according to the recently released 2005 edition of The U.S. Wine Market: Impact Databank Review and Forecast. US consumption is expected to grow to 107 million 9 litre cases. Syrah is the most popular red varietal.
Does the same apply to India? Statistics on wine consumption by varietal aren't availabe as yet but one can assume that reds are more popular here to.
The Indian wine story continues to get a lot of attention. Reuters in the UK recently ran a nice article about the Indian wine industry. As the article explains, " Rising incomes and easier regulations mean a chicken tikka is now more likely to be washed down with a glass of local red, prompting a rush of local entrepreneurs and foreign firms to tap both the domestic market and global interest in New World wines."
After what appeared to be insurmountable hurdles related to new passports and visas, Sommelier India finally made it to Singapore in time for the opening of Wine for Asia, The 3rd International Exhibition to the Asian Wine and Spirits Market, which opened on November 10, 2005. It was three days of wine tasting and meeting wine people from around the world who had come here to suss out the Asian market and network with one another.
Wine is known to release flavours in food that would otherwise not be experienced. Chef Alok Anand of The Imperial, New Delhi, offers a simple recipe for duck breasts with red wine.
(Editor's Note: Each issue of Sommelier India includes a recipe from an Indian Chef. A few weeks after the print publication is distributed the recipes are also archived on the Sommelier India Blog)
The Associated Press has covered Wine for Asia with this complimentary article. It is nice to see Asia and India in particular getting attention on the global stage. Santosh Verma, Champagne Indage's head of business development is quoted in the article.
In India, the per capita consumption of wine is as low as 4.5ml per person per year. In contrast to this, France consumes 42 litres per person per year, Italy 50 litres and China 375 ml.
The Indian market for wine is estimated to grow at a rate of 30% each year. Curerntly around 5.4 million bottles are produced of which roughly 500,000 are exported to countries like France and Italy. India imports around 780,000 bottles each year. This could be higher if the taxation was lower.
It is obvious that the Indian wine market is going to go dramatically and as a consumer you're going to have a lot more variety to choose from. Here at Sommelier India we hope to help you understand and navigate this exciting world of wine.
Sula Vineyards announced the release of India's first Red Zinfandel wine. According to the press release, the wine is luscious and jammy bursting with blackberry aromas adn cinnamon and plum flavours. It pairs well with pizza and hearty pasta dishes.
According to Rajeev Samant, CEO, Sula Vineyards, "Wine-drinking culture in India has been evolving rapidly. I think the Indian palate is ready for a bold, sophisticated wine like our Red Zinfandel. Just like with our Sauvignon Blanc and Chenin Blanc wines, we’re thrilled to be the pioneers of Red Zinfandel in India."
The Sula Red Zinfandel is available in Maharashtra at Rs. 415/- plus taxes. Needless to say, this is very good news for wine drinkers across India.
Renaissance Winery, which is a new entrant into India's wine market, is about to make a foray into the premium wine segment. The winery is planning to introduce four new wines over the next few months. Of these two will be reds and two whites.
The company hopes to capture 20% of the domestic wine market in the next three to five years. Renaissance currently has an installed capacity of 250,000 litres. This year itself the company is estimated to produce 100,000 litres of wine.
According to Decanter Magazine, 35 people have paid $16,500 each to taste wines with an average bottle price of US $2,000. The Top 100+ Wines of the Century was three day wine and food extravaganza organized by in Manhattan.
Visit Decanter magazine to learn more about the tasting
Wine For Asia 2005 is to be held at Singapore Expo Hall from November 10 to November 12, 2005. The event is Asia’s largest International wine & spirit exhibition platform serving the entire Asian markets. 214 exhibitors from 21 countries and over 12,000 professional visitors participated in Wine For Asia 2004.
And 400 exhibitors from more than 22 countries with more than 1000 international brands and 50, 000 bottles of wine are expected to arrive in Singapore this year to wow the wine community and capture new market share for their continued growth in Asia. Expect to find Chateau Indage and Sula Vineyards at the event. You'll also find us at the event and over the next few days look for updates from the expo hall on the Sommelier India blog.
Chateau Indage and Sula Vineyards have both decided to exit the locally-bottled imported wine business as they're finding that bulk imports aren't viable on many counts anymore.
Sula is cutting its dependence on the Chilean Merlot which goes into its Sartori brand. Likewise, Indage is going to drop local bottling of bulk imports by converting some its brands into "bottle at source" businesses. Surging freight costs and increases in excise duty are prompting these moves. Read more at The Economic Times.
India's largest wine exporter, Grover Vineyards, expects to raise Rs 15 crore from a 35 per cent stake sale and has mandated Ambit to shortlist potential investors to sell the stake.
This was the third-highest wine auction total in modern history, fetching a total of $9,760,140, and the largest sum generated by a one-owner American cellar. The New York auction house sold 93 percent of 2,429 lots constituting 17,000 bottles. Highlights included a bottle of 1811 Château d'Yquem which reached $30,680, as did a magnum of 1865 Lafite-Rothschild. Read more at Decanter.com.
The Napa Valley stage is obviously no longer large enough for Francis Ford Coppola. The Academy Award-winning director-turned-vintner has decided to buy the current Chateau Souverain facility in Sonoma County and turn it into the Francis Coppola Winery. Chateau Souverain produces about 180,000 cases annually and is one of Sonoma County's most reliable, value-oriented producers
Dr. Jorge Heine, who is the Ambassador of Chile to India sat down with Subash Arora of the Delhi Wine club to talk about the Chilean wine industry recently. You can find the in depth article here.
The ambassador who is a friend of Sommelier India, spoke very highly of the latest Sommelier India issue when giving his opening remarks at a recent wine event at his residence in Delhi.
In an interesting article for Business Standard, Alok Chandra talks about the different types of wine drinkers namely the enthusiasts, the traditionalists, the image seekers, savvy shoppers, satisfied sippers, and the overwhelmed drinkers. He explains that most Indians fall into the last category picking up whatever wine is pushed or catches their eye.
Read the article at Business Standard. Alok Chandra is also a Sommelier India contributor. For more information on the different types of wine drinkers learn about the original study at Decanter.
Spirits major United Breweries (UB) is planning to beef up its wine business. Baramati Grape Industries, which runs the wine business of the group, will expand its production base by introducing new variety of grapes and rope in more contract farmers.
The fourth issue of Sommelier India is being mailed to subscribers this week. Expect to find it filled with articles covering Chilean wines, Mumbai waterholes and the virtues of Sherry among others. Let us know what you think of the issue and subscribe now to get your own copy.
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