India, you are the next best thing in the world wine market, but you can
spoil it with unrealistically high wine prices, warned Stefan Gerber originally published in an article that appeared in Sommelier India-The Wine Magazine, September/October 2008. Gerber is a Sommelier India columnist.
The World Trade Organization appeals panel has issued a ruling in the U.S - India dispute over tariffs on American wine and spirits. The ruling however is inclusive. It gives the Indian government an opportunity to walk away from the allegations while still providing the U.S with fodder for a new case. Shiv Singh reports.
The Sommelier India team wishes all its readers a Happy Diwali and a prosperous New Year. Diwali is celebrated by Hindus, Jains and Sikhs across the globe as the "Festival of Lights," where the lights or lamps signify victory of good over the evil within every human being.
Celebrate Diwali by opening a bottle of champagne and gift a friend or a family member a subscription to Sommelier India. The next issue will be hitting the newstands very soon. Don't miss it. Subscribe today. If you like the blog, you'll love the print publication. The next issue is our largest ever!
United Vintners, the South African Embassy along with the ITC Sheraton, New Delhi introduced "The 10 Chapters of South Africa – the Ultimate Wine Trail" to a select audience at a walk around tasting of their wines on 24 October. Explaining the concept of 10 Chapters, Stefan Gerber the visionary winemaker who is also a Sommelier India columnist, said, "It is the first time that a country has been explained in the form of wine."Rahoul Singh reports.
Ambitious and talented with more than 15 years of culinary experience, Anupam is Head Chef of “Rasoi by Vineet". (See previous post.) Anupam was the sous-chef at Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, London, instrumental in the implementation of Indian and Asian food. His talent and passion for Indian fine dining made him the obvious choice for the role of Head Chef.
The Mandarin Oriental, Geneva, has added two new, world-class restaurants: 'Rasoi by Vineet' and 'Le Sud', which have already made a mark on the Geneva dining scene among Indian food afficionados and wine lovers. Both restaurants have been designed by the internationally acclaimed Adam D.Tihany – one a strikingly innovative Indian restaurant and the other a contemporary all day French-style brasserie.
For more on Michelin starred Indian restaurants in London including Rasoi, read SI-The Wine Magazine, November/December 2008 — Editor
Set in the north of New Zealand’s South Island, Spencer Hill winery produces about 50,000 cases every year. The wines are produced with grapes grown at their 30 ha vineyards as well as with grapes sourced from outside. Champagne Indage Ltd. is importing a selection of Tasman Bay wines. “It is wonderful to be here and have our wines in India,” says Philip Jones, owner and winemaker of Tasman Bay wines.
Days 2 and 3: MP Asia, the Organisers of Wine for Asia have put together a lunch for some of their partners to thank them and discuss their plans for 2009. I gather that the current ogranisers jumped into the picture for the 2008 show fairly late and hope now to have enough lead time to make a grand success of the 2009 show which is expected to be far bigger.
Vikram Achanta, reports from Singapore for Sommelier India.
They say cricket is a religion in India, and cricketers are found everywhere – on ramps, in ads and just about everywhere else. Maybe it was just a matter of time before cricket entered the exclusive indian wine scene too, says Ruma Singh . And so the wine tasting held at the Grand Ashok, Bangalore on Monday, 20 October was certainly different.
Here’s welcome news for wine drinkers who've acquired a taste for Guinness, reports Sandra Westbrooke. The world's best-selling dark beer will be celebrating its 250th anniversary in 2009, and a year of festivities is being planned. Many will centre on the company's headquarters in Dublin, where visitors can watch the whole brewing process, from grain to bottle, and sample the result in the rooftop bar.
Beam Global Spirits and Wine, the 4th largest spirits company in the world, recently announced its nominations for the 8th Edition of the Teacher’s Achievement Awards. Avininder Singh was there to cover the event. When you hear of “Awards” linked to a Liquor Company the first cynical reaction is bound to be “surrogate advertising”.
Did you know that acidity is the quality of wine that gives it its crispiness and vitality? A proper balance of acidity must be struck with the other elements of a wine, otherwise the wine may be said to be too sharp - having disproportionately high levels of acidity - or too flat - having disproportionately low levels of acidity. The three main acids found in wine are tartaric acid, malic acid and lactic acid. The first two come from the grapes and the third from malolactic fermentation which often occurs in the winemaking process.
Globus Wines has just announced the release of its Super-Premium brand Miazma "Fine Wine of India." The company has launched the wine in three varietals, Miazma Chenin Blanc, Miazma Shiraz and Miazma Pink Rose. Aiming to establish the brand as an exclusive one, only 3,000 bottles have been produced. Of these only 500 are available in retail with the rest 'on request to ship basis' only.
The company is planning to sell first 1,000 bottles in hand-crafted wooden cases, laser engraved with the company logo, which will ideally be used for gifting or personal collection around the festive corner. At Rs.1,200 a bottle, these are some of the most expensive Indian wines available. Tell us if they're worth the cost and you like them.
It looks like Champagne Indage's purchase of Loxton Winery in Australia is being put on hold according to press reports in Australia. Loxton is owned by Australian Vintage Limited which is Australia's third largest winemaker. The company has said that Champagne Indage had failed to get the financing in place to complete the deal that was first announced back in March. According to press reports, Indage is seeking to raise 1.2 billion rupees ($37.5 million) in new shares to make the purchase.
Day 1:Tulleeho is flying a lonely flag at Wine for Asia, Suntec, Singapore, as the sole Indian stall, reports Vikram Achanta. Visitors are disappointed to find no Indian Wine, for quite a few have heard of Sula and Grover's. There are just as many people who are equally amazed to hear of wine produced in India. Bollywood, however, is known to everyone and some visitors ask us to bring Bollywood stars the next time. "Which ones?," I ask, and they decline to reply, although our taxi driver informs us that Shahrukh Khan was in Suntec City yesterday.
The Wine Society of India kicked off its Delhi Launch with a grand reception at the Imperial Hotel. Avininder Singh was there to record the event.
Date: Friday 10th October 2008. Venue: The Grand Ballroom, Imperial Hotel. Time: 7.33pm. Location of self: Corner seat, 2nd row from back, in a section of the hall seating about 120.
Status of self: Shock & awe!! Nobody but nobody, in Delhi, reaches anywhere in time but what do we have here – three minutes past the designated start and the place is already overflowing.
Are you a frustrated wine collector in India? Here's news that will gladden your heart. Christie’s International Wine Department returns to Asia on November 29th with the most exciting selection of wine ever seen in any wine sale in the region. Featuring 245 lots of blue-chip wines, this sale will be a feature on the calendars of wine collectors not only throughout Asia, but around the world, notes a company release.
Wine lovers in India know Château Latour whose wines are brought to us by importers such as Sansula and Brindco. And many of us have met Frédéric Engerer, President of Château Latour, on his visits to India.
Sujan Mukherjee, executive chef of the Taj Bengal, Kolkata, was the first Indian chef to be selected to participate at the 2008 Cakebread Cellars American Harvest Workshop, an annual celebration of wine and food, hosted by the acclaimed Cakebread Cellars in its vineyards, cellar and kitchen. It took place this year from 6 - 10 September.
Burgundy, France. It's one of the world's most famous wine producing regions, yet its mystique lingers on.... But members of the Bangalore Wine Club and the Wine Society of India got a chance to get up close and personal with someone who could help demystify the region, says Ruma Singh.
Jacques Dioque, head of Bouchard Aine et Fils, headquartered in the picturesque and historic city of Beaune in Burgundy and visiting India for the first time, introduced some of his wines at an elegant sit down dinner at the Taj Residency, Bangalore on October 5th.
For six days in October, the region of Bordeaux and Bordeaux Supérieur Wines brought a selection of fine wines for clients of Toni & Guy to taste as they were pampered by stylists, reports Sandra Westbrooke. Sampling took place in 159 salons throughout the UK on 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 9th, 10th and 11th October. Clients were offered a glass of wine and a mini-guide with tips on how best to appreciate the wine and how to combine it with food.
Look out for new wines from the South of France. Vogus wines, prominent wine producers in the South of France, is partnering with Indospirit Distribution Ltd, a distributor of imported wine, beer and spirits to launch a range of three wines across India at the end of the year, states a news release. Based on the ‘strength through unity’ principle, three wine cellars from the South of France have joined forces to enhance their production and find new market outlets.
Even if there were no other good reason to fly Emirates Airlines, the dream wines served on board would be reason enough. Emirates is an airline company in full expansion on an international scale. It has the youngest fleet of planes on the planet and has been awarded more than 300 worldwide distinctions for the quality of its services.
Considering the list of wines offered in First Class for inaugural flights on the new A380s, could any wine lover ask for more?
Everyone has heard of Tuscany, Piedmont, Umbria, Sicily even Emilia Romagna, but Marches? And for wine? Yes, indeed, there’s a lot going for the Marches (pronounced, mar-ké) even though it may not be so well known. It’s a small region in the heart of Italy with multiple resources and numerous businesses, as well as cultural and historic interest.
Reva K. Singh just got back after visiting wineries big and small and tasting numerous excellent wines.
Dr Ariff Jamal was formerly associated with the Bichot family as Export Director living in Beaune, Burgundy. Soon after Maison Albert Bichot, an eminent Burgundy wine producer, received the Pinot Noir Best Red Wine Maker award in 2004, he took a break and then decided to become a consultant, leaving for California to work in the wine industry there. Dr Jamal (who is also a long time contributor and advisor to Sommelier India) subsequently joined Brindco Sales Limited in Delhi.
With the rumour mill working overtime about his departure, we decided to find out the facts. Shivani Dogra spoke to Dr Jamal and discovered that far from leaving the country, he has chosen to devote more of his experience and time to India.
October 9 saw the launch of Chateau D’Ori’s 2007 bouquet of five Bordeaux style wines in the Delhi region at one of Gurgaon's newer eateries, the Ho Shi Nian Nian Szechuan fine dining outlet, reports K. Singh. The Estate bottled wines are Viva (Chenin Blanc), Sauvignon Blanc, Merlot, Cabernet-Merlot and Cabernet-Syrah.
The Nashik based Sommelier Group has planned to open five wine bars in Pune, Nashik, Bangalore and Jaipur over the next two years. The new formed group will invest around 6 crore to setup these multi-brand wine bars. Already one Sommelier wine bar is operational in Nashik with the next coming up in Pune. The group with Vinod Deokar as CEO has tied up with a number of producers to source wine. Business Standard has the story. Business Standard has the story.
Science News is reporting that scientists at the National Institute for Health have found that the red wine chemical called resveratrol, is not only an antiaging compound but also effective in combating BRCA1-associated tumor formulation in potential cases of breast cancer. How resveratrol does this is not clear. About 8% of breast cancer cases are caused by mutations in tumor suppressor genes.
In separate news, a new study found that resveratrol may help protect human cells against exposure to nuclear material; resveratrol-based drug increased survival rates of mice exposed to radiation by more than 250 percent. Wine Spectator has that story.
Old world wines are looking with hope for new markets in India. The latest to scout around is Lombard, one of the distinctive brands of vintage wines from Champagne, writes Suneeta Sodhi Kanga. When I heard that Paul-Henri, Lombard’s emissary from Epernay, was visiting Mumbai, I made it a point to meet him.
The KBR School of Wine is the first wine school in the country to be associated and affiliated with the Wine & Spirit Education Trust of UK. WSET offers the most comprehensive and contemporary wine courses worldwide. This is a certificate course, where you will be required to sit for an examination after the completion of the course. The next training is on Oct 25th.
While in Cape Town, South Africa for Cape Town Wine 2008, Reva Singh interviewed the CEO of Wines of South Africa (WOSA) Sue Burch. She discussed the South African wine market and how the show has evolved over the years.
Wines of South Africa (WOSA) is a fully inclusive body, representing all South African producers of wine who export theirproducts.
As many expected, the Karnataka government has notified a new excise rule on wines imported from other states. The new duty applies to all wines made outside of Karnataka and is seen by wine companies as a direct response to Maharashtra's seven-year-old wine policy that exempts locally made wines from a 150% duty that all other wines have to pay. The new duty is Rs. 300 a bulk litre up from Rs. 10.
On October 10th, the Wine Society of India will be holding a launch event at the Imperial Hotel in Delhi. Read about The Wine Society of India and its Bangalore and Mumbai launches. Also read about the Judgment of Bangalore. Sommelier India has some exclusive invitations for its subscribers. If you would like to attend email us immediately. These invitations are going fast.
Keep reading for further details.
