Here's wishing you, our wonderful readers, a new year filled with good fortune, health and happiness - and of course, fine wine and happy reading. See you in 2009!
The Sommelier India team.

With a Hindu priest chanting prayers and a Muslim cleric reading from the Quran, the Trident Hotel at the Oberoi complex reopened amid tight security on Sunday three weeks after it was targeted by the militants. Share your thoughts at the end of the article and view reader responses to our earlier coverage here and here. Also contribute to the Oberoi Care Fund.

Shiv Singh reports.

The terrace at Tonino, the Italian restaurant on the way to Mehrauli in New Delhi, is a magical place. Parmeet Sawhney has successfully created an eatery with a distinctive ambience serving excellent food and wine. Not only has the wine list improved immeasurably, but you can be confident the wines are stored and served at the right temperature, without any fear of being fobbed off with a faulty bottle. When I heard that the wines to be served on the night of the tasting were from the Indian importer, Wine Park, this was an invitation I couldn’t resist, writes Reva Singh

When Andrew Steele, the General Manager of the Shangri-La, New Delhi mentioned that he was hosting an ‘intimate’ dinner around the wines of Château Angélus from the Right Bank village of St. Emilion, I knew it would be worth suffering the traffic out to the Shangri-La. Harshal Shah has the story.

Mark the dates - June 21 to 25, 2009
The next Vinexpo will take place in Bordeaux 
from 21 to 25 June 2009 where all the major industry players will be there. Details about the exhibition are available at www.vinexpo.com 
and market information on the Vinexpo Blog.

Wondering what to give your family and friends for the festive season? Nothing beats a subscription to Sommelier India, the country's first and only specialist wine magazine. Each issue has a fabulous mix of articles and service information written by some of the best wine writers in the world. The magazine will open the doors to a whole new and exciting world of wine for whoever receives your gift.

For good measure add a bottle of wine with the first issue. Reveilo has a Christmas gift package with their wines in custom crafted jute bags, which are also filled with fine chocolates.

Ultra-luxury Silversea Cruises is toasting the New Year with an exciting new collection of 11 Wine Series Voyages for 2009. Pick an itinerary of your choice on Silversea, an award-winning cruise line, and indulge your love for wine in luxury, Reva Singh advises.

There's talk that the spring Bordeaux En Primer might be cancelled.

Indage Vineyards' Platinum and Gold series wines were launched at EnVogue, the fashion bar, in Pune on 11th December 2008, in time for the Festive Season. The wines' butterfly logo is indicative of the metamorphosis of the company that started in 1982 and has developed into the largest wine producer in India, with a wide range of brands across various price points, reports Brinda Gill.

Here's a question : Does wine get better with age ? If you've answered 'Of course stupid!', here's some news for you. Wineries in China have started scientific trials using electric fields to speed up the process of ageing wine.

The India International Food and Wine Show (IFOWS) is all set to take place at The Lalit (formerly InterContinental The Grand), Barakhamba Avenue, Connaught Place, New Delhi from 15th to 17th January 2009.

With the success of the first, one-of-its-kind, wine tasting festival held in 2007, wine enthusiasts in Pune had long been looking forward to this year’s festival. The event saw 12 wineries offering more than 50 wines, including award-wining wines for tasting at the festival. Brinda Gill has the story.

Kevin Arnold, winemaker and part owner of Waterford Estate in Stellenbosch, South Africa chats briefly with Shivani Dogra about his estate, wines and India as a market. Waterford Estate is situated in the picturesque Blaauwklippen Valley, in the world-renowned Stellenbosch region.

Interest in organic wine is on the increase, reports Shivani Dogra, as consumers worldwide – and in India – are now becoming more aware and concerned about the food they eat and what they drink. The focus today is not only on what pleases the palate, but on what's good for health.

Hannes Myburgh, the owner of Meerlust, said, "The first vintage of Pinot Noir on the Estate was produced in 1980 and I am grateful that our perseverance has paid off after many attempts. I have always been a great fan of this variety and my biggest regret at this moment is that we could not have made more of the 2004 Pinot." The Pinot Noir received the five star rating in the 2009 Platter guide.

The Government of India has not acceded to the request of private broadcasters to withdraw its notification prohibiting surrogate advertising on television. The driving reason behind the government's refusal to change the law is the widespread violations of the advertising code. The government also believes that these advertisements have a negative impression on minors.

We are all still recovering from the tragic events of 26/11. Our wounds will not heal overnight. Those terrorist attacks were personal and as Indians we all feel the pain. But coverage of the attacks would not be complete without drawing attention to the human courage, selfless service, endurance and professionalism of the staff at the hotels and restaurants affected by the tragedy. Shiv Singh reflects on the supreme courage of the hospitality staff and what it means.

The horrific tragedy of 26/11 is still fresh in our minds. And outside of the victims and their families, no one is probably suffering more than the hospitality industry. The wine business in India is going to take an obvious hit too. But how much will businesses suffer and how quickly will it bounce back? We asked five of India's leading wine importers for their opinions.

Come November and the entire North India gets into an affectionate winter hug, while other parts run amok, no longer wary of the heat, writes Kulpreet Yadav. It is that time of the year when ambition is ripe with romantic escapades; the heart is aflutter with festive excitement, and the mouth, off course, salivates just at the thought of good food and great wines.

Brindco, importers of fine wine and spirits, along with well known Italian wine producer, Allegrini recently hosted a small and intimate tasting at the restaurant Manré in New Delhi's Metropolitan Mall. The wines included some of the most awarded wines, including Amarone Della Valpolicella Classico DOC 2004, which received 93 points by the Wine Spectator in July 2008. Rahoul Singh was present at the tasting.

On a rather warm Tuesday evening a select few invitees had the chance to experience the pairing of French Cordon bleu cuisine with the Indian wine – Zampa. Beckoning us from the entrance were the bold though artistically themed posters of their campaign tag line – "Unmask your soul". Suneeta Kanga reports

In light of the recent deplorable terrorist attacks in Mumbai, the India International Wine Fair (IIWF) decided to postpone the 2008 India International Wine Fair to 16th - 18th March, 2009 at the same venue, the Grand Hyatt, Mumbai. If you have any questions, please contact the IIWF team by email at iiwf@informa.in or by phone at +91 22 4020 3344.

The last thing you want to do is look clumsy when you're opening a bottle of Champagne this holiday season. Not only will your friends snicker but you may also lose a lot of good Champagne in the process. Here are the basic steps to remember when you have a bottle in your hand.