Abhay Kewadkar, Chief Wine Maker and Business Head, United Spirits Ltd (Wines), spoke to Brinda Gill about Four Seasons wines, recently launched in Pune, with Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc and a Rosé (a Blush Zinfandel). "The wines have been crafted taking into consideration the expression of the grape and are perfect (100%) varietals," Kewadkar said.

Vintage Wines, makers of Reveilo, in association with The Club, Mumbai's prestigious club and UpperCrust magazine came together to make Sunday, 22 February 26, 2009 a very exciting and glamorous one with the first grape crushing event in the ambient surroundings of The Club. Suneeta Kanga joined the grape stompers on Sommelier India's behalf. Pictured to the right are Suneeta Kanga, Alex Kuruvilla, Shweta Keswani and Pooja Bedi.

Formerly known as the National Wine Board, the Indian Grape Processing Board was launched on 25 February 2009 at Le Meridien, Pune. Our correspondent, Brinda Gill was present. With white mist wafting across the curtain and dramatic music filling the banquet hall, Subodh Kant Sahai, the Hon'ble Minister of State, Ministry of Food Processing Industries, unveiled the logo of the Indian Grape Processing Board.

A glass of wine, in general has fewer calories than a glass of whisky, rum or vodka. However, within the realm of wines, there are some wines that have lower calories than others, notes Sommelier India contributor, Sonal Holland, and Wine Advisor, WSET Certified - Advanced levels. Technically speaking, there is no category called a low calorie wine. However, wines with lower alcohol levels have fewer calories than those with higher levels.

UB group launched the Four Seasons range of wines in Pune on 22 February 2009 in the beautiful premises of Fort Jadhavgadh Hotel's poolside. The event was an interesting medley of beachwear fashion showcasing Sabah Noor of Sade's collections, and the newly launched Wine. A belly dancer from Canada made matters even more interesting.

Mushal Merlot 2006 won a Bronze Medal at the Grand Harvest Awards - 2009! Our wine is being recognized, visit our web site Mushal.com, writes Avtar Singh Sandhu. Coupled with the eight Oscars for Slumdog Millionaire, this is the year of the Indians. Unfortunately, the Mumbai attacks have affected our celebrations. But, hopefully we will overcome that terrible incident and dedicate ourselves to helping those who suffered - and bounce back.

A cool Thursday evening in New Friends Colony in Delhi witnessed a cool gathering of a convivial bunch of people from all over the world. The Yum Yum Tree hosted the evening on the restaurant's intimate terrace (which certainly kept the smokers happy throughout the evening). The wine dinner was themed 'France, France, France!' and was an attempt at matching some classic wine styles from France to the East-Asian cuisine that Yum Yum expounds so well.

The other night I had the unique privilege of dining with a member of the Frescobaldi family in Delhi at a special wine dinner, writes Reva Singh. Right:Leonardo Frescobaldi, President, Marchesi de' Frescobaldi Societa' Agricola S.r.l. A family of medieval bankers who were prominent in Florentine business and politics and who financed the wars of Edward I and II of England, the Frescobaldi began producing Tuscan wine in 1308 from grapes planted on the hillsides around Florence, and soon acquired some very distinguished customers.

Over the last few years we've been reading about how wine sales in India are going great guns. India was supposed to be the fastest-growing wine market in the world. Despite all the problems and constraints faced by both domestic producers and importers, volumes were growing at 25% plus annually, and total volumes were forecast to increase from 1.2 million cases in 2007/08 to five million cases in five years and 50 m cases in 20. Poppycock, says Alok Chandra who contends that the current state of affairs is simply not acceptable.

I would like to have one of my queries answered. Is it possible to produce wine from pomegranates? I come from Junnar (Taluka) of Pune District. I have 20 acres of land under pomegranates and have contacts with farmers around who are ready to jump into the business of winemaking. I can arrange 100 acres of pomegranate land for this business. If you have any ideas, please respond to Tushar by posting your comments here. Thank you. Ed.

Restaurant launches, new wine lists and wine accessories, trips to winelands, I have been "working" and it is good to see people picking up the revelries where they had left off temporarily to go and salvage whatever was left of their stocks. Magandeep Singh discusses the wine scene.

On Friday, 6th February, Vallee di Vin with their Zampa range of three wines showcased their bouquet to the members of The Wine Society at a wine dinner at the Shangri-la Hotel. Paul Bailey, Zampa's experienced Australian wine maker specially came down from Nashik for the evening. Paul spoke about the wines and his philosophy of winemaking and how wines could be paired with Indian cuisine to a gathering of over 70.

The build up to the India International Wine Fair 2009 has exceeded the wine industry's expectations and with just a few weeks to go, this event can now boast of being the largest wine event on the continent. 
Sommelier India is the print media partner for the India International Wine Fair 2009. Where else would you rather be from 16th - 18th March?

The horrible Australian bushfires has resulted in destruction in the Yarra Valley wine region near Melbourne. More than 130 people have been left death across the state of Victoria. The Roundstone winery and restaurant were burned to the ground and other Yarra wineries including Domaine Chandon, Lance Family Vineyards and Punt Road were partially damaged.

Boutique wine producer Mandala Winery has tied up with Nasik-based York Winery Pvt Ltd (YWPL) for the production of wines under its brand. "Presently, we produce about 10000 cases of wines per year and the aim is to increase this volume by 50 to 60 per cent year on year," says Ramesh Rao, Managing Director, Mandala Valley Vineyards.

We haven't made it out to Connaught Place this week as yet but the word on the ground is that the DSIIDC wine shop in CP is sporting a new look. The newly renovated store is apparently carrying over 300 wine brands in an air-conditioned fancy space. Check it out and let us know whether it's worth a visit. Click for their foreign and domestic wine prices. Keep in mind the wine price lists also include other liquor.

Though both chocolates and bottles of wine form a great valentine's gift, it is combining the two that needs a bit of practice. With Valentine's Day just around the corner it is perhaps the most opportune moment to try and see how the two can go well with each other. For starters, not many agree that chocolate and wine go very well. Kulpreet Yadav shares his opinion.

Rosé wines have long been misunderstood and it's time to give them their due. The best examples can hold their own very well and need no apology. In Provence, for example, grapes intended for rosé will only make rosé and great care is taken in their making. Rosalyne Gavoty of Domaine Gavoty an inland estate in Provence states categorically that rosé is not a dustbin for red wines. It is a wine in its own right. Tasting wines from Provence at the French Embassy in New Delhi.

I've always liked TripAdvisor and not too long ago I shared the stage with its global CEO at a summit in New York. What makes TripAdvisor special is that it aggregates 22 million consumer reviews and ratings of hotels around the world. So when three Indian hotels; the Jas Vilas of Jaipur, The Taj Rambagh Palace also of Jaipur, and the Oberoi Grand of Kolkata -- were listed in various top 100 hotel categories, I knew it was a recommendation to be trusted. The complete lists for all categories are after the jump. Shiv Singh has the story.

The dates for the tasting of the 2008 Bordeaux vintage, as organised by the UGC or Union des Grands Crus, have been confirmed for the week of Monday 30 March to Friday 3 April 2009. This promises to be an interesting En Primeur or barrel tasting as wine is not selling as it usually does due to the global economic downturn. In fact, some believe its a bad idea to hold it this year.

The small group of guests who were invited to Olive Beach Bangalore for a wine tasting were in for a big surprise for it was an unusual, even irreverent tasting, reports Ruma Singh. New in India, the wines were from Australian producer Casella Wines' famous [yellow tail] stable.

As a result of the current financial meltdown, there has been a growing demand for 2nd Growth Grand Cru Bordeaux, and the "second" wines of the top chateaux. Indeed, you may not be compromising very much in buying these wines because their quality is often very close to the First Growths. Pictured to the left is a wine from Chateau Brane Cantenac, a leading Bordeaux 2nd Growth.

In an interesting article on the web, "Obama Raises the Bar"
by John Dickerson, Slate Magazine reports Barack Obama had a drinks party at the White House on January 28 and invited congressional leaders of both parties. He obviously believes that sobering times do not necessarily require everyone to be sober. In the article click on 'drank heavily' to find out exactly how much the Founders drank!

At the first ever serious tasting of wines by Sommelier India - The Wine Magazine, a group of wine professionals got together with SI publisher, Reva Singh to taste wines produced from the Monastrell grape in the Murcia region of Spain. The tasting was ably coordinated by SI contributor and sommelier, Harshal Shah. Read more about these wines in Sommelier India, March/April 2009. Also present were Andrew Steele, General Manager, Shangri La Hotel, Rukn Luthra, Asst VP - Wines, Pernod Ricard, India, and Bill Marchetti, chef and restaurateur in India and Australia.

Who's to say that Indian winemakers don't have a place in the world of wine. The Mushal Merlot 2006 won a bronze Medal in the San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition. The 2008 competition featured an astounding 4,235 entries of American wine and is the largest competition of its kind in America. Mushal Winery Vineyards is owned and managed by Avtar Singh Sandhu. Pictured above in his vineyard. Mushal Vineyards is named after Sandhu's village in the Punjab. In India the wine is available at the Hotel Imperial, several of the Taj Hotels and in some wine shops in Delhi too.