It was a special evening to remember for lovers of French wine. Finewinesnmore, the Mumbai-based wine import company presented French champagnes from the house of Canard-Duchene and a selection of wines from French winemaker M Chapoutier to wine lovers of Bangalore over a sumptuous sit-down dinner at the Grand Ballroom of the Leela Palace, Bangalore on Friday 29th May. By Ruma Singh.

Pictured above are Priyanka Mehra, FineWinesnMore, Ruma Singh of Sommelier India and President, Bangalore Wine Club, and Craig Wedge, Sr VP FineWinesnMore.

Gurgaon finally takes a lead over Delhi, if only in the realm of liquor retailing. Haryana, and by extension Gurgaon, has allowed the setting up of a shop-in-a-shop, by which a liquor store can be located in a large supermarket. It's a good, user friendly concept, says Raghu Bahadur, which will be welcomed by both the trade and the shopper.

Indage Vintners Ltd has recently entered into an MOU to form a Joint Venture with Cavit, an Italian wine company based in Trentino, Italy, reports Brinda Gill. The aim of the joint venture is to further leverage the production and distribution infrastructure of both companies to maximize potential sales and reduce cost of market entry in various defined markets.

A Second Growth from Margaux, Brane has been regarded as one of the top Bordeaux estates for centuries, writes Reva K Singh. Known originally as Château de Gorce, after the family who founded it in the 18th century, this great wine estate was producing excellent wines from the Médoc region of Bordeaux long before the 1855 classification. On June 3rd an exclusive vertical tasting of Brane-Cantenac wines from 2000 to 2007 will be held at The Oberoi, New Delhi. Leading the tasting will be the Château owner, Mr Henri Lurton. The tasting is organized by Brindco and Sommelier India with support from The Oberoi Group.

Wines, and the names they go by, has a bemused Raghu Bahadur wondering how vintners name their wines. How do you choose a name for your wine? It's in the New World (including India) that the question really becomes relevant for vintners. Starting from scratch and without benefit of a venerable tradition of wine production to draw upon when christening their wines, New World producers hit upon catchy and colloquial names to suit the zeitgeist of the times. Read the full article in the latest issue of Sommelier India.

Wine and classical music have a great deal in common. Just look at the vocabulary alone: words used to describe a good wine are strikingly similar to those used to characterise musical compositions - vivacious, effervescent, elegant, rich...

They say the best way to remove red wine stains is to douse the stain immediately with white wine. Other schools of thought recommend soaking the stained item with soda water. The trick is to apply the 'remedy' as soon as possible says Harshal Shah. First blot the stain with a clean, damp cloth until no more of the red wine can be lifted. Whatever you do, don't frantically rub the stain. It'll spread. Pour white wine over it. You can also use vinegar or salt instead.

According to French government statistics, households in France drank almost 10 percent less wine last year than in 2007. Exports by French vintners sank 15 percent by volume and almost 30 percent by value in the first quarter of 2009. "It's a phenomenon of the current economic situation, so we need to be prudent and not sound the alarm," said Xavier de Volontat, who heads an association of French vintners.

If you are looking for an authentic Asian meal paired with wine, especially when transiting at Mumbai's international airport, you could opt to dine at Pan Asian, at the ITC Maratha hotel located just outside the airport, suggests Brinda Gill. Executive Chef Liang Xiao Qing brings 30 years of culinary experience and young Australian sommelier, Amy Gutherie contributes her knowledge of wines to provide guests an enjoyable dining experience.

Why make a wine tasting a stiff affair where you frown at your glass as if your life depended on it and sniff wine ostentatiously? Why not make it fun, friendly, approachable--the social glue it was before we all started taking it a bit too seriously? Shiv Singh provides guidance on how to organize and conduct a successful wine tasting for wine lovers and friends at home.

As part of a whirlwind tour of southeast Asia, Alexandra Marnier Lapostolle spent two precious days in New Delhi, where amongst numerous other things she hosted a delightful dinner at the Manor hotel's restaurant, Indian Accent, writes Rahoul Singh.

Last week, wine and food lovers in Bangalore got the opportunity to taste some top-rated Italian wines, cheeses and pasta in a specially arranged series of events organized by EAT (European Art of Taste), a programme supported by the European Union and Italian Government that aims to present and promote the best of food and wine from Europe, writes Ruma Singh.

Search the Sommelier India Wines to Buy listings for wine choices, tasting notes, prices and food pairing suggestions. Nearly 500 wines are listed. Please tell us about wines that should be listed and errors in the existing listings. Email us your suggestions.

The enthusiasm for the Tasting Panel continued with the second tasting in what looks to become a popular feature of Sommelier India. Our regular panelists, Reva Singh, Rukn Luthra, Andrew Steele and Harshal Shah were joined by the very able Australian sommelier, Kavita Faiella, formerly with the impressive Conrad Resort in the Maldives and now Cellar Master at the Aman New Delhi. Among the range of Marlborough Sauvignon Blancs available in India, we were fortunate to taste eight, thanks to the various importers.

Don't miss the latest issue of Sommelier India which has just hit newsstands across the country. If you are a subscriber, you should have your copy by now. From articles on new grape varieties gaining ground and commentaries on the naming of wines to an analysis of Bordeaux 2008 by Steven Spurrier and pieces on pairing spices with wine, this issue is sure to inform, educate, entertain and impress you. It may even make you a little thirsty! Writers in this issue include Jancis Robinson, Raghu Bahadur, Harshal Shah, Ameeta Sharma, Sonal Holland, Stephane Soret and Preah Narang among others. View the full Table of Contents and Subscribe today.

A staggering 2.12 crore litres of wine is lying unsold for the past few months across vineyards in Maharashtra. Wine producers have been forced to cut production dramatically as the global recession has taken its toll on the wine industry. It is not only affecting the vineyard owners but also the farmers and importers. Everyone is suffering and the terrorist attacks in Mumbai last winter only made matters worse.

Pouilly-Fuissé (poo-ee fwee-say): a village (actually 2 villages, Pouilly and Fuisse) and white wine-producing region in the Maconnais ares of south-eastern Burgundy, close to northern Beaujolais. The grape in Pouilly-Fuissé is 100% Chardonnay. Pouilly-Fuissé wines are typically appley, slightly minerally (flinty) and often honeyed in aroma.

Indage Vintners Ltd has introduced a range of value-for-money wines to offer wine drinkers a choice of wines at a time of economic downturn, reports Brinda Gill. The new wines produced at the Indage winery at Narayangaon are being marketed under the brands South Bay, Silverton, Blue Elephant, Mojo and Trio. They are priced between Rs. 100 and 400.

It's a match made in 'green' heaven, and one that will also please lovers of Bordeaux Saint Emilion wines. Two big names in the French wine world have collaborated to make a special Saint Emilion Grand Cru entirely from organic grapes and utilizing the latest 'gentle' winemaking techniques. Ruma Singh reports.

The drive was long - and tedious towards the end, but my flagging spirit picked up on arrival at Amanbagh. So beautiful and peaceful were the surroundings of this Aman bagh or, literally, garden of peace, writes Reva Singh

List of champagnes Sommelier India Editor tasted at
The Champagne Experience at Amanbagh. See post above about Amanbagh. All these champagnes are available in India.

Most people cringe at the mention of plane food, with good reason. Luckily, if you're departing from the ultra modern Terminal 5 at London's Heathrow airport, we've got some good news, says Lindsay Groves . Celeb chef Gordon Ramsay has a restaurant under the rather unimaginative moniker, 'Plane Food' on the upper floor (post security).

At a special reception held at the French Embassy on April 30, 2009, Jérôme Bonnafont, Ambassador of France to India decorated Kanwal Grover owner of Grover Vineyards Ltd and his son, Kapil Grover, with the title of Officier du Mérite Agricole and Chevalier de l'Ordre National du Mérite, respectively. Both men have been indian wine pioneers. The Art Collection series was also launched which includes artists on Indian wine labels for the first time.