Discover cutting edge Indian, Australian and Italian wines. From home grown Sicilian varietals such as Nero d'Avola & Grillo to Spanish Tempranillo, from American oak aged Merlots and Cabernet Sauvignons to French oaked Chardonnays, wine aficionados will be spoilt for choice at the Bandra Wine Tasting Festival.
It's a good time to be in the auction business these days. Retail sales are flat but the auction business is strong, says Zachys Auction Director, Jeff Zacharia. Christie's Hong Kong wine sale "Modern Classics:A Selection from the SK Networks Collection" notched up an incredible HK$ 48.13 million (US$ 6.2 million) with 100% sell-through rate and several auction records broken."This is the highest sale total for Christie's Wine Sales in Hong Kong, wrote Olivia Lo
Here's good news that all Sommelier India subscribers and readers will be pleased to hear. Well-known wine writer and SI columnist, Jancis Robinson (whose bi-monthly column is avidly consumed by many of you in the pages of Sommelier India) has won a richly deserved honour.
Champagne sales around the world are picking up and production is expected to be higher this year after the slump following the economic downturn of 2008. The Comité Interprofessionnel du Vin de Champagne (CIVC) has limited the harvest to 10,500 kilogrammes per hectare. In 2009 the limit was 9,700kg/ha. According to the CIVC, the first half of 2010 saw an increase in global exports of nearly 40% particularly in exports to the New World.
Daniel Lorson, Director of Communication, CIVC, said, "If Champagne is the barometer of the economy, then we can say the global economy is recovering, because the shipments of Champagne have been doing very well since the last quarter of 2009."
Every year Bordeaux vintners nervously look towards the sky to see when the rains will come and what impact they'll have on the harvesting. Without much rain this summer, vineyard owners were getting nervous. Rain finally came a few days ago with 25mm falling across much of the Medoc, and between 15mm and 35mm fallling in Saint Emilion and Pomerol.
Here Philippe Dhalluin of Chateau Mouton Rothschild discusses the weather conditions. Courtesy Decanter magazine.
Wine Retail in India leaves much to be desired; nor is the price exactly encouraging considering the steep mark-up on duty paid wines in India. However, here's a tip for you: stock up on your favourite bottles at the duty free shops of international airports when you travel, even including our own Indira Gandhi International Airport, advises Reva K. Singh
The organizers of the Sommelier India WINE Competition (SIWC) are happy to announce that the wine competition will be held every alternate year, as is Vinexpo, France's biggest wine fair. This decision has been made after careful consideration of the wine market in India and abroad in the past year. The organizers who are committed to the growth of wine culture in India believe the Indian wine industry, as well as the wine consumer in India, would be best served by a bi-annual event.
Friday, September 24, 2010 has been designated International Grenache Day (IGD). For the first time this versatile varietal which is also the world's most widely planted red grape will be celebrated around the world by restaurants and wine merchants highlighting its all-round virtues, reports Reva K. Singh
Rémy Martin, Cognac House #2 in the world, produces VS and VSOP in 20ml and 750ml bottles. They also have Louis XIII which some people don't even associate with Rémy Martin as the name is so well known by itself, not only the brand behind it, writes Nicolas Palazzi from Cognac. In my opinion Louis XIII is a good product and the marketing around it is fantastic.
Three auctions of German fine wines and rarities are taking place on 24-26 September 2010 as part of the Centenary Celebrations of Verband Deutscher Prädikatsweingüter or VDP, the oldest national winegrower's association in the world. In all these years, their tradition of wine auctions has retained its function as a benchmark of the market for top German wines.
Scheduled for the first week in November, Wine Discovery New Zealand 2010 - a celebration of New Zealand's premium wines - alongside the International Conference of the Great Wine Capitals Global Network - promises to be a great event. Christchurch South Island is a new member of the Great Wine Capitals Global Network. Above: The Waipara Valley is the fastest growing wine region in New Zealand with around 80 vineyards
The Wine Society, Delhi, held its 15th Annual General Meeting on 14th August at The Park Hotel, Parliament Street, New Delhi. This was the first AGM held without its Founder & President, the late Ghulam Naqshband who passed away earlier this year. He was very involved with the Society till the very end and will be sorely missed by one and all, writes Vice President Bunty Singh
We were recently invited with a select few guests to spend a glorious Sunday evening to sip Sommelier India Wine Competition, (SIWC) 2009 award-winning wines from York combined with gourmet food at the very quaint and much talked about hip new restaurant, Pali Village Café, at Bandra, Mumbai, writes Suneeta Kanga.
Every great wine has a story. At YORK, it is the story of passion. The passion of the Gurnani family, who were into the hardware business in West Africa, to make skilfully crafted wines that transcend the mainstream. It is also about their aspiration to offer Indian wines to the global palate with pride. Pictured: York Reserve Shiraz 2008, a super varietal and SIWC 2009 Gold Winner
Discover cutting edge Indian, Australian and Italian wines. From home grown Sicilian varietals such as Nero d'Avola & Grillo to Spanish Tempranillo, from American oak aged Merlots and Cabernet Sauvignons to French oaked Chardonnays, wine aficionados will be spoilt for choice at the Bandra Wine Tasting Festival. 
