A fortnight ago wine lovers in Delhi were treated to excellent wines from Bordeaux at a dinner hosted by Brindco at The Aman. The evening began in the Cellar with Champagne Pommery to prime us for the wines to come, writes Reva K. Singh. After that we moved upstairs to the restaurant which was decorated with Autumn leaves in shades of russet gold, strewn on the floor and scattered on dining tables to seat four or six.

The International Food & Drink Expo India arrives in New Delhi. Don't miss it. When: December 2-4, 2009. Where: Pragati Maidan, New Delhi. Exhibitors from around the world, including Australia, Austria, Italy, France, South Africa and the USA are showcasing a diverse range of new to market products to Indian food, drink and hospitality professionals.

Not even a furious downpour in the early hours of 15 November on the day of the Bandra Wine Tasting experience could dampen Bandra's spirits for long, writes Suneeta Sodhi Kanga. The sun soon came out and bathed Mumbai in warm rays that soaked up all the unfortunate puddles and had the D'Monte Park Recreation Centre (DPRC) looking festive and welcoming again! And the Pune Gourmet Club (PGC) was set to take Mumbai by storm with the first ever Bandra Wine Tasting Festival under the Celebrate Bandra umbrella! Pictured above: Darius Chichgur, Pramila Sodhi, Suneeta Kanga and Shankaranarayan

The Sommelier India Wine Competition will be held between November 19th and 20th, 2009 at the ITC Grand Central, Mumbai. With over 400 Indian and foreign wines being entered from all the major wine producers and importers, the competition is set to be a resounding success. For details on attending the Gala Dinner, please email na@indianwinemagazine.com

Brindco, in association with Sommelier India - The Wine Magazine, recently hosted an exclusive wine dinner at the 360 Degrees restaurant of The Oberoi, New Delhi to introduce a fine selection of Italian wines and Italian food prepared specially by world renowned chef, Rolando Beramendi of Allegrini, which is a leading Italian wine producer from the Valpolicella area. Right: Brindco General Manager, Christophe Orlarei and Saurabh Srivastava with other guests.

Gourmet delicacies by candlelight...paired with 90 pointer plus wines from around the globe... what more can a wine lover really want? asks Ruma Singh. The members of the Bangalore Wine Club had their wish list for quality fulfilled when they gathered at Olive Beach, Bangalore, for the latest BWC event on 4th November, a sit-down dinner titled A Night with the Nineties.

Dharti Desai, CEO and founder of FineWinesnMore had the pleasure of hosting a fun-filled evening to announce the launch of MTB wines from Mendonza, Argentina at Blue Frog, Mumbai, on the 20th of October 2009. Suneeta Sodhi Kanga was there. Right: Dharti Desai, Mike Barrow, Suneeta Kanga and Craig Wedge.

The Sommelier India Wine Competition First Annual Gala Dinner will be held on November 20th, 2009 at the ITC Grand Central, Parel, Mumbai. Be there as the winners of the 2009 competition are revealed. Book now to confirm your place by emailing info@siwc.in. Special thanks to our sponsors Kingfisher Airlines, Grape to Glass (Riedel), AutoHanger (Mercedes Benz), Cadbury and Vacu Vin.

A wine tasting festival is being held on November 15th, 2009 at the D'Monte Park, Perry Road, Bandra, Mumbai starting at 11:30am. With several large wineries participating, the event will give you the opportunity to taste some of the best Indian wines and attend cooking shows too. Sommelier India subscribers get a special discount - a free fifth ticket and 50% off a wine bottle thermometer purchase at the festival if you buy four tickets. For more information visit www.winefest.in

This was a night of elegance and style: A Bangalore Wine Club sit-down dinner entitled, Reserves at the Palace on Saturday, October 24, 2009, which featured the first tasting of the Four Seasons Barrique Reserve wines by UB. This was something that those who follow Indian wine trends closely were looking forward to eagerly, writes Ruma Singh. Left: Abhay Kewadkar and Sanjay Roy of the UB Group

The launch of Living Liquidz - a luxurious liquor shopping experience along with the quaint Wine Bar 'n' Café at Tata Star Bazaar, Andheri, Mumbai - took place on the 10 October 2009. The evening started with some haunting music from the Argentinian music legend Natalio Faingold and his group, Space Garage, who had flown down especially from Mendonza for the opening, writes writes Suneeta Sodhi Kanga.
Right: Hosts of Living Liquidz - Moksh Sani along with guest of honour Kishen Kumar and Keith Sequiera

A rare masterpiece of Mughal art - a gold and silver wine flask, studded with jade, rubies and emeralds - is one of the highlights of a breathtaking new exhibition at London's Victoria and Albert Museum reports Sandra Westbrooke Made between 1600 and 1625, it was later presented to Robert Clive, who established British rule in India in 1757. Right:Gem studded wine flask.

The inaugural Sommelier India Wine Competition is round the corner on 19th November in Mumbai, chaired by world renowned wine critic, Steven Spurrier, with a distinguished jury of top Indian palates including chefs, wine buyers, hoteliers, sommeliers, journalists and wine producers, many of whom have a wine qualification. The competition is open to all wines at every price point including locally produced and high-end imported wines for fine dining and retail. The competition will be followed by a Gala Dinner on 20th November, at the ITC Grand Central, Mumbai. Click for reasons to participate. For more information visit www.siwc.in

Aspri, one of India's leading importers and distributors of premium wines and spirits, recently introduced us the Wine Masters Reserve range from Nederburg, South Africa. Nederburg, one of the best known and oldest South African wineries has been producing fine wines for over 200 years. It is part of the Distell group and has won many wine awards, in fact, more than any other winery in South Africa, reports Suneeta Sodhi Kanga from Mumbai
Left:Masters Reserve Pinotage 2007

"Welcome, welcome, welcome, welcome," gushed B. Shankaranarayan, Moderator, Pune Gourmet Club, as members and guests arrived at Trikaya restaurant, Pashan Road, Pune, to celebrate Pune Gourmet Club's third anniversary on Sunday, September 27, 2009.

Three welcomes he said were for the three enjoyable years gone by, and the fourth welcome was for the fourth year being ushered in! Left, above: Members of the Pune Gourmet Club celebrate their third Anniversary.