Drink to that

The just-concluded Sula Festival drew connoisseurs,tourists and revellers. As a market leader,Sula enjoys a special status. Rajeev Samant,founder and CEO of Sula Vineyards,is surprised at the way the wine market has grown. “Good Indian wine at a good price,that’s what the consumers were waiting for,” says the Stanford graduate,who has in the last decade expanded his operations from the family-owned 30 acres of land to nearly 1,500 acres (both owned and contracted).

Sula’s success story has had a domino effect. Several Indian wine makers have hit the market over the last decade. The Maharashtra Grape Processing Industrial Policy,which waived off excise duty on home-made wines in 2001,had given a major push to the fledgling sector. Though wine is still considered an elite drink,its popularity is largely engineered by upwardly mobile professionals and the new-age Indian woman. “Wine has become a favourite with women,who form 40 per cent of Sula’s consumers,” Samant says. Reva K Singh,editor of Sommelier India,offers more insight. “As our economy opened up and we adopted a more cosmopolitan lifestyle,wine became a natural choice for the sophisticated urbanite. And it has become increasingly popular at all levels with exposure and education. It’s stylish,it’s fun,it’s healthier than spirits,” she says.

From a mere four wineries a decade back,Maharashtra now has 68 of India’s 74 wineries. The state boasts of more than a lion’s share when it comes to grape cultivation with 8,000 acres dedicated to it. In the rest of India,it is only around 1,000 acres. Delhi,Mumbai,Bangalore and Goa have been major wine markets and cities like Kolkata,Jaipur,Hyderabad and Chennai are getting into the groove.
But cynics say the growth rate of India’s wine industry has never been close to China’s. Yet most believe the growth potential is higher here — simply because we have just set out and wine for Indians is still a novelty.

The good news is that the domestic wine industry,which was called a sunrise sector,not so long ago,has bounced back. “We ended the December quarter with a 45 per cent hike in our sales,” says Samant,who is hopeful of stepping up the momentum in 2010. Like him,Kapil Grover of Grover Wines,too,is looking forward to good times and aims to keep up the 20 per cent growth of his over two-decade-old business. Director of Vintage Wines,Kiran Patil,is also hopeful of similar growth rate for their label,Reveilo,while the likes of York Wines are confident of making their mark in India this year.

The signs of a recuperating market are clear from the weekend revelries at the vineyards: Zampa opened its doors to grape-crushers recently while York plans to follow suit in March. And it won’t be long before wine tourism gets on in full swing once again. This,irrespective of the fact that Chateau Indage’s Tiger Hills Resort and Spa in Nashik has not been a crowd-puller of late. “Sula is building 15 rooms adjacent to its villa,Beyond,which will be part of our upcoming resort and spa,” says Chaitanya Rathi,senior manager-business development of the company.

The eagerness to be part of the success story is evident in the fact that Patil and her husband Yatin left their high-paying jobs to set up a winery in Niphad,nearly an hour’s drive from Nashik. “When we started,there were just a couple of companies around. The competition has now stepped up,thanks to a constant flow of imported wines and also established liquor companies who are venturing into the wine sector. Global wine majors like E&J Gallo,Moet Hennessy,Veuve Clicquot,Diageo and Pernod Ricard setting up shop in India. Even liquor giants like UB Group started up a wine division,” she says.

This apart,supermarkets have brought in major changes in wine retailing. For those wanting to take pleasure in their swirl-smell-sip routine in a more elite setup,wine clubs have come up in Delhi,Mumbai,Bangalore,and even Chandigarh.
The global players,however,have reasons to crib. They feel India,especially states like Maharashtra with an intimidating 100 per cent excise duty on imported wine,is not a level-playing field. Craig Wedge of FineWinesnMore,a Mumbai-based wine importer and distributor,says,“There has to be a equilibrium in the market.” But the well-heeled aren’t complaining. “In spite of steep pricing,imported wines have found acceptance among the affluent,who have acquired a taste for it,” says Moksh Sani,managing director of Living Liquidz,a chain of 42 liquor outlets across Mumbai.

Amid such optimism,Grover is a self-confessed voice of minority. “Wine is always going to remain an elite drink,” he says,though he doesn’t doubt that the community of wine-drinkers will increase steadily. This means,the dominance of whisky in the Indian market,followed by other spirits,will remain unshaken for years to come. uFROM the vantage point of Sula’s testing room in Nashik,the horizon seems embroidered with Nine Hills. The sun is retiring for the day,sliding behind the Godavari dam. As far as the eye can see,the valley is devoted to grapes. The ground below the testing room still bears traces of the weekend’s grape-stomping session.

In Nashik,India’s wine capital,it will soon be harvesting season and a time for bonhomie. At least 50 wineries have made Nashik and nearby areas such as Niphad and Dindori their homes. They are looking at a resurgence in 2010. “Post the twin blows of recession and the Mumbai terror attacks (when tourist inflow was severely affected),India’s wine industry had taken a beating for the first time since 2002,” says Jaideep Kale of Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation. Now of course,it is time for celebration.

The just-concluded Sula Festival drew connoisseurs,tourists and revellers. As a market leader,Sula enjoys a special status. Rajeev Samant,founder and CEO of Sula Vineyards,is surprised at the way the wine market has grown. “Good Indian wine at a good price,that’s what the consumers were waiting for,” says the Stanford graduate,who has in the last decade expanded his operations from the family-owned 30 acres of land to nearly 1,500 acres (both owned and contracted).

Sula’s success story has had a domino effect. Several Indian wine makers have hit the market over the last decade. The Maharashtra Grape Processing Industrial Policy,which waived off excise duty on home-made wines in 2001,had given a major push to the fledgling sector. Though wine is still considered an elite drink,its popularity is largely engineered by upwardly mobile professionals and the new-age Indian woman. “Wine has become a favourite with women,who form 40 per cent of Sula’s consumers,” Samant says. Reva K Singh,editor of Sommelier India,offers more insight. “As our economy opened up and we adopted a more cosmopolitan lifestyle,wine became a natural choice for the sophisticated urbanite. And it has become increasingly popular at all levels with exposure and education. It’s stylish,it’s fun,it’s healthier than spirits,” she says.

From a mere four wineries a decade back,Maharashtra now has 68 of India’s 74 wineries. The state boasts of more than a lion’s share when it comes to grape cultivation with 8,000 acres dedicated to it. In the rest of India,it is only around 1,000 acres. Delhi,Mumbai,Bangalore and Goa have been major wine markets and cities like Kolkata,Jaipur,Hyderabad and Chennai are getting into the groove.
But cynics say the growth rate of India’s wine industry has never been close to China’s. Yet most believe the growth potential is higher here — simply because we have just set out and wine for Indians is still a novelty.

The good news is that the domestic wine industry,which was called a sunrise sector,not so long ago,has bounced back. “We ended the December quarter with a 45 per cent hike in our sales,” says Samant,who is hopeful of stepping up the momentum in 2010. Like him,Kapil Grover of Grover Wines,too,is looking forward to good times and aims to keep up the 20 per cent growth of his over two-decade-old business. Director of Vintage Wines,Kiran Patil,is also hopeful of similar growth rate for their label,Reveilo,while the likes of York Wines are confident of making their mark in India this year.

The signs of a recuperating market are clear from the weekend revelries at the vineyards: Zampa opened its doors to grape-crushers recently while York plans to follow suit in March. And it won’t be long before wine tourism gets on in full swing once again. This,irrespective of the fact that Chateau Indage’s Tiger Hills Resort and Spa in Nashik has not been a crowd-puller of late. “Sula is building 15 rooms adjacent to its villa,Beyond,which will be part of our upcoming resort and spa,” says Chaitanya Rathi,senior manager-business development of the company.

The eagerness to be part of the success story is evident in the fact that Patil and her husband Yatin left their high-paying jobs to set up a winery in Niphad,nearly an hour’s drive from Nashik. “When we started,there were just a couple of companies around. The competition has now stepped up,thanks to a constant flow of imported wines and also established liquor companies who are venturing into the wine sector. Global wine majors like E&J Gallo,Moet Hennessy,Veuve Clicquot,Diageo and Pernod Ricard setting up shop in India. Even liquor giants like UB Group started up a wine division,” she says.

This apart,supermarkets have brought in major changes in wine retailing. For those wanting to take pleasure in their swirl-smell-sip routine in a more elite setup,wine clubs have come up in Delhi,Mumbai,Bangalore,and even Chandigarh.
The global players,however,have reasons to crib. They feel India,especially states like Maharashtra with an intimidating 100 per cent excise duty on imported wine,is not a level-playing field. Craig Wedge of FineWinesnMore,a Mumbai-based wine importer and distributor,says,“There has to be a equilibrium in the market.” But the well-heeled aren’t complaining. “In spite of steep pricing,imported wines have found acceptance among the affluent,who have acquired a taste for it,” says Moksh Sani,managing director of Living Liquidz,a chain of 42 liquor outlets across Mumbai.
Amid such optimism,Grover is a self-confessed voice of minority. “Wine is always going to remain an elite drink,” he says,though he doesn’t doubt that the community of wine-drinkers will increase steadily. This means,the dominance of whisky in the Indian market,followed by other spirits,will remain unshaken for years to come.