The Wine Society Of India

The Wine Society of India organises wine tasting and training events and vineyard tours. It is headquartered at Mumbai, but operates across the country, including cities like bangalore and Nashik.

Their educational programmes include an introduction to wine basics, including types and styles of wine, what to assess in a wine, famous red and white grape varietals, and how to taste, store and serve wine correctly.

Full Story: Upcoming events at The Wine Society of India - Indian Wine Portal (blog)

Full Story: Touring Nashik's wineries with The Wine Society of India - Indiatimes.com - Indian Wine Portal (blog)

While it’s interesting that they’ve tried to target a high-end niche market of golfers, it appears as if the site was put together for the ET Leaders Tour , and after the event, has been left fallow. The only recent updates I noticed were from news-wire services.

4Moles , started by Dinesh Thakur , who was MD at Buonguirno (India) prior to starting Goldfish Technologies. What it’s interesting is that 4Moles allows users to book tee times at golf courses, though apparently limited to only three courses so far – AEPTA, Qutab and Noida Golf Course in Delhi/NCR. Given how difficult this is at some courses (at least in Delhi), this would be most useful. 4Moles also has a pro-shop, with clubs, kit and apparels, apart from “pre-owned” (used) items .

The Wine Society of India “, which also has much more information: on wine events, vineyard visits, a wine programme ; members have to buy two shipments of wine a year from the Wine Society to become members. The Indiatimes version of Wine Society of India is running house ads (Navbharat Times and Zigwheels, when I checked). There’s a subscription form in the About Us page , asking visitors to sign up for a weekly newsletter from Indiatimes and The Wine Society of India: perhaps this is more of a newsletter play, than a website play, from Indiatimes.

Full Story: Niche Sites From Indiatimes: GolfingTimes.in & Wine Society Of India - MediaNama.com (blog)

Price or brand is often the criteria while selecting wines. ?The whole romance and magic of drinking wine is lost when just selecting by brands,? says Sanjay Menon, a wine importer. Given that there isn?t a single permanent sommelier at any restaurant in this city, there aren?t many restaurant staffs that can educate customers. It is, therefore, not surprising when David Banford, Director of the Wine Society of India, says that his members ?hesitate to purchase wine that costs over Rs 1,500 simply because most don?t feel knowledgeable enough to appreciate it?.

Since we don?t have a culture of wine consumption, formal education may be the only way to learn about wine. Ideally, it would mean the education of those who suggest what wines to purchase as well as that of consumers. In the recent years, many people have stepped in to provide both formal and informal courses on wine, but these are scant.

Menon saw opportunity in conducting wine education and set up the KBR School of Wine (info@kbrwineschool.com) in 2007. This was primarily aimed at the hospitality industry. Three years on, it still hasn?t received the response from the industry that Menon expected, but consumers have been far more appreciative. ?The hospitality industry hasn?t really come forward to invest in training their staff. They feel that the staff they train will use the skills as leverage to move elsewhere,? he says. Accredited by the Wine and Spirits Education Trust, a British educational considered to be one of the leaders in its field, KBR is one of two such institutes that provides WSET certification.

Full Story: Wine courses aimed at professionals are gaining popularity amongst consumers - Indian Express

Stocks will be replenished constantly, ensuring fresh wine in great condition, all the time. Most of the several dozen labels stocked at the warehouse are exclusive to the warehouse, and are unavailable elsewhere. These include fine wine from great producers across the world, hard-to-find labels from boutique wineries, and some of India's crown jewels as well.

Customers will be able to browse through different sections (Old World, New World, Fine Wine) and handle bottles, books and wine accessories, while getting a behind-the-scenes peek at how a wine storage facility works. Every fortnight (beginning this Friday), educational tastings will be conducted here, to familiarize customers with different wine styles, from around the world.

The Grand Opening will include a free sampling of several wines from their Summer Selection, and a free gift to those who make a purchase (of three bottles or more) on the night.

Full Story: India's first temperature-controlled wine warehouse! - Sommelier India (blog)