Wines Of India

In its latest initiative, the Indian Grape Processing Board is showcasing nine Indian wineries at the Geneva Festival (August 4 to 14, 2011) where India is the guest of honour this year. These are, in alphabetical order, Four Seasons, Fratelli, Grover, Mercury, Sula, Vintage Wines, Vallone, York and Zampa. Visitors to the IGPB stand at the Indian Village can not only taste the wines but ask questions from a trained Indian sommelier.

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SI Ticker Tape: Wines of India in Switzerland - Sommelier India (blog)

August 09: Most Indians do not realise that Switzerland too makes high quality wines but neither do Swiss know about the recent wine industry developments in India. Participation of wines from nine Indian wineries in the ongoing annual Festival in Geneva from August 5-14 will give the Swiss a chance to taste and learn about the Indian wines, thanks to an opportunity that fell into the lap of the Indian Grape Processing Board.

August 09: Most Indians do not realise that Switzerland too makes high quality wines but neither do Swiss know about the recent wine industry developments in India. Participation of wines from nine Indian wineries in the ongoing annual Festival in Geneva from August 5-14 will give the Swiss a chance to taste and learn about the Indian wines, thanks to an opportunity that fell into the lap of the Indian Grape Processing Board. ‘Fetes de Geneve’ is the annual Geneva Festival where India has been invited as the Guest of Honour country- ‘Inde-invité d’honneur’, as the invite on their website says in French. ‘Great Mélange-the Incredible India Journey’ campaign of the Indian Tourism and Development Corporation also includes the journey through Maharashtra and Karnataka wine regions, with wines from 9 Indian wineries making the Swiss exclaim ‘Incredible!’, (does India make wine too!) while tasting wines at the Wines of India stand erected by the Indian Grape Processing Board.

The other thing that has been surprising the visitor is that India has been accepted as the 45th member of OIV- the ‘United Nations of Wine’ where only governments can become members and IGPB has been able to get a complete membership in a relative short time and that too with a unanimous vote. Switzerland of course is not only a member but also has a Swiss, François Murisier as the Vice President of this prestigious organization.

The other thing that has been surprising the visitor is that India has been accepted as the 45th member of OIV- the ‘United Nations of Wine’ where only governments can become members and IGPB has been able to get a complete membership in a relative short time and that too with a unanimous vote. Switzerland of course is not only a member but also has a Swiss, François Murisier as the Vice President of this prestigious organization. ‘We were approached by the Ministry of Tourism to send Indian wines for the 2500 sq ft Incredible India stand. We approached our winery members and 9 of them agreed to showcase their wines. Sula, Four Seasons, York, Mercury, Vintage Wines, Fratelli Vallone, Zampa, Grover decided to give us the wines that were air-freighted by us to Geneva,’ said a senior official of the IGPB in an interview with delWine yesterday.’ Red, white, Rose and Sparkling wines are all represented through these wineries. A not-so-surprising omission is Indage which till recently was taking part in all such shows.

Incredible India Wines in Switzerland - Indian Wine Academy

I’ve been selling the wines of Sula Vineyards for over a decade in the retail shops that I’ve managed and also to many top Sommeliers, these wines may be from India but they pair well with many cuisines.

Wines of India with Rupendhar Kanuri! - CHS Capitol Hill Seattle

Fruit wines have also been available in Himachal Pradesh for a number of years, where local rules allow for easy licensing, and any retailer can sell the locally-produced wines with low one-time duty and no further involvement of the state excise machinery. What used to be Sutter Home is now sold under the “Waterfall Wines” label. At Rs 150-250/bottle, peach, pear, plum, strawberry and rhododendron are some of the more popular varieties.

In Shillong, where a ‘Wine Festival’ has been organised every October/November by Michael Syiem of the Forever Young Club for the past seven years. By all accounts this is a delightful affair, set around a pool, with gaily-coloured stalls dishing out wines made from pineapple, cherries, passion fruit, flowers, and a little-known local plum called ‘Sohiyong’.

In Bangalore, such (Port-style wines from table grapes or raisins) wines were even sold in selected retail stores (at Rs 50-100 per bottle) right up to the mid-1990s, until some excise official decided to declare this practice illegal. Now, with the easy availability of “Wine Boutique” and wine production licences in Karnataka, perhaps some home wine-makers may venture forth once again.

Of course, it was in Goa that Port-style wines were first produced. While most of the brands now available are “ad-mix” wines (slightly-fermented grape juice, with spirit, colour, sugar and flavour added to taste), a few stalwarts still produce their wines in the old style. Foremost in this area are Vinicola (whose winery is behind octogenarian Dr D’Costa’s beautiful 100 year-old bungalow) and Madame Rosa (from the Vaz family, better known for their spirits, packed in bottles shaped like violins and oak casks). Unfortunately, due to high inter-state taxes, few Goan wines are available outside any more.

Craft wines of India - Business Standard - Indian Wine Portal (blog)

Launching the ?India Show 2011 today, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma said India will sign two major market-opening pacts with Japan and Malaysia in February. The government recently concluded negotiations for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) with Japan and a Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA) with Malaysia.

Singapore Trade and Industry Minister Lim Hng Kiang said that Singaporean companies are keen to explore opportunities in India.  ?Singapore too has much to offer to Indian companies who are keen to gain foothold in Asia. Indian companies with operation in the region can centralise their functions in Singapore to plan and carry out a range of key business activities including investment planning and coordination, financial control and treasury functions and market development,? Lim said. ?Indian companies can also use Singapore as a launch pad for trading and investment activities in the region.? ... contd.

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Trade pacts with Japan, Malaysia in February - Indian Express