Indian wines are all set to sizzle at the London Olympics. The Agricultural and Processed Foods Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) along with the All-India Wine Producers? Association (AIWPA) has been attempting to make Indian wines popular in overseas markets. Accordingly, Indian wines are beginning to make an appearance at several international food shows in Washington DC, France and Tokyo. This time, APEDA is promoting Indian wines at the London Olympics.
A team of wineries from India will be in London on August 1 and 2, and give the people a taste of Indian wines. Indian wine majors including Sula Wines, UB Group?s Four Seasons, Chateau de Ori, Rajdheer Wines and Flamingo Wines among others would be putting an appearance at this show, officials said. The show has been organised by the Indian High Commission. The Indian Spice Board is also expected to showcase Indian spices here.
?The Indian wine growth story is entering its second decade. In the last 10 years, the industry has seen several ups and downs, and has now begun to move towards stability. Indian wines are now reaching a take-off stage and instead of just making wines, wineries in the country are now beginning to talk about quality,? Jagadish Holkar, the chairman of Indian Grape Processing Board (IGPB) and president, AIWMA said. Of the country?s 92 wineries, Maharashtra is home to 74. There are 36 wineries in Nashik, 12 in Pune, 13 in Sangli, five in Solapur, four in Usmanabad, three in Buldhana and one in Latur.
Since 2001, India has possibly been the fastest-growing wine market worldwide, and the one that is viewed with huge interest by winemakers everywhere. Indian wine made a major dent in the overseas markets last year with the upmarket British grocery chain Waitrose becoming the first UK supermarket to line up its liquor shelves with wine from India. With the London Olympics, Indian winery owners feel they would get better exposure to international markets. Indian wine consumption could touch 2.4 million (nine-litre) cases by 2020, London-based market researcher IWSR says. The report pointed out that expansion has been hindered by difficulties of trading on the Indian market, such as a limited number of skilled importers, underdeveloped infrastructure and retail system as well as taxes and licences. After a couple of bad years, the Indian wine industry has begun to find its feet with the first consolidation in March this year with the Bangalore-based Grover Vineyards merging its operations with Vallee De Vin, the makers of Zampa valuing the company at an estimated R100 crore. Now, there are reports of Reliance Capital buying 18% stake in Grover Zampa, the merged company of Vallee De Vin and Grover Vineyards.
According to Holkar, lower prices were pushing sales. ?A bottle of country liquor costs R150 a bottle, a bottle of beer R110 while an entry level wine costs R100 a bottle and this is encouraging consumers to atleast try out wines for the first time. Sales in rural areas are on the rise,? he said without giving specifics. Wineries in India produced 7 million litres of wine this season and hereon the consumption levels are expected to rise and, therefore, the industry should grow, he said.
According to AIWPA, there was an estimated 30%-35% jump in sales over the past three months. Wines such as Sula?s Samara Red, Vinsura?s Valentino, Migo from Renaissance and Figuera by Indage, are among the leading ones which led the growth chart. Fratelli Wines, a new entrant in the industry managed to break-even with three different varieties of wine in 2010-11, its first year of operation. It is adding six new wines to their portfolio, targeting different price segments and expecting an increase in sales of around 20-25% in FY12.
Meanwhile, IGPB has been working on a comprehensive legislation to regulate wine-making and improving industry standards. The objective is to create an identity for Indian wines in the international market. India has accepted membership of the International Organization on Vine and Wine (OIV) and this would entail adopting wine-related international rules, regulations and laws.
