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March 2008 - Posts
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Michèle Shah, Wine, Food & Travel Writer/Journalist from Italy presents an insight into the perspective of the Italian wine makers towards the Indian wine market.
 India is an emerging wine market in which the culture of wine is still a developing concept. Though local production is ever increasing and imports are constantly rising, of the country’s 1.1 billion inhabitants, fewer than a million people drink wine and the total consumption, according to a survey carried out by Wine Business International, is less than 7 million litres. That is barely a tea-spoon full of wine per capita each year. Of that volume, only 1.5 million litres are imported and out of this volume the figures for 2006 stand at 198 thousand litres exported from Italy, equal to 22,000 (9 litre) cases of wine in bottle. (FAMIGLIA BARRICCAIA on picture)
Historically France has always dominated imports to India, but their market share is sliding every year, partly taken up by Italian wines, but the real competition comes from the New World brands, in particular Australia, California and Chile, producing fruitier, softer and an easier drinking style of wine.
“The Italian wine market in India is growing at a steady rate with wines from Tuscany and Piedmont dominating the market,” assures Aman Dhall of Brindco imports. This is confirmed by a study carried out by ICE (Istituto Commercio Estero) showing that Italian wine exports to India have increased by 32% over the period 2004 – 2005 and almost doubled reaching 62% over the period 2005 - 2006.
“This is a very encouraging factor,” acknowledges Massimo Tuzzi, Export manager for Zonin. “However, in relative terms when compared to global exports it is still a rather insignificant quantity. Even if the export figures double by the year, it will take a good many years before the Indian market develops into a solid export market with potential.”
This feature brings first hand comments from a number of well-established Italian producers exporting to India, as well as those who look to the Indian market as one of the bright emerging stars of the future.
THE FIRST IMPORTANT STEPS
Most Italian producers are unanimous in agreeing that one of the key factors is selecting an importer with whom to bond a long and lasting relationship, taking long-term views on branding.
“As with most markets it is important to spend time exploring the market, which means travelling to India, getting an idea of the local wine culture, looking at where wine is consumed, who drinks it, pricing policies and market trends,” explains Francesco Ricasoli, MD of Castello di Brolio, currently exporting their range of Brolio Chianti Classico, Formulae IGT and Casalferro IGT to India. “It's a fast growing market which still needs a massive input on wine culture”.
Alessia Antinori of Italy’s flagship estate, Marchesi di Antinori, agrees that visiting her importer, Sanjay Samant, at least once a year, holding tastings with clients and potential customers, is of absolute importance to convey the philosophy of the wines and production. Italy’s ‘cult’ producer Angelo Gaja emphasizes the importance of reciprocal trust between importer and producer, while stressing the need to target the right consumer, especially for niche, fine wines, such as his, which are produced in small quantities, at high prices.
“Finding the right importer who has a good distribution network and who can sustain the expense of investing in publicity campaigns, as well as being politically well-connected, is fundamental,” says Francesca Planeta of Planeta estate in Sicily, who has been exporting to India for the last four years with Brindco.
Giuseppe Pariani, export manager of Marchesi de’ Frescobaldi, Italy’s top brand in India agrees on the importance of understanding the local bureaucracy, and of having an importer who knows how to tackle what can be a very time consuming exercise.
“It’s necessary that one’s importer ‘partner’ obtains distribution permits in other states, as well as the authorization with the Reserve Bank of India for payments in foreign currency. All these are lengthy, time consuming business operations.” In 2007 Frescobaldi exported some 8,000 cases (9 litres each) of wine to India concentrating some 50% of exports on two ‘moderately’ priced wines: Pater and Danzante Pinot Grigio. The higher bracket of fine wines, currently growing, includes Brunello CastelGiocondo, Luce and Mormoreto.
CONSTRAINTS, LIMITATIONS AND TAXATION
According to Wine Business International, over the past five years, since the government liberalized the import of wine, consumption of imported wines has grown at a yearly average of 25% in spite of the high duties. Looking to the future, the increase in growth is expected to sustain itself, taking consumption to about 60 million litres over the next 10 years.
Each estate interviewed for this feature condemned taxation in India, which can reach a high of 500%, as being the principal negative factor in the export equation and the main culprit for the rocketing price of imported wines. Pressure from WTO on India’s government to lower taxation has been exerted a number of times, without success. The most recent agreement between WTO and India’s government suggests lowering taxation to 150%. But will this happen in the near future? According to certain local sources there is strong opposition to such a proposal amongst government lobbyists who wish to maintain high taxation in order to boost sales of local wine production, while keeping imports at bay, limiting sales of imported wines to duty free luxury hotels.
“India’s core distribution and wine sales, in particular of imported wines is limited to a few states and luxury chain hotels such the Taj, Oberoi, ITC and more recently Shangri-la and Leela ,” explains Lamberto Vallerino of Piedmont’s Gancia estate, not yet a player in the Indian market but a definite ‘wannabe’ in the near future. Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore dominate the sales for most wines, with more recent openings in Goa, Calcutta, Chandigarh, Chennai and Jaipur.
Statistics indicate that currently, up to 70% of the sales come from the luxury hotels. This is because most hotels and restaurants can purchase imported goods (including alcohol beverages) duty free, up to a limit of 5% of their foreign exchange earnings. Off trade consumption (including retail) is very limited due to lack of refrigeration facilities. This is because historically wine sales have been too small for distributors to invest in refrigeration. Efforts are now being made by wine companies to offer facilities to select retailers.
POTENTIAL AND THE FUTURE
“India’s future market lies in the hands of the everyday consumer,” comments Massimo Tuzzi, export manager of Zonin.
The current consumer profile is changing rapidly. Once the privilege of the educated elite, today potential lies among tourism, women consumers and the growing middle-class enjoying increasing disposable income. The rise in consumption can also be attributed to factors including the perception of health benefits produced by wine, the fact that wine is lower in alcohol than spirits, in addition to the ‘lifestyle’ image.
Italian wine prides its culture on being a ‘lifestyle product’, particularly compatible with food. “As with emerging markets such as China and Russia, the ‘Taste Italy’ image and the growing trend of Italian restaurants in India is a tremendous asset in promoting Italian wine,” adds Maarten Leereveld, export director of Ruffino, the first Italian winery to export to India some 20 years ago.
Angelo Gaja’s enthusiasm stems from his perception of the “similarities between Italian and Indian culture.” According to Gaja, tradition, family culture, tolerance, elegance in dress, good food and a sense of humour are factors which help to develop a bond between Italian and Indian culture, thus bridging the wine culture gap. Moreover, wine education, backed by the emergence of wine clubs in a number of cities and top dining locations investing in staff training, has helped to inform and educate the consumer, making wine more approachable.
The growing number of specialized publications, plus daily and weekly columns devoting space to wine are also instrumental in conveying wine culture to the general public. Bisol estate, producing Prosecco Doc from Valdobbiadene in Veneto makes a point of inviting Indian journalists to visit his estate and see the ‘terroir,’ the vineyards and vinification process, which produces Prosecco Doc.
Wine grower’s associations, such as Consorzio Chianti Classico understand the need to convey the image of history, culture and tradition, as well as quality in production, by inviting small groups of specialized press from India to visit their area of production.
The increase in India’s national wine production is helping wine in general to veer towards a product of ‘daily consumption’, as more and more table grape farmers are shifting towards growing grapes. However, it will take a long time before this becomes a reality rather than a mere speculation.
INFLUENTIAL TRADE EXHIBITS
Most estates are unanimous in agreeing that Vinitaly in Verona held yearly in early April and the Vinitaly India, a yearly event held in January, are the most effective ‘showcasing’ of Italian wine. Vinitaly India which launched its first edition in 2006 in Mumbai and Delhi offers wine tasting, conferences and a workshop, registering some 400 trade, a figure which doubled in the 2007 edition.
“The potential of this trade fair reflects the current market potential,” says Luca Sabatini export manager of Cantina di Soave. “India is a market which is developing its taste for Italian wines. It is up to each individual producer and estate to evaluate whether the Indian market represents a true potential within their export portfolio, taking into consideration all the ‘teething’ problems, bureaucracy and difficulties which the market currently presents.” Cantina di Soave has just signed a contract with Sultania imports to export: Soave Classico Doc, Bardolino Doc and Valpolicella Doc.
“The potential is there,” asserts Alberto Tasca of Sicilian estate Tasca d’Almerita. “Culturally India is a fascinating country and one of the most interesting I have ever visited. What we need to do is convey the immense potential and exciting diversity of our Italian production. That's what singles us out in the ever-expanding global world of wine.
BOX INFO
As per leading distributors of Italian wines in India:
Tuscany contributes for the largest share of Italian wines in India. The other regions gaining momentum are Peidmont and Sicily. From Tuscany, Frescobaldi, Ornellaia and Ca’Marcanda are the fastest growing wineries. Pater Sangiovese remains the largest Wine Label imported in India with 4000 cases.
According to Sanjay Menon of Sonarys:
The top names from Tuscany, as might be expected, have most of the lime-light. Lead by Marchesi Antinori (imported by Sonarys), Frescobaldi, (imported by Brindco) and then, to a lesser extent, Carpineto (imported by AceBevergez) & Ruffino (imported by Sula)
Sassicaia (Imp. Sonarys) is perhaps the most desired Italian wine at the moment and Ornellaia, Ca'Marcanda (both Brindco) as well as Guado al Tasso have made their presence felt from Bolgheri.
Piedmonte is naturally the second in importance with Gaja enjoying the most prestigious image, whereas the volumes are going to Prunotto (Sonarys), Marchesi di Barolo (Brindco) & Michele Chiarlo (Ace Beveragez). Running close behind are niche products including; Pio Cesare, Cerreto, Elio Altare and Paolo Scavino.
From the south Tasca d'Almarita (Brindco) and Donnafugata (Sonarys) are now available as also Tormaresca (art of Antinori) from Puglia (Sonarys). From Veneto Allegrini (Brindco), Zonin (Brindco) and Masi (also now Brindco) dominate this region.
From Italy’s lesser known Northern provinces, Alois Lageder (Sonarys) in Alto Adige made an entry last year and has gained good acceptance with their entry level Pinot Grigio called 'Rif'. Ca'del Bosco (Sonarys) one of Lombardy’s top sparkling wines has made a small, but significantly, presence for Franciacorta and Montenisa (Sonarys) from Antinori is also available. Jermann (Brindco) from Friuli is available but in a restricted manner and at quite high prices on the market.
Export statistics of main Italian exports
Winery No cases per year Exporting since Importer
FRESCOBALDI 8,000 2002 Brindco
ANTINORI 2,000-2,500 2002 Sonarys
RUFFINO 2,000 1997 Sula Wines
ZONIN 1,000 2001 Aspri
CANTINA DI SOAVE Sultania 1,000 2006 Trade
GAJA 500 2001 Brindco
PLANETA 500 2006 Brindco
TASCA
D’ALMERITA 500 2003 Brindco
MASI 300 2001 Birndco
CASTELLO DI 100 2004 Mohan
BROLIO Brothers
Courtesy: http://www.ambrosiaindia.com
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Shivaji Aher of Renaissance Winery fills us at IndianWine.com with the latest buzz in the industry. K Balakrishna, earlier General Manager, Grover Vineyards, is now with Renaissance as Vice President and winemaker. And with this development, Renaissance is set for an upsurge of sorts.
 Considering the steep projections at 40% growth per annum for the next five years or so, and a 7 lakh litre production line for this year itself, Renaissance Winery is a busy place. There’s plenty to take care of, and it is opportune for K Balakrishna (on picture) to be here with Renaissance to optimize operations, says Shivaji Aher.
Balakrishna, trained as food technologist from Nagpur University has long been in the food fruit processing industry, with the last 13 years spent at Grovers as GM. He is credited with Grover’s strategic positioning in the Indian wine industry. Now it is time for Renaissance to reap the benefits of his years spent with winemaking and management.
Currently, Renaissance has a one year contract with UB to manufacture their wines for the export market. Diageo has tied up for the next five years with Balakrishna’s new protégé. Shivaji shares that 350,000 bottles for harvest 2008 will be bottled for Diageo, with a projected increase of 40% for the half a decade ahead, at least. 14,000 c/s of wine would have been filled for Diageo by June end this year.
Diageo’s white wines are Chenin Blanc and Sauvignon Blanc. Their reds are Shiraz Rose and Shiraz Cabernet. Diageo’s kitty may be small at the moment, but going to see a rise in variety, soon enough, says Aher. Renaissance has its own new line of wines near launch too, he adds.
In view of the developments at Renaissance, the winery is being upgraded for increasing production capacity, while keeping a tab on quality. Pneumatic press, stainless steel tanks, expansion of winery building, increased storage to match production are all being taken care of under the enthusiastic new Vice President. Being a food technologist and an old player in the wine industry, Balakrishna is keen to implement HACCP at Renaissance.
His association with the likes of winemaker Michel Rolland and other who’s who of the international wine fraternity has got him exploring and experimenting. Balakrishna’s experience with Grover’s La Reserve wines will soon be of help at Renaissance too. He is planning to age the wine in French oak barrels. A busy man we have here…
A recruitment drive is also on to source fresh blood for the winery. Skill will be sourced or developed through proper training to keep up with the work environment here. Balakrishna has an eagle’s eye on all aspects of the business.
Advantageously located on the Mumbai-Agra Highway, the winery is opening its own lounge to serve more wine-enthusiasts. This is just the tip of the marketing iceberg at Renaissance.
It sure looks like Renaissance has its hands full for quite some time. Aren’t we smiling at the pace of things in the Indian wine industry!
for indianwine.com by Anisha Sharma
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Mumbai, March 20, 2008: Champagne Indage Limited (CIL), India’s oldest and largest, pioneering wine making company today announced its plans to acquire Australian Vintage's Loxton winery in an all cash transaction for 60 million Australian dollars (Rs.225 crore). The deal is set to be completed over the next six months. The acquisition of the winery will increase the total production capacity from 32 million liters (3.5 million cases) to 122 million liters (13.5 million cases) per year.
Loxton winery, situated in Riverland, South Australia is the fifth largest and the most modern winery in Australia. It has an annual crushing capacity of over 80,000 tons and an annual capacity of 90 million liters and is configured to handle smaller batches of more premium fruit, sourced predominantly from the Riverland vineyards, enabling a greater degree of flexibility with cropping level and therefore wine styles. It will also allow the company to enter wider price points within Australia as well as major markets of Australian wine such as the UK, Europe, US and India.
 Ranjit S Chougule, (Picture)Managing Director, Champagne Indage said, “This powerful acquisition will drive greater value to key stakeholders including end consumers, and partners of CIL. With an existing market share of 75 percent, the purchase of Loxton is meant to be a part of a larger strategy of going global".
The company made a similar Australian acquisition by buying out Thachi wines 12 months back which will earn the company 10 million Australian dollars in revenues and profits of 100,000 Australian dollars within the first year of operations. The Thachi brands include - Broken Earth, Red Skies and South Bay that are being rolled out across the globe including India.
About Champagne Indage Ltd:
Champagne Indage Ltd. is India’s largest and oldest wine company, established in 1982. With vineyards spread over 2500 Acres, CIL has its facilities in Narayangaon, Nasik and Himachal Pradesh with 20 varieties under commercial plantation and over 137 varietals under nursery cultivation. It has presence across the globe with 10 offices and more than 600 employees.
Winner of 49 International Awards, the company is a pioneer in producing authentic Indian wines, with more than 36 brands of red, white and ‘sparkling wines under their portfolio which covers the lowest to highest price points within the Indian wine market.
The company has deployed the state-of-the-art technology at its manufacturing facility with the largest wine production facility in India, with a capacity of 9 million litre at Narayangaon with a bottling capacity of 9000 bottles per hour and multiple manufacturing facilities across India, which ensures minimal lead time and consistency in supplies across the country. It has also recently launched a domestically produced vodka brand called 'Just' and 'Carrera xxx' rum.
Champagne Indage is the first sparkling wine producing and exporting company of India, exporting to 69 countries across the globe. Their range of exquisite wines like Chantilli, Ivy, the flamboyant Marquise de Pompadour and many more have won flurry of awards ranging from the International Wine and Spirit Competition (IWSC), held annually at London to Wine Style Asia from Singapore to national levels at the INDY’s. It also holds the honour for being listed in the world wine encyclopedia and is revered by wine critiques from Jancis Robinson to Oz Clarke.
About Australian Vintage Ltd.:
Australian Vintage Limited formerly known as McGuigan Simeon Wines Limited is Australia's 3rd largest wine company and is listed on the Australian stock exchange. The Group's principal activities are selling bottled wine, bulk wine and bag in box wine produced from wineries throughout Australia from contract management and development of company owned vineyards.
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Abhay Kewadakar shares with Indianwine.com, the latest at United Breweries. With Zinzi wines already tingling the market in Mumbai, Pune and Goa, this month end will find the delightful red and white wines in Bangalore, Delhi and Kolkata too.
‘Find any reason, or not one,’ to enjoy Zinzi red and white wines is the message UB is here with. And why not, when everything from the wines itself to their market placement has been thought of in great detail by the tsars of winedom in India.
The idea is to reach the young consumers. Bottled in two sizes – a ‘you-n-me’ 750 ml and an ‘I-me-myself’ 375 ml one, the concept is definitely set to impact the target market. Cheers, UB!
Looking at a young consumer base, everything about Zinzi wines is honed to make it more attractive for the young at heart. Easy cap screw caps replace the classical cork. No more worrying about finishing the bottle in a single sitting! Now, that works well with young people – convenience and style -- great wines teamed with a great selling concept.
Zinzi red wine claims its goodness from French grape varietals - Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz & Zinfandel. Abhay has made sure that the fruity and approachable wine gets quick appreciation from new wine converts in particular. Zinzi red has been blended to go with the wide spread of Indian cuisine. It is best enjoyed at 16ºC, says the winemaker. The alcohol content is 12.5% for both Zinzi red and white, says Abhay.
Zinzi white, says the winemaker is a blend of Chenin Blanc and Sauvignon Blanc. It is optimally enjoyed at a temperature of 10ºC, and pairs well with mildly spiced Indian cuisine.
Zinzi wines were launched in select cities, way back at the beginning of the year. And now, their increasing availability in cities like Bangalore, Delhi and Kolkata by March-end, goes to say that the wine is on target with its target market. Abhay adds that Zinzi will reach newer cities post April.
UB is all geared up for this new range of wines. A new winery at Baramathi is already up and working. Harvesting began early this month and the wines will be ready by October for the market. The vineyards have been meticulously groomed according to international standards, the equipment, needless to say, the very best, imported from France and Italy. So we can safely say that UB has got a big thing brewing here. Everything from production, to quality and most importantly marketing and product visibility is in coordination. Considering UB’s distribution network, Zinzi has far to go…
Even though the current production is 1.5 million bottles, it is slated to rise to 5 million bottles in the coming 3 to 4 years. The investment in plant, building and equipment is about Rs 20-80 cores, over 300 acres of land. Other than UB’s own vineyards, the onus is high on contract farming for about 1000 acres with locally trained farmers. Though Zinzi is the new entrant, Four Seasons wines are no less visible – with a huge pre-launch buzz through tastings and other marketing facilities,
Four seasons wines will be launched in month’s times, informs Abhay. Cabernet, Shiraz, Sauvignon Blanc and Chenin Blanc will hit the market first, to be followed by Rose and Zinfandel. UB truly has something planned for the whole of the year 2008! The end of the year will find UB’s reserve wines being launched.
All of UB’s products are firmly backed by marketing and distribution facilities. It is marketing plans and education that marks the cutting edge, feels Abhay. Once the wine gains acceptability, prices are no problem, states India’s first Indian winemaker. Going by his know-how in the field, one must believe him. What say? Abhay is all excited about the marketing events: prime tastings, sponsoring of big events like derby, fashion shows and select exhibitions, to name a few.
UB is already importing quality wines from France, New Zealand (hunter, Astro labs, sacred hill) priced between Rs 1200 and Rs 3000 per bottle, and has a great feel of the premium market segment. Soon enough they will be launching South African wines, touching a wide price range between Rs 700 to Rs 12500. Also, wines from Burgundy in the price range of Rs 850 to 20,000 will soon be imported here.
The market has been tested for all the above, and Abhay discloses that despite the high-duty on imported wines, price would hardly kill the market as tasting events would have created a ready demand by then among connoisseurs. The response so far has been very encouraging, and price in the premium segment is hardly an issue…
Zinzi, Four Seasons, and premium imported wines – UB sure plans to bring wine to Indians in a big way.
for indianwine.com, Venki
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 When we think of a bar and restaurant, first thing that comes into mind is the interior followed by food and drink. In a city like Mumbai where numbers of restaurants open everyday, to keep a track of all of them is almost unachievable. This time I and my colleague headed towards one such ‘yet to see its glory’ places in the suburbs of the city.
Not many are aware of Blue Water, the restaurant, bar and lounge place in Andheri, recently bought over by Anuj Saxena who has a Pharmaceutical business background. The place was earlier famous as Papillon Park and it still attracts some of its old regular customers. However, the new owner has plans to create a chain of Blue Water restaurants with the first one already running successfully. .
The striking feature about this place is the open space and the area in which it is spread across. It has everything from an open space sitting arrangement to a bar, banquet hall and Hukka lounge. And not to forget the paan (beetle leaf) lovers can really savour it just at the entrance of the restaurant.
Beautifully lit lanterns, the open kebab corner and the spacious Hukka lounge is what any Mumbaite would crave for.
Rajendra Shete, Manager Operations, Blue Water says, “It is a multi cuisine restaurant but we are trying to focus on the Lucknowi food apart from Mughlai and Chinese. We have a Hukka lounge specially created for youngsters which has 20-25 flavours of Hukkas and the prices are quite reasonable.
 The banquet hall serves both vegetarian and non-vegetarian dishes. There are also private parties, conferences, seminars and small exhibitions conducted at the banquet hall, making space for kitty parties during the day. What no one would like to miss is, the ‘everyday brunch’ that Blue Water offers. It is a very rare thing in case of the other restaurants. Rajendra says, “We have experienced that there are offices surrounding our restaurant. Many executives come down to have our brunches. We charge Rs 250 for vegetarian and Rs 299 for non-vegetarian brunch including welcome drinks like soups followed by starters, main courses, and deserts.”
We are also planning to include liquor in the brunch. Considering the range of wines that we have in the bar menu, we have decided to take this step. The bar has a range of good quality of domestic and imported wines. It has also a range of 9-10 imported vodkas like Belverde, Smirnoff, and Grey Goose. In scotch it has Chivas Regal, Royal Salute, and Black Label etc. Keeping in mind the kind of customers we receive, we have tried to prepare an exhaustive liquor menu. He says.
Blue Water offers Punjabi, Chinese, Lucknowi and Mughlai food.
Very soon we are planning to organise a food festival in the end of August or September this year. It will offer only Kebabs and Lucknowi food. The festival will run for a week’s time. The head Chef Javed Quereshi, an expert in Lucknowi cuisine will be taking care of the food festival.
While talking about the recent trends in liquor consumption in Mumbai he says, there is a lot of demand for scotch, imported vodkas and single malts in Mumbai. And cocktails are ever popular among ladies specially the vodka based cocktails. We have a wide range of with vodka, gin, rum, whisky and brandy as base. The most popular cocktail is Margarita and our Blue Water special, a gin based cocktail.
Neil D’Mello, the bar tender at Blue Water says; in cocktails muddled drinks, mojito, caiprinha, caipiroska. Apart from that we have varieties of Martinis, Tequila Sunrise and other regular cocktails too.
Apart from cocktails, there are Grey Goose vodka drinkers and liqueurs too.
My favourite cocktail is caiprinha. It is Brazilian rum which is made of muddled sugar and small pieces of lime, says, Neil.
Blue Water is currently running its promotional activities in Fame Adlabs, specially promoting the Hukka Lounge to attract the young crowd which will be followed by liquor promotions at a later stage.
Sameera Khan & Rojita B. Tiwari
Courtesy: http://www.ambrosiaindia.com
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Bordeaux, probably the best wine growing region in France and in the world is home to more than 7,000 chateaux. It counts for the one third of the good quality French wine. Recently, more and more Bordeaux winemakers are looking to develop their export sales and this involves entering emerging markets like India. Brinda Bourhis, Director, Speech mark Bordeaux wine consulting firm analyses this trend further.
A report:
 In 2000, Bordeaux wine sales to India represented 3, 97 000 euros, five years later it grew to reach 1 440 000 euros (source: CIVB). This significant increase in the trade between Bordeaux wine producers and the Indian trade bodies have given a boost to the export market and this was quite visible at this year Vinexpo, the wine and spirits fair organised at Bordeaux.
It is worth mentioning that, Bordeaux produces the famous grape varieties like Merlot which consists of 50% of Bordeaux wines, 26 per cent of Cabernet-Sauvignon, 10 per cent Cabernet-Franc, 8 per cent Sémillon and 4 per cent Sauvignon. The region produces almost 850 million bottles of wine every year which is around 25 per cent of the total wine production in France.
The increasing number of Indian visitors at this year Vinexpo was encouraging for the Bordeaux wine maker. This is a proof enough that Indians seem to be paying attention and interest to wines, which is not yet very popular in term of consumption pattern.
So, I decided to find out exactly what are their feelings about the Indian wine market? What experience have some producers had? What difficulties have they encountered? And how are the producers planning to enter the market?
Some producers from the Bordeaux wine world present their views:
 Thomas Percillier
CVBG-Dourthe-Kressmann (Negociant)
Area Export Manager
CVBG, a major negociant firm in Bordeaux has been trading with the Indian market since 5 years through its local distributor Brindco. Brands from the Dourthe range and Grand Cru Classé wines are exported by the firm.
Thomas Percillier, Area Export Manager feels that the market is difficult to enter mainly due to high taxes but also because there is not a solid distribution network as of yet. ‘For the moment I have decided not to spend too much time on this market and I’m waiting for the taxes to reduce subsequently’ states Mr Percillier. He hopes this will change rapidly with the lobbying done by the European community and WTO (World Trade Organisation). When duty on wines finally falls he will definitely focus more attention on selling Dourthe wines over there.
Concerning whether there’s a place for Bordeaux wines in India faced with high competition from new world countries, Thomas Percillier says ‘there’s always a place for good quality wines from Bordeaux especially when they are like ours – excellent value for money’.
 Sylvaine Fournier
Chateau Bonhoste
Sales Manager
Château de Bonhoste will be participating at the Bordeaux and Aquitaine Wines India in November 2007. Going to India never crossed their minds until they received an email about this wine convention. They immediately registered as they are convinced that India is a country that is developing fast and more and more Indians are interested in wine. As independent winegrowers they believe that they can offer a complete product range (Bordeaux reds, whites, rosés and Bergeracs) that are well suited to novice consumers. ‘Our wines are ready and nice to drink now, so you don’t need to worry about storage that can sometimes be a problem encountered in India’ says Sylvaine Fournier, the estate’s Sales Manager.
They are hoping that after their week trip in November that they will establish good contacts and are ready to set up partnerships with wine importers in India, invite them to the chateau and build a solid working relationship.
When asked if there was a risk doing business with India, Sylvaine Fournier says ‘we love challenges and that’s how we’ve managed to sell in countries like Russia, Denmark etc’.
 Jean-Baptiste Cheylac
JM Cazes Séléctions/Michel Lynch
Area Export Manager
The brand Michel Lynch works marvellously well in Asia according to Jean-Baptiste Cheylac.
In India it is distributed by Sula and today JM Cazes Selection is looking to extend its distribution network to those who are able to build the brand image on a national or regional level. ‘Like my competitors we all dream of entering the Indian market due to the enormous potential it has to offer’ says Jean-Baptiste Cheylac.
The main obstacle once again is the high taxation on imported wines. As soon as you mention India, everyone talks about high duties and taxes.
‘We want to establish a long term brand strategy for Michel Lynch in India. Like our New World counterparts we are able to do this because we own the brand’ he adds.
Mr Cheylac says that many negociants are shipping containers full of petit chateaux, particularly to China. But they cannot guarantee that these wines will be available by them the year after. If like JM Cazes Selections you own the brand a long term distribution strategy can be applied. This is exactly what they are aiming for in India and are very optimistic about it.
Anne-Françoise Quié
Chateau Rauzan-Gassies GCC Margaux
Manager
During the 2006 primeurs tastings in Bordeaux, Anne-Françoise Quié had the pleasure of dining with an Indian journalist. It was an occasion for her to find out more about the Indian wine market. One point that drew her attention as a female winemaker was how in fact many Indian women have taken a liking to wine, whereas men are still keen on spirits. The feminine element like in many Asian countries is thus very important.
‘When I hear people talking about so-called ‘emerging’ markets like China and India, I believe that this idea of ‘emerging’ no longer exists. For Grands Crus Classés wines we do not judge our customers as Indian, Chinese, and Korean and so on, but rather as a global international clientele. Nationality is not a key issue; it’s more a question of lifestyle.’
For the moment India is not a priority as their small family structure only enables them to work on one or two markets at a time. However, if the Bordeaux negociants who sell Rauzan-Gassies have an opportunity in India, of course they will give all the support they can, states Anne-Françoise Quié.
 Bernard Magrez Grands Vignobles
Bernard Magrez
President
With 35 properties across the globe, it’s not surprising to see wines from Bernard Magrez in a country like India. However, it is all quite new as Bernard Magrez Grands Vignobles has been selling wines in India since 2006. The wines come mainly from Bordeaux and a little from the Languedoc. The wines of the group are distributed mainly through hotels and wine shops. One of the remarks made by Mr Bernard Magrez, President of the group was the difficulty in approaching the Indian market. ‘The duties are really high and the real potential of wine drinkers is rather limited’ he says. Other difficulties that he mentions include the population that is not very wine-conscious.
On a positive note, he adds ‘The actual business to be made in India is not capitalized on enough’. Opportunities can therefore be grabbed for wine producers who like Bernard Magrez have a solid international sales force. Mr Magrez concluded ‘Our objectives over the next 5 years are to establish regular business in as many states as possible in India by working closely with the local importers and distributors’.
Despite the obstacles facing wine producers, this shows that initiatives are still being taken to make a step further in India.
Association Vineater
Max Silvestrini
Winemaker and Sales Director
The association Vineater was created by 22 wine producers from Bordeaux, Cognac, Loire Valley, Champagne and Armagnac four years ago. And the first shipment of the group left for India in May 2007. The group’s importer MJJ Importation has just inaugurates a showroom in Pondicherry.
‘Wine is new to the Indian population and our association offers not only wines directly from the producer, but also training for the distributor’s sales force’ says Mr Silvestrini, Sales Director of the association.
Wine education is necessary for a population that hardly has a wine culture and know very little about French wines. ‘Entering the new showroom in Pondicherry, you notice a dominance of spirits, especially whisky. The Indians are much more used to drinking whisky than wine’, he says.
Vineater’s role is seen more as an advisor to the many players within the sometimes complex distribution network that brings together the State, the retailer, the importer and the wine producer. Mr Silvestrini adds, ‘The association will encourage any promotional actions, tastings and other marketing operations to make this venture with India work successfully.’
Bringing together different winemakers under one association is developing in Bordeaux. Vineater is just another example of how team efforts can help Bordeaux wines travel on a worldwide scale.
Courtesy: http://www.ambrosiaindia.com
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