Maharashtra Chamber of commerce requested indianwine.com to suggest few points that helps to improve the Indian winery industry. We have strongly suggested to create Independent Wine Body council. Shorter version of this document is appeared in the Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce monthly magazine. Our community member Puneet Dhall also contributed few points here.....


1. Create an Independent Wine Body/Council: It is imperative to have an independent body in India that takes care of all aspects of the wine industry here. A holistic approach to integrating the wine industry in India will have a bigger impact on all areas of operations, including marketing, credibility and sales of Indian wines in the local and global markets. This is a lesson we should have long learnt from Australia. Despite being a new world wine producer, the Australian wine industry has benefitted. As of now, Australian wines illicit better brand recognition than Indian wines, because the Indian wine players are going entirely on their own steam, while the Australian industry has a support system by way of their Wine council.

2. Indian Wine Council should work independently and without any favors to a particular company or group of companies: No favours please! With established players in the arena, it is only fair that no undue advantages are allowed to individual beneficiaries at the cost of holistic growth for the Indian wine industry which includes the farmer growing wine grapes, the winery technicians, sales and marketing team, and of course the owners of these enterprises.

3. This independent Wine Council should work with Indian wine exporters and foreign agencies to create brand awareness: Brand awareness is the ultimate tool to introduce any product to its consumers, new and old. Any effort at boosting brand awareness for Indian wines will benefit all cadres of the industry here, and open choices for consumers -- I repeat, local and global. The domestic consumer market is as important as the international consumer base. Increase in exports build brand credibility among local consumers too.

4. Independent Wine Council should work with major wineries to commit to build 'Branding for Indian Wine region': The Indian terroir needs to be talked about. It is what gives Indian wines their substance and identity, everything else from grape varietals to winemaking technology and winemakers being the same as available elsewhere in the world. Branding for the Indian Wine Region is hugely unexplored at the moment and presents lots of potential to show Indian Wines in an even better light to build its consumer base. It just takes a consecrated effort to grow up from an individual company identity to the bigger entity of being part of 'The Indian Wine Industry'. There is a saying in Indian scriptures: 'Sangho Shakti Kaliyuge', meaning, in modern times there is strength in unity, in coming together for a common cause.

5. Independent Wine Council should work with wineries to maintain good quality in wines, at the same time striving to reduce cost of production which is till now much higher than the global norm. This will keep Indian wines competitively priced for the global market.

6. Integrate 'Indianness' in the brand building process. Branding should reflect ethics such as honesty, culture, tradition and spirituality: May be we can take a cue from our national motto, 'Satyameva Jayate' to streamline our branding exercise. Truth and transparency, especially when an honest effort is in action to maintain high quality and competitive pricing, naturally endear the product to its customers, old and probable. We need to bring out the Indianness of Indian wines, and what better way than coming together for a mindshare session under the umbrella of an independent Wine Council...

7. Independent Wine Council should share the global laws and varying cultural experiences with every winery in India: This will educate all wineries about ground realities in the global consumers' mind and rules of the land. Knowledge will help wineries expand their potential and take Indian Wines to greater heights.

8. Independent Wine Council should assist the regulators and the government to create unified laws in India: An independent Wine Council will be the Indian wine industry's leverage to ask for unified laws in India. Presently the highly varied taxation from state to state is a challenge for wineries and wine players' optimal functioning.

9. Independent Wine Council should assist the wineries to approve and ensure the quality of the wine, labels and packaging: Packaging and labelling is a weak area with Indian wines, but surely gaining in strength by the day. With a Wine Council to support these aspects of the industry, all wineries would have the benefit of expert guidance and not only the moneyed niche. Overall improvement in quality of wine, its labelling and packaging will result in greater consumer confidence for Indian wines as a whole.

10. The bottom line is that the independent Wine Council should make the Indian wine-producing regions famous through appellations: This will surely add to consumer confidence in the international market.

With a Wine Council guiding the Indian Wine Industry it can be safely assumed that wine lovers around the world would come forward to buy Indian wines with increased confidence, from knowing the brand, appreciating the packaging and tasting the great quality of our wines .


Venki