The Brave New Face of Indian wines
Even while some Indian wineries are still working towards understanding viticulture and perfecting their winemaking, there are others that are experimenting with grapes, vinification styles, and techniques. It isn’t about creating the most iconic wine, that’s something only time will…
Nine Gems at Fratelli’s ‘Taste of the World’
Apart from being one of the most bankable wine producers in India, Fratelli also runs an import arm which brings in wines from around the world. Their annual ‘Taste of the World’ event introduces trade-folk to the latest in their portfolio….
The Hunt for India’s Best Sommelier
When sommelier Magandeep Singh started working with wine in India, he was sometimes mistaken for being Somalian. Cut to 12 years later and now when he introduces himself as a professional wine taster, the response often is ‘Oh! You’re a Sommelier.’…
Grover’s pride: INSIGNIA
I spent the weekend in Bangalore at the Grover Zampa winery to attend the launch of their latest wine – INSIGNIA, which by all accounts is the most premium wine in India today. Made by winemaker, Karishma Grover, Insignia is…
Top wine haunts in Delhi + Gurgaon
It’s bad enough that alcohol taxes in India sap us dry, it’s worse that restaurants and hotels are allowed to charge five times the MRP of wines and beers. If there was ever a time to spruce up that home…
New in the market: York Sparkling Cuvée Brut
There’s a new bubbly in town folks. And this one’s from York. I’ve always liked the personality of York’s wines. Clean and well-made, they convey honesty and hard work. The Gurnani brothers – Kailash (winemaker) and Ravi, run the…
New in the market: Myra Reserve Wines
It is always a treat to taste a wine for the first time. (Well, almost always.) There is suspense, apprehensions, expectations, and most of all, curiosity. I must admit that I’ve had my share of times when tasting Indian wines…
New in the market: KRSMA Wines
The Indian wine scene is agog with activity right now and each passing year sees the inauguration of a bevy of new wineries. The most recent one to impress me was KRSMA. Although not exactly a new winery, it has…
Welcoming the SETTE 2010
A few days ago I was at a wine tasting different from the usual. I’ve come to hate any event that claims to be a ‘wine and food pairing’. In the many I’ve attended in Mumbai over the last few…
The story of Fratelli Wines
In the Sholapur district of Maharashtra, near the town of Akluj, lies a 240-acre vineyard. This sprawling vineyard belongs to three sets of brothers – Alessio and Andrea Secci, Kapil and Gaurav Sekhri and Ranjit and Arjun Mohite – Patil,…