 Mumbai, India
Nashik vineyards have started entering a pre-harvest stage with ‘veraison’ arriving in Sula’s vineyards at Gangapur. Basically, ‘Veraison’ is one of the most important moments in a grapevine’s annual lifecycle; it’s the onset of ripening, when the grapes turn from green to red and naturally begin to sweeten. Signalling that the harvest is near wine grape growers across the district are reporting that their fruit has begun to change colours, a seasonal rite that signals the region’s 10 lakh metric tonne grape crop is quickly ripening and harvest is approaching. This French term also occurs in white grapes, but without the colour changes–white grapes simply become more translucent. In Nashik, the regular grape harvest is expected to be a bumper one after a sort of slack observed last year. Wineries too are excited and Sula, the biggest winery in India based out of Nashik is planning to crush 15 to 20% more after the harvest this year. “To meet these targets, we have increased our cultivation by 400 acres from 2017 to 2018. A lot of existing farmers with Sula have expanded their cultivation and many more farmers have joined in,” explains Karan Vasani, Senior Vice-President for wine-making and production operations at Sula Vineyards. Sanjeev Paithankar, Senior Vice-president of Public Affairs at Sula Vineyards says, “Since Sula controls almost 65 to 70% of the Indian wine market, what it does impacts the entire wine scenario of the country. We have a very clear domestic focus and about 500 grape growers are working with us today. This year we are hoping to crush 12,000 to 13,000 tonnes of grapes and cross our record-breaking sales figures of 2018 as well.” In the year ending July 31, 2018 Sula Vineyards crossed the 1-million case sales mark. This is the first time that an Indian wine producer has achieved this important milestone. “We are planning to sell almost 1.2 million cases in 2019,” adds Paithankar. Like the last two years, Sula is again expecting an early harvest while the full-fledged harvest process will begin from end of December. Sula has been taking considerate steps to adapt well to climatic changes and since 2016 has been pruning the vines earlier than usual which has resulted in an early harvest. 2016 saw the earliest grape harvest ever witnessed by the country and the same time-frame was continued in 2017 and now in 2018. Wine grape-growers too are elated this year. Laxman Jadhav, a wine grape grower from Pimpalgoan informed that the size of the grape bunch is smaller this time which in fact is a good thing. “Unlike table grapes, the quality of wine grapes is defined by smaller grape bunches. The yield is also expected to be bumper. Sula not only gives farmers an assured income but it also handholds us throughout the process. I was growing vegetables before 2003 which was an unprofitable business, but since I joined the Sula contract farming circle, I have been able to live a better life,” said Jadhav. Similarly, Sula’s efforts to educate the country about wine and propel wine tourism to where it is today is also bearing fruits. The number of visitors to Nashik’s vineyards has been increasing steadily. “We have seen a growth of 15% in the number visitors to our vineyards. Most of them are curious about wine-making and enjoy spending time with their family and friends in these lush locales. We get maximum visitors from Mumbai, Pune, Surat and Ahmedabad,” said Monit Dhavale, Senior Vice-president of Hospitality, Sula Vineyards. (Excerpt from a release)
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 ( L to R) Mr. Marcos Ignacio, Barton & Guestier, Mr. Arun Kumar, Co-Founder, Aspri Spirits, Aishwarya Bhende, Owner, AB Celestial, Mr. Jackie Matai, Co-Founder, Aspri Spirits Mumbai, India
India’s leading distributor of premium wines and spirits, Aspri Spirits and AB Celestial, Mumbai’s first luxury floatal hosted an exceptional wine evening with the oldest wine brand established in Bordeaux, Barton & Guestier.The elegant evening presented an opportunity to taste the wonderful diversity of fine French wines and learn more about the brand, region, appellation and its constant quality and style through Mr. Marcos Ignacio, Export Manager, Barton & Guestier. Barton & Guestier is the signature for French wines and is greatly recognised for its character, knowledge and art of living, the core-values that guide their teams and build strong partnerships. On the occasion, Mr. Marcos Ignacio said, “Everyone at Barton & Guestier is proud of the history and is driven by an unrelenting pioneering spirit based on winemaking expertise. The desire to bring you the best quality wine is unquestionably being perpetuated and events like these only bring us closer to our customers.” Mr. Arun Kumar and Mr. Jackie Matai, Co Founders, Aspri Spirits also attended the evening with media, trade and friends.The wines that were savoured were Barton & Guestier Passeport Saint – Emilion, Barton & Guestier Passeport Cotes-du-Rhone, Baron & Guestier Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Barton & Guestier Reserve Merlot, Barton & Guestier Cuvee Speciale Rouge, Barton & Guestier Cuvee Speciale Blanc. ( Exceprt from a press release)  Mumbai, India
Aspri Spirits, India’s leading distributor of premium wines and spirits presented an exceptional wine evening to bring together wine lovers and connoisseurs to celebrate 150 years of Carpene Malvolti Prosecco. The evening, hosted at Out of the Blue, Khar, Mumbai, showcased the Carpene Malvolti Prosecco Special Cuvee Brut DOC, a light, fruity wine with scents of acacia flowers, wild strawberries and ripe golden apple. Mr.Domenico Scimone, Global Sales and Marketing Director, Carpene Malvolti , an Italian Sommelier from the brand , presented the visitors a remarkable and enchanting understanding of the brand. He took the audience through the exciting journey of the brand by presenting the brand’s history, the process of making wines, details on their best wines and much more. It was founded in 1868 by Antonio Carpenè, who dreamt to produce a bubbly wine with the grapes harvested from the hills of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene. This dream has become a mission: producing high quality sparkling wine at each grape harvest, a dream that is still coming true today, day after day. Produced from grapes grown in the historic production areas of Conegliano and Valdobbiadene, it is an aromatic sparkling brut wine with an alcohol content of 11 degrees, produced with the Charmat or Martinotti method, elaborated for the first time by Antonio Carpene for the Prosecco grapes in 1868 Pricing: Delhi – Rs.2500/- Mumbai –Rs.2470/- Bangalore –Rs.1975/- ( Exceprt from a press release)  Mumbai, India
We The Happy High,one of India's leading wine and spirit education co have launched our own certified wine courses , the Wine 101 for beginners and the Wine Pro for the budding Sommelier. It also offers online courses on wine for the beginnner, essentially the Indian consumer. "With 300 mn cases of beers and spirits each consumed annually in India, wine at a speculative 3 mn cases hardly makes a difference. However the latter is not just restricted to the high society now as the aspirational who because of their travels and general availability is also exposed to the drinks and are taking a liking to it. And this has prompted us to curate the Wine 101 for consumers or young hotel professionals and bespoke Wine Pro courses for hotels Pan- India" says Ajit Balgi, founder at The Happy High The beginners courses are day long and cover basics of wine, including wine tasting, service temperatures, glassware, food and wine pairing. These courses are planned on a regular basis and come at RS 5500 + GST per head. The Happy High certified Wine Pro course is designed for 4 days and is customized for hotels based on their wine lists and the requirements of their wine program and have been implemented at a Marriott hotel and soon at a Taj property. These wine courses will open the doors to the world of wine for you as a consumer and give you a perspective and connect for professionals who want to make a career in wine as a Sommelier or as a Brand ambassador. Kindly drop a line on contact@thehappyhigh.com if you wish to organize a Wine 101 or a Wine Pro course exclusively for your Office, hotel or a hotel management institute. EXPLORE OUR ONLINE WINE COURSE FOR BEGINNERS AT 499 ++  New Delhi
Bira 91, one of the fastest growing craft beer brands, has entered into a major five-year deal with the International Cricket Council (ICC). The partnership, which runs through 2023, confirms Bira 91 as the official sponsor of - ICC global tournaments including the ICC Cricket World Cup, ICC T20 World Cup, ICC World Test Championship, ICC U19 Cricket World Cup and the ICC Women's World Cup. This is the brand's first foray into sports. As an official partner, Bira 91 will integrate the partnership across broadcast and digital platforms, and in-venue activations at all ICC events through their range of products (beer including non-alcoholic beer and hot sauce). Speaking of the partnership, Ankur Jain, Founder & CEO, Bira 91, said, "The ICC partnership is a key moment for Bira 91 as we embark on creating the first global consumer brand to come out of India. A generational 'change of guard' in beer is underway as consumers shift towards beers with more color and flavor. World cricket is undergoing a similar generational change as it expands to more dynamic formats, newer geographies and consumers. We are excited to be part of the 'greatest celebrations of cricket' on the international stage and adding consumer experience driven activations by our innovative and delicious beers." ICC has 104 member countries and continues to expand its global footprint by reinventing the game with the vision of making it more relevant for new spectators. That outreach, including targeting women and young people, matches with Bira 91's ambition and core philosophy: "Imagined in India, for the new world." The brand aspires to drive a global shift in beer towards more flavor and color. Commenting on the agreement, Campell Jamieson, ICC General Manager Commercial said, "As we started negotiating the agreement with Bira 91, the natural overlaps in their ambitions and ours became obvious. Cricket has more than one billion adult fans and is a natural partner for this ambitious brand. The ICC is delighted to welcome Bira 91 on-board as an official partner and into the world cricketing family, and we look forward to working together for the next five years to deliver a strong partnership at ICC global events." Bira 91 grew five times in the last fiscal year (ending March 31, 2018) and has scaled to be comparable to the top 10 craft breweries in the US in terms of volume in only three years since inception. Besides India, the company has expanded internationally to the United States, Singapore, Hong Kong, UAE and Bahrain, with imminent expansion in the UK and Vietnam. The company expects to expand its production footprint five-fold to 2,000,000 barrels before summer of 2019 from the current capacity of 350,000 barrels. With the global craft beer market projected to reach over $502B by 2025, and the market expected to witness substantial growth over the forecast period due to the rising demand for craft beers, Bira 91's growth comes at an opportune time to corner a rising market and reach emerging consumers. |
Press Releases on wine, spirits, beer, drinks could be sent on contact@thehappyhigh.com
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