| Flamingo Duty Free Shop at the Delhi used to have some excellent value-for-money wines last year but has since degraded to a level where the wines are generally low-end, high priced without much choice with a sprinkle of champagne, and its not worth wasting your time here-for wines.
The store is flush with low end wines like Jacobs Creek ($6-7), Deinhard ($6), Blossom Hill ($9). Special Cuvee B &G ($8), B&G Partager ($8) though looking cheap are no bargains as table wines.
Some wines in the store do not make sense. For example, Catena of Argentina makes very decent Malbec and even Cabernet that retails in the US for $15. Why they stock a Chardonnay 2003 selling for $20 beats the daylight out of me.
Sometimes, shopping for a premium product is an experience in itself. Racks for premium wines and Champagne in the duty free shops or other retail stores set a good benchmark. Granted they have tight space in the store, but would you buy a DP when you found the sparklers stocked as Henkell Trocken ($10), Henckell Blanc ($6), Krug ($131) and Dom Perignon '98 ($130) next to each other? Incidentally, barring the Blanc which is a good buy for a cheap Sekt, others are available cheaper in the US Retail.
Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin sols is a fine champagne but at $44 is slightly more expensive than the street price in the US of about $35-37. The all favourite Freixenet Cava from Spain at $11 is no bargain when you know its street price is around $7-8.
Then there are some wines that are too exorbitantly priced. Casa Lapostolle is a very good Chilean wine but the Merlot 2005($21) and Chardonnay ($21) are big rip offs when you can find them between $11-13** in retail. Similarly Beringer Estate Chardonnay 2002 at $23 is more than twice the retail price of $11. Nederberg Shiraz 2003 at $13 is available for less than $11. It may no be possible to locate Henri Fabre Cote de Provence Red but you may find it at a store for under $10.
It is heartening to see more of Indian wines available at the store though-this should be good for the visiting foreigners as they are always looking to take some Indian wines home. Sula Brut ($7) and Chantilly ($7) can be good last minute pick ups though Marquise du Pompadour that would have been a recommended buy at $7 is a bit too expensive at $11. Grover is also available.
What foxed me was the signboard saying 'Lowest Price in the Region. What region are they talking about-Delhi, airport or what-could someone clarify so our visitors can benefit?
All in all a poor wine shopping awaits you at this store at the Delhi Departure*.
Subhash Arora
* All prices at the store were collected by me personally at this shop.
** All comparative prices are average prices compiled from Wine-Searcher.com. Taxes may be extra just as better prices are always overseas if you know how to scout around. I found Yellow Tail selling for around $9 in most stores in San Francisco but one store in the same shopping mall was selling it for under $5! |
