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 Wineries participating were Sula, Grover Zampa, Four Seasons, Fratelli, Reveillo, York, Myra, Vallone, Nine Hills, Charosa, Chandon, Alpine, Big Banyan, Krsma Estates, Good Drop and the last second entrant SDU Winery from Bangalore. The event was curated by Rojita Tiwari, a free-lance wine journalist who had been selected as one of the Top Ten Women of Wine in the Indian industry by the Indian Wine Academy last year. The event was organised by the Mumbai Wine Festival, organisers of wine festivals in various parts of Mumbai for the last few years.
Pratap Arora who is the convenor of the Mumbai Wine Festival with support from the celebrity Ad director Prahlad Kakkar, was the face of the competition. ‘We have been conducting wine festivals for many years now. Some of our prestigious clients want us to showcase Indian wines for various events. I don’t claim to be a wine expert so we decided to hold a blind tasting to determine the finest of Indian wines as judged by a panel of independent wine experts. So we relied on Rojita to curate the whole event so that the tasting could be independent and blind. We will select the top wines out of those selected by the experts and showcase them at various avenues thus helping promote the Indian industry and our clients.’
‘The eight people we picked have wine experience and are passionate about sharing their knowledge and experience of wine and food with other people and nurturing a new generation of savvy wine consumers in India. Their wine experience stretches from the vineyard to the glass and beyond; they have travelled widely to most wine region across the globe including India with their thorough understanding of the Indian palate, making them a vital link for wine producers seeking to establish themselves in the bourgeoning Indian market,’ he adds.
Speaking about Celebrating India’s Finest Wines, Rojita Tiwari said, “This is to acknowledge and celebrate the spirit of wine making. We have a handful of wine companies making great quality wines. We also have a number of wines which have won medals, awards and accolades in various international platforms. It is high time that we prepare our own dream list which every wine company would aspire to find a place in. As this list will be updated every year, it will offer a chance to newer and greater number of participations year after year.”
Rojita who has been working against all odds to organise the event for the last couple of months was very pleased with the event. ‘I am happy to be a part of the project. I feel that Indian wines have come of age and we should do something to promote them. But it must be a through a transparent and independent process.’
 She helped Pratap and Prahlad select the jury which consisted of Subhash Arora (Delhi), Alok Chandra (Bangalore), Sonal Holland (WSET Diploma holding wine educator currently with ITC), Sanjay Menon, Craig Wedge, Vishal Kadakia (all wine importers), Basu Shatbi (Mumbai) and of course Rojita. Kakkar who is a wine aficionado was to be the consumers’ advocate in the panel to participate in a film jury panel in Delhi and had to excuse himself.
A total of 86 wines had been entered- the criteria was to submit 2 bottles of each sample at no cost. The condition was that the wines must be sent directly from the winery and must be certified to be produced within the winery so declared. A few of the wineries could not be accommodated due to the administrative limitations and the shortcomings of any such event being handled for the first time. Finally about 80 wines were at the table.
The competition was completely blind. Judges were given the name of the varietals or as blends. No price range was given or categorised so that a few premium wine competed with the entry level wines as well.
The wine trade and journalists were invited to a Press Conference in the evening on 16th at the venue of judging-Anchorage where the invitees could taste the open bottles. Results are to be announced Post Diwali when the organisers plan to host a gala dinner where some of the prized wines will be served. As in any international competitions judges were requested not to disclose the scores. But a couple of things that did emerge were as follows:
 The quality of the wines has increased sharply during the last 4-5 years. Most of the wines tasted were very clean-a basic requirement still not comprehended by several smaller wineries even today. The over-oakiness in the wines-especially the whites, didn’t go unnoticed. Sulphur content was generally much more than justifiable. One could easily identify the Nashik Sauvignon Blanc because of their herbaceous and grassy flavours. The green-ness of red wines, a feature common earlier with most Nashik wines seems to be on the decrease, making wines more rounded and pleasing to the palate. There were a few other surprises which remain to be listed by the organisers or may be commented upon after the results are announced.
The event was unique in that nothing had been organised so far with such level of expertise and integrity and neutrality for only Indian wines. It was thus also a great opportunity to taste almost all the Indian wines that matter. As for any such maiden event there were a few shortcomings which would hopefully be addressed in the next year event as the organisers hope to make it an annual event. This should be a welcome step by the industry, especially those making or attempting to make quality wines. It should also be welcome by those who have not been able to com up to the standards and are interested to know the reasons so they could improve the quality.
Watch out for the results in delWine and the www.indianwineacademy.com website. Producers who were left out or would like to see specific improvements may write to me directly and in confidence at arora@delwine.com. I confined myself to being a judge only and had no role to play outside the zone.
Subhash Arora |