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Diva is one of the first, well-established Italian cuisine restaurants in Delhi, owned and run by the celebrity Chef Ritu Dalmia, who not only specializes in Italian cuisine but has a lot of knowledge of wines of which she stocks 150-180 labels at a time. She is the first restaurateur to have established a decent temperature-controlled (at least air-conditioned) cellar. She was one of the delWine-featured Top Ten Women of India in 2013, involved in wine promotion in some capacity or the other. In general, the wine prices are more reasonable than the 5-star hotels and have been so even when she used to buy them duty-paid. Thus, she qualifies to have her restaurant be the first one featured on this list.
The wines recommended do not necessarily mean they are great value-for-money wines though an attempt has been made to look for them where available. They do give you a bigger bang for your buck though. We have tried to give a choice of sparkling, red, white and a Rose where feasible. At least one Indian red and white have been included in this category. I have tried to restrict the upper price limit of the selected wines to Rs.5000. If you like to order the higher priced wines, your wallet speaks and you can experiment with whatever catches your fancy.
Here are the recommended wines for Diva Restaurant in M Block Market in Greater Kailash-II, Delhi
Sparkling Wines
Prosecco is the bubbly to order here. Sartori di Verona Ti Amo DOC- Rs.2150 is a no-brainer choice.
If you like Rosé bubbles, the offbeat Foss Marai Roös Rosé Spumante IGT- Rs. 2800 is an interesting choice. A blend of Montepulciano, Sagrantino, Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon, it is packaged in a beautiful bottle that, when empty, you may want to take home.
Feel like celebrating and nothing less than Champagne would do? Bellavista Brut DOCG- Rs.5200 from Franciacorta-the Champagne region of Italy- is what you should order. Avoid ordering Champagnes in the restaurants unless you are an indiscriminate spender.
White Wines
Dogajolo Bianco IGT 2012- Rs. 2600 is a white Tuscan wine with an almost equal blend of Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and the local grape Grechetto. Light-medium bodied, clean and perfumed wine with decent fruit flavours and persistent sensation. Very fresh and crisp acidity with medium but juicy end, will make you drink more. It will keep the vegetarians happy and even non vegetarians having white-sauce pastas with fish or even chicken - unless the sauces are too thick and complex flavoured.
Gavi Classico, Marchesi di Barolo DOC2012- Rs.2850 Made from the local grape Cortese, quite a flavourful wine from Piemonte. Cheaper but not as delicious as Gavi di Gavi made in the town of Gavi but will normally suffice.
Riesling Dr. L Loosen 2012- Rs.2900 Ernie Loosen is a well known and respected producer of Mosel, known for his sweet wines in the world. Dr. L is an entry level, light body young Riesling with a predominantly sweet shade in the background.
Chardonnay Argento ’11- Rs. 2100 if you are really on a tight budget and like fruity Chardonnay, this white from Argentina will make you smile, not only for its low price.
Red Wines
Montepulciano d’Abruzzo DOC Umano Ronchi ’12- Rs. 2000 is the entry level wine from the well-known producer of Abruzzo known for its Montepulciano grape (please note this is different than Vino Nobile di Montepulciano or Rosso di Montepulciano which are wines made in the Tuscan town of Montepulciano from predominantly Sangiovese grapes and are of better quality). A soft and fruity wine, perfect for pizzas and pastas.
Cabernet Sauvignon Sangiovese’ Col di Sasso’ Banfi IGT ‘12- Rs. 2500 A young , delicious and fruity wine, it is a good introduction to ‘Super Tuscan’ wines which are known for their international grapes and age-ability but this is a common blend in which Cabernet rounds off Sangiovese and gives it a good structure. Goes well with lamb dishes but chicken dishes made with red wine jus would go well too.
Merlot ‘Rawsons Retreat’ Penfolds 2011 (Australia) Rs. 2500 If you like a red wine rather neutral in flavours with fruit forward flavours and soft tannins, this will go well with most dishes, even vegetarians who like red wines would not find it ‘bitter’.
Malbec Argento 2013 (Argentina) Rs. 1900 The inherent softness of this entry level wine will be quite pleasant, not to mention the reasonable price.
If you are a fan and like to order a Rosé wine with food, go for Sangiovese Rosato Dogajolo ’12 Rs.2500 from Tuscany.
Indian Wines
Sauvignon Blanc Fratelli Wines Rs.1650 The vintage shown on the menu is 2011. It should be preferably 2013 or 2012. (The wine list says that vintages are s.t. change and hopefully they have fresher stocks) If 2011, try their Chardonnay 2011 which at Rs. 2100 is otherwise not a great bargain.
For red wine Shiraz Dindori Sula 2012 Rs. 1600 is indisputably the best wine.
Subhash Arora
If you have a question on any of these wines or those in any other restaurant-write to us : delWine@delwine.com.
We hope to make this a regular column as a service to our restaurant goer readers. Since wine tastes are a matter of taste, you may not agree with our recommendation. Any feedback will be welcome. If you feel the restaurant lists at a particular venue are well-priced-anywhere in India, please send us the List. We shall review it and give it priority in publishing our recommendations- editor
Rating- Based on various parameters like the prices, description, variety, clarity of explanation etc. The List is rated at 
Tags: Diva Restaurant, Diva, Ritu Dalmia |