Wine prices in India are set to rise by 25–30% from levels in January after Maharashtra’s grape crop suffered its worst damage in recent years, sharply increasing input costs and reducing production.

Unseasonal and persistent rainfall from May to October devastated vineyards across Nashik, Sangli, and Solapur, the main Maharashtra wine regions that account for almost 90% of Maharashtra’s grape area of  about 120, 000 hectares and about 80% of the country’s grape output of 3 million tons, said a group of people, according to reports

Wine producers feel that the extensive damage to the crop will leave them with significantly less fruit for crushing this season, spiking the retail prices of popular wines. Prices are likely to rise due to the crop loss, but in fact what this would do is likely to reduce the crop, but thanks to the increasing inventory of finished wines at the producers or their distributors, the increase would not be as close to the prices feared though a slight increase will be warranted.

Rajeev Samant, CEO of the publicly traded Sula Vineyards, has made a cautious statement, thanks to the tight rein of the stock exchanges. He says, ‘our wine grape harvest is looking pretty solid and we hope that with all the measures we are taking, the price on our Premium labels like Sula, Source and Rasa range will be under check . However, small producers, who depend disproportionately on inexpensive wines made from table grapes, may be hit hard’.

“There is indeed a loss of crop this year, especially in our estate vineyards from where we get grapes for our most premium wines,” says Shailendra Pai of the small boutique producer Vallonné Vineyards near Nashik, who feels that the November rains, which came at the time of berry setting, have reduced the expected yield greatly.

Rajeev Samant further explained that the biggest damage has been on the early-pruned plots. “Pruning is normally done in September, but some parcels of mainly table grapes wine grapes—are pruned in early August. They have been hit the hardest because the monsoon lasted longer than expected, killing the fruit with the buds. In contrast, wine grape plots, pruned later, usually at the end of September or in October, have not suffered as much. There is some damage, but nothing close to what we are seeing in table grapes,” he said.

Early-pruned plots refers to vineyards where the pruning of grapevines is done earlier than the seasonal schedule.

Why is wine getting more expensive

Farmers in Nashik have reported losing 80% to nearly 100% of their crop. This has doubled grape prices (now ₹140-160/kg, up from ₹70-80 last year), pushing up costs for winemakers. Entry-level wines bottles in the ₹400-800 range, will realize that this price squeeze is the most.

No grape imports possible

Indian wineries can’t just switch to imported grapes because tax incentives require them to use local produce. This rule keeps pressure on prices and limits options for keeping wine affordable. With fewer grapes around, India’s annual wine exports (worth ₹30-40 crore) could shrink further this year. Fresh grape exports will also struggle with both supply and quality issues thanks to the rough weather.

(From various sources)