It's hardly the first country you think of for wine, but India has a growing number of reliable producers, writes Ray O Connor
The streets of Bombay are as hectic as they come in India. As rickshaws and taxis fight it out in traffic, millions of people swarm the dusty back roads, where poverty and pollution are rife. A hundred kilometres or so from the hustle and bustle, in the serene hills northeast of the city, lies Nasik, India's leading contribution to the wine regions of the world. Here, at an altitude of 800m, Sauvignon Blanc and Chenin Blanc vines are grown to meet the increasing demand for Indian wine, both at home and abroad.
Although the vines are thousands of kilometres from their native Loire Valley, the zesty freshness produced from these grapes is not unlike that of their European counterparts. The altitude and the variation between daytime and night-time temperatures found on the local Deccan plateau help develop the aromatic characteristics of their style. Red varietals, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz and Zinfandel, have proved successful both here and farther south, in Bangalore. Two local grape varieties, Arkesham and Arkanti are being trialled in nurseries, and there has been notable success with the indigenous Thompson Seedless.
Alok Chandra, an Indian wine consultant who has been in the drinks trade for 25 years, has witnessed the industry's evolution. "It's perhaps too early to believe in terroir in India, but the Indian wine board is currently being constituted by the Ministry of Food Processing Industries, who hope to apply appellation-controlee status to Krishna Valley and Nandi Valley, in the district of Bangalore."
Although the vast majority of grapes are harvested by hand, like all the crops in the region, wineries are using machinery that is far from basic. "Everything from modern pneumatic presses to destemmers is imported," says Chandra. "At the top-end wineries, such as Vintage Wines, Italy's finest machinery is used to control the heat, which can often be a problem in this climate."
Grapes are harvested in February and March in and around Nasik and in March and April around Bangalore. (The Bangalore Blue variety delivers two crops a year, requiring heavy pruning to force the vines into dormancy and so maintain quality yields for the following harvest.)
The state of Maharashtra, of which Bombay is the capital, has more than 40 wineries; over half are in the expanding area of Nasik. Sula Vineyards is the one of the region's most successful producers. Run by Rajeev Samant, who founded the company in 1993, it produces 100,000 cases a year, exporting some of them to the US and Europe. Samant, who studied engineering at Stanford University, in California, left his job in Silicon Valley to look into making wine at home in India. He and Kerry Damskey, a Californian winemaker, set out to cultivate the most suitable varieties for making wine that would appeal to both Indian and international palates.
Samant brought cuttings of Zinfandel back from the US in his suitcase - not unlike Miguel Torres's journey with a bag of Cabernet Sauvignon vines from France through the Pyrenees to his native Catalonia. In 2000 Sula hired Ajoy Shaw; as head winemaker he oversees production at the company's three continuously modernising wineries. Sula recently invested in a large barrel room, for ageing vintages, and a cellar for méthode champenoise bottles.
Two other leading producers based in the region are Vintage Wines and Chateau Indage. The varietals in the former's young but rapidly developing Reveilo range are emerging as some of India's top wines; its Cabernet Sauvignon yields are kept to 1.5 tons an acre, for deeper concentration. The 2005 vintage will soon be available, having aged for nine months in oak.
On a larger scale, and dating back to 1982, Chateau Indage owns three wineries with an annual production of 200,000 cases, from 2,000 acres of vineyards. In 1986 it became the first Asian company to produce bottle-fermented sparkling wine, called Omar Khayyam. Today Sula and Vinsura also produce sparkling wine, largely distributed to the country's five-star hotels.
With production increasing by 25 or 30 per cent a year, India is the world's fastest-developing wine region. This is a phenomenal figure given the country's history of prohibition. Gandhi, for example, supported a ban on alcohol not only for social reasons but also to reduce the taxes the British would receive through its sale.
India's links to wine date back to the Mogul dynasty, when European travellers brought wine to the emperors. After 1612 wine became more common, largely because, as wine was so expensive to ship to India, the British began planting vines in the northern state of Kashmir and in what is now the western state of Gujarat. Portuguese settlers also played a role farther south, in Goa. They kept their meat in barrels of wine that was heavily doused with mashed garlic and spices, a style they referred to as vin d'alho, or garlic wine - later more widely known as vindaloo.
Fast-forward to the late 20th century and you have the likes of Michel Rolland walking through the vines, giving his expertise to Grover Vineyards, in the Nandi Valley, outside Bangalore. Since then the estate has expanded to encompass 150 acres of vines, producing about 600,000 bottles a year. This includes Rhône varietals such as Viognier, Clairette and Syrah, plus the ever popular Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Sauvignon.
Wherever it is in the world, where there's wine there's wine tourism. You can find up to 100 people in a winery's tasting room at the weekend, according to Alok Chandra. "Visitors who stay at five-star camping hotels can help out with picking the grapes in January and February," he adds.
If the thought of back-breaking manual labour doesn't interest you, perhaps you'd prefer one of the "champagne showers" or baths available from Chateau Indage, which says the antioxidants found in sparkling wine are useful anti-ageing and destressing therapies. Even if the medicinal benefits aren't convincing, soaking in potable bubbles while sipping local wine is as good as it gets.
Khrishna Valley's proximity to the golden beaches of Goa is also attracting tourists, and wine bars are taking off at an increasing rate. To help local cultivators and wineries, they are licensed to sell only local wine.
So with production growing and its popularity rising at home, we should expect to see more and more Indian wine arriving in Ireland. With sommeliers constantly looking to create unique wine lists, and retailers keen to offer unusual bottles, it may be time to spice up your palate.
BOTTLES TO LOOK FOR
Indian wine is hard to find in Ireland. The Irish Whiskey Shop, on Dawson Street in Dublin 2, stocks several bottles from Sula's range.
Sula Chenin Blanc 2006(12.5%, €9.99) is aideal example of how a harmonious balance of warm sun and high altitude can deliver characteristics of Golden Delicious apples and refreshing mouth feel. Sula Sauvignon Blanc 2006(13.5%, €13.49) is perfect for a balmy day (when we get one). It's more alert and crisp than the Chenin Blanc, with enough acidity to cut through the Asian spiced dishes that it would best accompany.
Should you come across a bottle of Grover Vineyards La Réserve Cabernet 2003(12.5%; £9.99 in UK), it's also worth trying. It shows typical Cabernet notes of green peppers and some cassis. The fruit lacks any real complexity, however, which leaves the palate more dry than high.