Decoding India's Wine Market

Decoding India’s wine scene and its key players

- Sanchita Nambiar

When you think of popular wine regions, the top two countries that come to mind are France and Italy. However, as surprising as it may seem, the world is now eyeing India firmly as an upcoming and promising wine producer.

As per the India Wine Market Outlook, 2023 report, the wine industry in India has witnessed a surge with a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of more than 25 per cent from 2011-12 to 2016-18. Vishal Kadakia, proprietor of Wine Park, an importer and distributor of imported wines in India and Maldives says, “Wines are getting more popular by the minute. The awareness drive by Indian producers as well as importers is making a huge difference. Wine clubs, consumer wine festivals, wine dinners organised by various companies as well as wine influencers, all are adding up to making it popular.”

This is further accelerated by wine’s newly found identity of being an experience associated with a destination or simply a Friday night and not just a drink. Master of Wine Sonal Holland explains, “People want to stay at a wine resort, drink wine next to a vineyard, understand how it’s made, its nuances and overall get a more holistic view of it. People want to pair food with wine too. So basically, wine is experiential.”

MILLENNIALS RULING

The concept of wine as an experience resonates majorly among the millennials, who make for more than half of India’s wine drinking population today. In fact, this generation is keen on understanding the individuality of the wine consumed and is therefore willing to spend more on an immersion that goes beyond just sipping a drink.