Distilliing heritage

Meet the Goa-based entrepreneur who is reimagining everything from tequila to mahua

- KARTHIK RAVINDRANATH

Desmond Nazareth returned to India in 2000. After having spent 17 years in the US, he may have anticipated some of the disadvantages of relocating to a less developed country. But, there were some things he was not ready to forgo, such as margarita—a cocktail made with tequila and citrus juice. Soon, the alumnus of IIT Madras and Temple University, Philadelphia, realised that India lacked affordable ingredient options for making margaritas. However, instead of resigning himself to the reality of the Indian market, Nazareth took matters into his own hands.

In 2007, he started Agave India (agave is the plant from which tequila is made), a craft distillery that uses Indian know-how and raw materials. “The company was started as an attempt to make Indian agave alcohol from the blue-green agave plants that I found growing on the Deccan Plateau,” said Nazareth, who is single at 62, with no kids. “Later, the vision evolved into making specialty, unique Indian alcohol at international quality.” The company now employs 35 people in its two facilities—a 44-acre agro facility and craft distillery in Andhra Pradesh, and a packaging unit in Goa.

The products—sold in select markets under the brand name DesmondJi (DJ)—include agave spirits, orange liqueur, alcoholic margarita blends and the newest offerings, mahua spirits. The US and Europe are the major export markets. Agave India’s lifetime sales is around 60,000 cases (each with nine litres of alcohol at 40 percent alcohol by volume). It has raised about $3 million over the years from around 60 national and international investors.