New wines in new bottles

Sula, the market leader in India in wine, has just launched Kadu (pronounced “Kaadu” — Kannada for forest), a sub-Rs 700 per bottle wine in four variants.
 

What makes this new wine interesting is its positioning as “Wine for a Cause” — personified by the tiger on the label, the name itself, the tie-up with Bittu Sahgal’s Santuary Nature Foundation, and a commitment to donate Rs 5 per bottle sold to that Foundation.

The wine is being produced by Sula at their unit in North Karnataka, and will initially be available only in that state. There are four varietals: a Chenin Blanc (Rs 625 in Karnataka); Shiraz Rosé (Rs 650); a Sauvignon Blanc (Rs 675); and the Cabernet-Shiraz (Rs 695). Half-bottles (375 ml) are also available.

Sula pulled out all the stops for the wine’s launch at the Blue Bar (Taj West End hotel Bangalore): Rajeev Samant (“RS”) was there with his entire team, including new COO Nick Pringle (the ex-cricketer), VP Marketing & Global Brand Ambassador Cecilia Oldne, and winemaker Gorakh Gaikwad. Wine personalities Reva Singh (Sommelier India) and Subhash Arora (Indian Wine Academy) had been flown down from Delhi, while Sonal Holland (India’s first and only Master of Wine (or should we say “Madam ji of Wine”?) was there from Mumbai.

Speeches apart, a cheque for Rs 5 lakh was handed over by RS to Bittu Sahagal at the launch, indicating that the company was “paying it forward” for the first 100,000 bottles of Kadu — this will provide a fillip to Sanctuary Nature Foundation’s innovative “Mud on Boots” project (see www.sanctuaryasia.com).

The brand itself has no mention of Sula — indeed, one would have to look hard to find the name Sula on the label (it’s there, in tiny text, on the back label), and marks a strategic change in branding strategy of the company

 

The brand itself has no mention of Sula — indeed, one would have to look hard to find the name Sula on the label (it’s there, in tiny text, on the back label), and marks a strategic change in branding strategy and targeting consumers by the company, most of whose brands have the Sula logo and name as part of the branding.

What about the wines themselves? I found the Sauvignon Blanc to be aromatic but very crisp, almost astringent, while the Chenin Blanc was much better: still dry, but with loads of aroma and taste. The Shiraz Rosé was a tad too delicate and sweet for me — the colour is so pale a pink as to almost disappear.

However the Cabernet Shiraz is well-made: medium-bodied, well-balanced, good flavours and tannins, very drinkable.

Sula itself is in a period of transition: Rajeev Samant is delegating more responsibilities, and with the induction of the vastly experienced Nick Pringle as COO, the product portfolio as well as the personnel will undergo a churn: Chief Winemaker Ajoy Shaw moved out recently after 20 years with Sula to start his own consulting business; the company is talking of bringing in 20 new labels (both spirits and wines) in the near future, apart from a renewed focus on exports by leveraging Nick’s contacts in the alcobev industry in Asia and the Americas.

So, to paraphrase Cecilia (who worked long and hard on the Kadu project), “Here’s to raising a toast for a good cause.”

Alok Chandra is a Bengaluru-based wine consultant