| It is interesting and instructive to trace the recent history of the wine industry in India and draw parallels with the concepts offered in Toffler's eponymous book. |
| The First Wave of winemakers in India were the pioneers: Indage (1986), Grover (1992) and Sula (1999) "" people who had had no previous wine-making experience but were passionate enough about the subject to brave the inclement conditions and entry barriers and set up wineries and a sales and marketing structure. |
| It's thanks to them that India got its first wines (as differentiated from the Goan "Port-style" wines dished out by the likes of Vinicola, or the cheap plonk called Golconda). |
| These three companies are today reaping the fruits of years of investment in the business as their brands are widely recognised and the companies are (finally) making some money. |
| The Second Wave started in Maharashtra in 2001 when that state liberalised wine-making, making it easy to obtain winery licences and to sell wines in the state. |
| This prompted a rush of (mostly) grape farmers to obtain licences and start making wine "" to-date some 30-odd new wineries have been set up in Nashik, Baramati, Satara and Sangli districts, producing anything from 10,000 to 3 lakh litres annually. |
| The wines made are all broadly similar: young, clean (no major faults) and drinkable "" but with little to distinguish one from another. You may have come across some of these wines: Vinsura, Flamingo, Renaissance, Sailo, ND, Mark Anthony, Mohini to name just a few. |
| These are not professionally managed companies, and the biggest obstacle faced by these winemakers has been how to market and distribute their wines, given the competition from the beer and spirits majors for listing and shelf space. |
| Should other states (like Karnataka) also liberalise wine-making, this wave is likely to roll-on, spreading the resulting wines in nooks and crannies not reached by the wine majors. |
| The Third Wave is just getting under way. The entry of major companies or professionals in the industry "" these ventures are well-funded and often managed by individuals who have a thorough knowledge of the Indian spirits market. |
| What's more, they understand what it takes to build brands and distribution (mostly, lots of money and time). Vintage Wines has a Rs 5 crore winery, and is turning out some good wines. |
| Seagrams has reputedly invested over Rs 8 crore in its state-of-the-art winery at Nashik, and its first wines will probably be launched this September. |
| Ranjit Dhuru of Aftek Computers has been quietly setting up vineyards and a winery near Nashik (Chateau d'Ori) and may also come to market this year. Deepak Roy (formerly head of Triumph Distillers & Vintners) is rumoured to be setting up a 100 acre vineyard near Nashik. |
| However, all said and done, it's going to be no cake-walk. As someone recently asked, "Do you know how to make a small fortune in wine?" and answered "Start with a large fortune." |
| Despite all the hoopla surrounding wine, till very recently the only people who made any money in this business were the vendors and the trade (and of course the government through taxes and fees). |
| What we're now hoping for is a virtuous spiral where increasing volumes attract investments (both local and overseas), which increases competition, which drives up quality and drives down prices, which in turn increases volumes... |
| So, when are we going to see Indian wines breach the Rs 1,000/bottle barrier? Probably not anytime soon, but you never know... |
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