UB all set to uncork Kingfisher wine

United Breweries is set to launch its own Kingfisher wine in the next six months. The company which has a stranglehold in the beer market in the country, had been drawing out its wine strategy for quite sometime and is also putting up a winery at Nashik.

UB chief Vijay Mallya addressing shareholders at the company's 7th AGM in Bangalore today said UB is moving ahead with plans to launch its own wine brand under the Kingfisher stable. "Both beer and wine come under the same category and the wine product is expected to be in the market in around six months time."

The UB Group recently acquired France-based wine brand Bouvet Ladubay for close to $20 million through which the company gets to introduce high quality wines (both originally bottled in France and bulk imported to be bottled locally) to the emerging wine connoisseur in India.

This acquisition will also assimilate leading-edge viticulture into India and will take advantage of established distribution in Europe and US to push other products from its portfolio in the Western markets. UB is also in talks to acquire a wine company in South Africa.

Talking of United Breweries' growth plans, Mallya said plans are being made operational to launch a premium beer product - Kingfisher Ultra, to take on the MNCs coming into India.

"There are a lot of players such as SABMiller trying to increase their market penetration by acquiring Foster's in India. Foster's is a brand which is found at premium markets and not across India. Our brands are present in every nook and corner of India. However, we are putting in place a strategy to plug the premium gap through Kingfisher Ultra," Mallya said.

The company is also putting in place a Rs 400 crore expansion plan to expand brewing capacities across the country in phases.