Indian Wine Takes On The World

by infomatique | July 16, 2007 at 02:42 pm

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The Indian wine industry may still be in its infancy, but it is hoping
to challenge the supremacy of winemaking countries in an effort to gain
a foothold in the international wine market.

Though India offers an ideal climate for winemaking and Indian wines have also won many prizes abroad, the biggest challenge for companies like Chateau Indage is to make wine lovers around the world comfortable with the Made in India tag.

Oz Clarke, one of the presenters of the BBC's Food and Drink programme, says that western wine drinkers are some of the most imaginative wine drinkers in the world.

"England in particular, but also Scotland, Ireland, Sweden, Norway - those kind of countries are desperate for new experiences," he says.

"I think when they see Made in India, they won't say: What a weird idea. They'll say: Fantastic! I haven't tried it. Give me some."

The other challenge for winemakers in India is to develop a domestic market
as most Indians prefer beer, whiskey, rum and sometimes even home-brewed spirits over champagne and wine.

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The European Union has suspended its complaint to the World Trade Organization (WTO) about India's import tariffs on beer, wine and spirits.
The move comes after India recently lifted duties, which hit as much as 550%, on imported alcohol including French wine and Scottish whisky.

However, the EU has expressed annoyance that India has chosen to raise its basic duty on wine from 100% to 150%.

It is unknown if the US, which made a similar WTO case, will follow suit.