Indian Wine Industry To See Exponential Growth In Half A Decade

In recent times, many people in India have opted for wine over other alcohol. Maybe it’s linked to the health benefits that wine has to offer. Or, maybe it’s just personal choice. Whatever the reason, this has seen an increased number of wineries in the country.

Red wine pouring into wine glass, close-up

At present, there are total 95 wineries in the county. Of which, 77 are in Maharashtra, including 39 wineries in Nashik district alone. And according to All India Wine Producers Association (AIWPA), the wine sale in the country is likely to double to 3 crore litres by the financial year 2020-21 considering the year-on-year growth of 20% for the next five years.

Yatin Patil, president, AIWPA, said, “The wine sales in the country have increased by 21 % during the last financial year 2015-16. We are expecting 20% year-on-year-growth for the next five years.” He added, “Accordingly, wine sales of the country may touch from 1.40 crore litres in 2015-16 to 3 crore litres by 2020-21 financial year”.

Reason for growth

Awareness, promotion, education and popularity of wine cocktails were the major factors that led to rise in sales of wine. Earlier, wine consumption was seen as a luxury and hence limited to tier-I cities like Mumbai, Bengaluru and Delhi. But the demand is increasing in tier II and tier III cities due to increasing awareness about wine as a health drink. Moreover, wineries have also started producing low-cost wine to target end consumers.