Not quite like cola, but wine is flowing freely

Five years ago Sharad Pawar had pitched for “wine to flow like cola”. Today, figures show that wine consumption has grown substantially

Puneites seem to be taking their wines very seriously and that is apparent from how the consumption of wine has grown steadily in the last four years.

According to statistics available with the state excise department, people from Pune consumed 4,24,681 litres of wine made from grapes in 2008-09 against 3,55,546 litres that were consumed during the same period in 2007-08.

In a significant spike this year, the sale of wine has reached 3,99,083 litres in until February in the year 2009-10.

The growth can be credited substantially to the state’s support to the wine industry. The leg up, however, did not come without resistance. About five years ago, the Union agriculture minister Sharad Pawar had openly plugged wine, saying “Let wine flow like cola”. Not many had taken that kindly.

Critical reactions emerged from across the state criticising Pawar and the NCP-Congress government in the state for openly promoting wine even as the leader continued to push the wine industry.  Despite the criticism, the support remained and the growth that is being seen now is the result of that.

R Nibalkar, deputy superintendent, state excise department said, “There are many reasons for the growth of wine consumption in Maharashtra. Awareness through media, the strong support from the state by way of tax waivers and the younger generation’s preference for wine have helped the relatively new form of spirit to reach high growth in the state”.

The state has seen investment to the tune of Rs 247 crores in the wine business. This has been possible only because of the state’s policy which allows total excise duty exemption on wine production. The procedure for issuing of licenses for setting up a winery has been simplified.

As of today, 70 wineries have come up in the state. After Nashik (38), Pune district ranks second with 11 wineries. While Nashik remains the most favoured destination for setting up wineries, districts like Buldhana in Vidarbha and Osmanabad in Marathawada have been able to attract wine producers.

“In my opinion, the main reason for people showing interest in drinking wine rather than any other form of liquor is the social angle.

For higher income groups, wine is an aspirational drink,” said D D Tupe, owner of Associates Wines. Tupe’s Associates Wines is located near Baramati which has six wineries, the maximum in Pune district.