India’s Wines Find a Foothold Abroad

India’s wine story is quietly evolving beyond grapes. As domestic consumption remains sluggish, exporters are increasingly looking outward, and early signs suggest global markets are beginning to take notice. Wine exports from India more than doubled in the first seven months of the current financial year, reaching a record $6.7 million, according to trade data cited by The Times of India.

A notable milestone came last week with the export of India’s first jamun-based wine. Eight hundred cases of Curry Favour, produced at Seven Peaks Winery in Nashik, were shipped from Mumbai and are expected to debut at select restaurants in New York and New Jersey. Jamun, a deeply familiar seasonal fruit across India, brings both novelty and cultural resonance to international wine lists. Producers involved in the shipment say pricing had to be carefully calibrated to offset high US duties, but believe the export marks an important proof point for Indian fruit wines abroad.

Other fruit-led wines are also beginning to travel. Alphonso mango wines from Maharashtra and craft ciders made from Kashmiri apples have found limited distribution in the UK, while Indian wines more broadly are appearing on shelves and menus in the UAE, the Netherlands, France and China. Yet the path remains uneven. Entrepreneurs working with indigenous and regional styles, from kiwi wines in Arunachal Pradesh to traditional rice wines in Assam, point to scale, logistics and the absence of export incentives as continuing constraints. Even so, the growing interest in distinctive flavours and place-led narratives suggests India’s fruit wines may be finding their moment, slowly but with intent.

Read the full story in Times of India.