India’s foray into global wine markets is gaining increasing attention as fruit-based wines begin to find space alongside traditional grape labels overseas. As domestic wine consumption growth remains subdued, exporters are relying on international demand to fuel expansion, ET reported. In the first seven months of the current fiscal year, wine shipments from India rose sharply, reaching a record $6.7 million. According to an analysis by trading think tank GTRI cited by ET, this figure was more than double that of the same period last year. Although grape wines continue to account for the majority of exports, led by Nashik-based Sula Vineyards, industry executives say non-grape wines are seeing growing acceptance abroad. A milestone was reached on Friday when a consignment of 800 cases of Indian fruit wine was dispatched from Mumbai. Each box contained twelve 750ml bottles of Curry Favour, a wine made from jamun. The shipment marked the first time an Indian Jamun wine was exported. The wine will be made at Seven Peaks Winery in Nashik and will be released in select restaurants in New York and New Jersey, according to two consultants associated with the project. Jamun is a seasonal fruit that grows abundantly across India. “Due to the high tariffs in the US market, we had to keep our export prices competitive. Nevertheless, the agreement is a win-win for both the importer and us,” said Ajoy Shaw, one of the consultants involved. Indian wines, both grape and fruit-based, are increasingly hitting shelves and menus in overseas markets such as the United Arab Emirates, the Netherlands, China, France and the United Kingdom. Export sales between April and October of this fiscal year have already crossed $5.8 million, the estimated value for the entire fiscal year 2024-25. Curry Favor complements a small but diverse range of non-grape Indian wines that find their way abroad. Wines made from Alphonso mangoes and Kashmiri apples have already been exported in limited quantities. Pune-based winery Rhythm Winery, part of Hill Crest Foods and Beverages, supplies its Alphonso mango wine to the UK, while L74 craft cider, made from Kashmiri apples, is available in select UK markets. Neeraj Agarwal, winemaker and key contributor to the Jamun wine export initiative, sees scope for further growth in the category. “Tourists are always keen to try new flavors and the demand for Indian wines in markets like the UAE has increased manifold,” he said. Agarwal was earlier associated with Reserva Jamun, a jamun wine brand that was launched during the Covid-19 pandemic and gained popularity in parts of Maharashtra, Karnataka and Haryana. However, maintaining domestic demand proved difficult. “We couldn’t make it a long-term success in India,” he said. India’s wine industry itself is relatively young and has developed over the last three decades. While the category has been expanding locally, ET’s previous reports noted that the growth was largely driven by imported wines rather than domestic labels. According to Euromonitor International, the Indian wine market was valued at around Rs 5,630 crore in 2025, up from Rs 4,770 crore in 2023. Despite increasing export numbers, fruit and traditional wine producers continue to face hurdles. Entrepreneurs, particularly in the Northeast, have attempted to enter global markets with limited success. Naara Aaba, a kiwi wine made in the Ziro Valley in Arunachal Pradesh, was launched in China and Greece two years ago. Manufacturers also explored a possible collaboration with Thai Airways, but exports did not gain traction in the long term. Similar challenges exist elsewhere. “We experimented with exports in 2022 by sending a small sample consignment to Singapore, but the deal didn’t work out,” said Akash Gogoi, an Assam-based entrepreneur who makes the traditional rice wine Xaj. “Unless the government provides subsidies, we simply cannot remain competitive in international markets,” he added.
