“India was a challenge,” says Andrea Valentinuzzi, Italian winemaker at the new SDU Winery, Karnataka. “No one could believe that India can produce great wines .” He wants to change that perception, and is ready to spend the time and effort on doing so. SDU, which calls itself a boutique winery, has started by making 5000 cases of wine across 3 varieties in 2013-14 with two labels in the market at present – the entry level Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah, with a Chardonnay on its way shortly, and Reserves to follow soon.

Valentinuzzi is not new to India, having already spent a few years in Nashik in Maharashtra with Vintage wines, maker of Reveilo, an established wine company. The question that interested me was why he chose India to make wines, after working across South America, California, Australia and Europe.

It was the challenge of India, he said.

“I’m not a winemaker who can take 400 consultancies and send instructions by email. I believe a winemaker must be there at critical times – crushing, bottling, for instance- during the winemaking cycle. It also helps that the harvest in India is around March, in Europe it’s in September. So I can manage both.” As for the difference between Nashik region in Maharashtra and SDU’s Nandi Valley region in Karnataka, it was more the soil than the climate. “The soil in Karnataka is red, while in Nashik it’s black, loamy. Both are totally different.” (more…)