The Demystified Vine

Nandi Hills ‘Grover’ Shiraz Rosé 2014

It isn’t likely that you’ll be able to find any Indian wine on the Canadian market. In fact, I dare you to try.

It is true, however, that India is making wine, and they are making a selection of wine that fits onto the international market’s buying stage, too. By that I mean that they are making wine from popular varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz.

Years ago, while doing my WSET wine certification courses, I had the chance to try a Cabernet Sauvignon and Viognier from India. To continue to be honest, I didn’t like either of them. There was something unattractive on the palate that made me think, “funky”, and not in a 1970s musical sort of way.

While in Paris a few weeks ago, I had the chance to try the 2014 Nandi Hills “Grover” Shiraz Rosé. I was at the Indian Resto on the rooftop of the Gallerie Lafayette, and I was completely intrigued by the fact that they had a few Indian wines on their vino list.

My partner and I asked for a sample, as we didn’t want to commit to a glass (or, at least, I didn’t want to) at ordering time. When the sample arrived, of course I was excited to try this wine. It was a hot one in Paris that day, and almost anything cold and light was the way to go.

The waitress was kind enough to bring two samples over. So, I tried it. It was lighter than Provence rosé, and as such, it was extremely difficult to extract any information about the bouquet or the palate from the wine. The bouquet was of lightest intensity; I’ll be nice and say it was soft and delicate with a raspberry blush and a minute hint of spice. The wine itself was dry, had good acidity, was light bodied, and had minimal fruit notes. I detected a bit of raspberry and dried strawberry on the palate with a slight side of dust. However, above all, I couldn’t get past that “funky” again.

Maybe this ‘characteristic’ is simply part of how wine shows itself from this area of the planet. I’m really not quite sure what it is, but now I have had the chance to try 3 different varietials from India, and sadly, I have yet to be impressed. As a side note, I also get that “3” isn’t a big number, but when you consider how many Indian varietals are around…

I get it though. I also understand they are a ‘new’ wine industry with a lot to learn in the wine making department. They also have varying climates and terroirs.

Honestly, I do hope that I get a chance to try more Indian wine in the future; it is so very exciting to try new wines from unusual wine making regions. I’m simply still searching for one that I can boast about.

In the end, while I am glad that I had the opportunity to put another notch on my Indian wine belt, I have no regrets with not actually getting the glass. The white Alsatian blend was definitely the way to go instead.

Cheers!