The new wine on the block

Grover Zampa Vineyards has unveiled a new label for its flagship La Reserve wine. The roadshow was held at the JW Marriott, Mumbai, a month back and at the JW Marriott, Bengaluru, last week.

La Reserve was the first cask-matured wine in India: it was first launched in 1998, two years after the renown Michel Rolland had been enticed with a minor equity stake by the late patriarch Kanwal Grover to become "consulting wine maker" for the then Grover Vineyards. Rolland's name appeared on the front label of La Reserve; a subsequent label change described the wine as "Made in collaboration with Mr. Michael Rolland, Bordeaux, France".

La Reserve's standing was hugely reinforced when, in 2005, Decanter magazine named the La Reserve 2004 as "the best New World Red Wine" - a singular endorsement. But competition was just round the corner: Sula introduced its Dindori Reserve Shiraz in end-2005, while the then market leader, Indage, came out with Tiger Hill, a premium wine that was rumoured to have been largely Australian wine imported in bulk.

Trouble struck Grover in 2008-09, first with a bacterial infestation at its Karnataka winery, then in the meltdown of its marketing partnership with importer Brindco. Quality suffered, as did sales and brand standing, and at one stage people were seriously concerned about the company's future.

Happily, Grover seems to have emerged stronger from that troubled period: it brought in fresh funding from Ravi Vishwanathan and Reliance Capital in 2012-13; stabilised wine quality through a dedicated production team that included Karishma Grover; merged with the Nashik-based Valle de Vin in 2015 to form Grover Zampa, which enabled it to source wines from the Nashik winery for sales in Maharashtra, with big savings in inter-state taxes; put in a professional (Sumedh Singh Mandla) in charge of the day-to-day running of the company; moved the sales and marketing operations to Mumbai, which gave the company a broader canvas; and initiated a slew of marketing initiatives, which include launch of the Vijay Amritraj premium wines, the new La Reserve wine packaging, an annual Grover Wine Fest in Bengaluru.

So, what is La Reserve all about?

In the best tradition of French winemaking practices, Grover initially did not declare either the grapes used to make the La Reserve or the actual number of months the wine is matured in oak. Only lately has it admitted to using Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz for the original red wine, but not the proportions. The La Reserve white similarly has mostly Viognier, but one does not know whether any other wine grapes are included in the blend.

Wines I've been drinking: Naturally, the Grover La Reserve Red (2013) at the roadshow in Bengaluru. The wine has a complex fruit aroma with hints of oak. On the palate, it is initially tannic, but mellows down with a bit of aeration into a medium body with soft oak and chocolate palate and a long finish. Still young, the wine will soften with age and will remain good drinking for the next five years.

The Grover La Reserve White (2014) had an initial bitter attack, probably as its been made in the French style with lots of acidity and extraction, but with an intense aroma of citrus and tropical fruit. Again, the wine will soften with bottle-aging and stay.

Innovation comes at a price, and La Reserve is no exception. The new label is priced at Rs 1,000 per 750 ml in Karnataka, and plans are afoot to introduce a magnum (1,500 ml) at Rs 2,000 soon.

Another great case of "Make in India"!

Alok Chandra is a Bengaluru-based wine consultant