• Investment World
• eWorld
• Catalyst
• Mentor
• Life
• Canvas
• Praxis
• Urban Pulse
• Brand Quest

Our Bureau

Mr Prabhu Yalagi, Managing Director of Castello Farm Products Pvt Ltd, and film actress Ambika along wih models at the launch of Castello Italian wines in Bangalore.

BANGALORE, Nov. 27

UNLIKE international brands of spirits and beverages, which have enjoyed some success, wine has been slow in making a dent in the Indian market, partly due to the low acceptance of the drink.

But, not any more. To capitalise on the growing preference for wines, Il Castello, an Italian wine, has made a bow with an ambition to garner 20 per cent of the five-lakh-case market in the country.

Castello Farm Products Pvt Ltd, a joint venture between an Indian company and the Italian Castello, will market three types of wines through Mysore Sales International Ltd (MSIL). The company launched the brand in Bangalore last night and it hopes to introduce it in Mumbai and Delhi soon.

The popular red wine along with white wine and a `bubbly wine' were launched by the Southern film star Ambika here last night. The three varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon, dry red wine, Chardonnay crisp white wine and Prosecco, sparkling wine, are priced at Rs 660, Rs 660 and Rs 760 respectively.

Talking to reporters Mr Prabhu Yalagi, Managing Director, Castello Farm Products, said that though India was still a young market for wine, its growth at 40 per cent year-on-year has prompted his company to introduce one of the famous Italian brands. There was no immediate plans to set up a winery here he said, adding that it will be initially imported and marketed in India until the market matures.

"With wine consumption increasingly being seen as a lifestyle product, it is also our desire to mark the change in wine trends in India," he said. The company has taken an aggressive pricing strategy and plans to offer more varieties in future, Mr Yalagi said.

Bangalore, which has set a benchmark for lifestyle products, has been found to be a place where wine is becoming popular with more than 66 per cent of the sample size of a survey conducted by the company taking to wine drinking. However, the unavailability of good wines and a dislike of the taste of wine kept the remaining 34 per cent away from the drink. Another interesting finding of the survey was that 90 per cent were willing to pay more than Rs 600 for a fine quality imported wine, Mr Yalagi said.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail
Comment on this article to BLFeedback@thehindu.co.in

Stories in this Section
IDBI Bank partners Saathiya to serve its customers better

Copyright © 2002, The Hindu Business Line. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu Business Line