India’s push into global wine markets is beginning to gain attention as fruit-based wines slowly find space alongside traditional grape labels overseas. As growth in domestic wine consumption remains muted, exporters are leaning on international demand to fuel expansion, ET reported. In the first seven months of the current financial year, wine shipments from India rose sharply, touching a record $6.7 million. This figure was more than twice the value recorded during the same period last year, according to an analysis by trade think tank GTRI, cited by ET. Although grape wines continue to account for the bulk 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 case contained twelve 750 ml bottles of Curry Favour, a wine produced using jamun. The shipment marked the first time an Indian jamun-based wine has been exported. Produced at Seven Peaks Winery in Nashik, the wine is expected to be launched at 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. “We had to keep our export pricing competitive due to high duties in the US market. Even so, the arrangement 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 steadily reaching shelves and menus in overseas markets such as the UAE, the Netherlands, China, France and the UK. Export sales between April and October this financial year have already surpassed $5.8 million, the value estimated for the entire 2024–25 fiscal year. Curry Favour adds to a small but diverse line-up of non-grape Indian wines making their way abroad. Wines crafted from Alphonso mangoes and Kashmiri apples have already been exported in limited volumes. Pune-based Rhythm Winery, part of Hill Crest Foods and Beverages, ships its Alphonso mango wine to the UK, while L74 Craft Cider, made from Kashmiri apples, is available in select British markets. Neeraj Agarwal, a viticulturist and a key contributor to the jamun wine export initiative, sees scope for the category to grow further. “Tourists are always keen to try new flavours, and demand for Indian wines in markets such as the UAE has increased manifold,” he said. Agarwal was earlier associated with Reserva Jamun, a jamun wine brand launched during the Covid-19 pandemic that gained popularity in parts of Maharashtra, Karnataka and Haryana. However, sustaining 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, having developed over the past three decades. While the category has expanded locally, earlier reports by ET have noted that growth has been driven largely 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 rising export numbers, fruit-based and heritage wine producers continue to face hurdles. Entrepreneurs, particularly in the Northeast, have made attempts to enter global markets with limited success. Naara Aaba, a kiwi wine produced in Arunachal Pradesh’s Ziro Valley, was showcased in China and Greece two years ago. Its producers also explored a possible tie-up with Thai Airways, but exports did not gain long-term traction. Similar challenges persist 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 produces the traditional rice wine Xaj. “Unless the government provides some form of subsidy, we simply cannot remain competitive in international markets,” he added.
