UB made a quiet
entry into the Indian wine market last Thursday with
the launch of their much awaited entry level white
and red Zinzi, with Delhi targeted as the next stop
in two weeks, reports Subhash Arora
Priced at Rs. 275 each in the Mumbai
market, Zinzi white has been produced from a blend
of Chenin Blanc (80%), and Sauvignon Blanc (20%).
The wine is off-dry with a residual sugar level of
11 gms/liter but 'the sugar is well balanced with
acidity making it a nicely flavoured wine,' asserts
Abhay Kewadkar, VP and Chief winemaker of UB
Wines- the wine division of UB spirits,
a Vijay Mallya group company.
The red is a blend of Zinfandel,
Shiraz and Cabernet; the first two give the fruitiness
while the Cabernet gives the structure and body. Grapes
for their wines have been sourced from contracted
farmers.
Zinzi is being positioned to compete
against Madera, Sante, and Figuera wines, says Abhay.
Chatting with Subhash Arora in Delhi, he explained,
' Zinzi is meant for the young consumer, which includes
novices too. That's why we have a young and lively
label.' Elaborating on the pricing strategy, he said,
'We feel that the wines made from grapes costing Rs.25-Rs.35
Kg should be available to people at affordable price
and decided to keep our margins low to bring out ours
at these attractive prices.'
Since it is not always possible
to finish an entire bottle in a sitting, 'we have
also introduced a 375 mL bottle at Rs.140. We shall
also come out with a 187 mL bottle in a month's time,'
informs Abhay.
UB sold 250 cases on the first day
of the launch. It proposes to sell 150,000 –
250,000 bottles - appx. 15,000 cases, in this fiscal
year. It is an ambitious target achievement of which
will depend upon how soon they are able to handle
the government red tape and get the wine distributed
in the national market, says Abhay.
Next fiscal, they hope to sell 400,000
bottles, over 33,000 cases. Four seasons to be launched
in February should add 600,000 bottles to their sales
figures, thus giving them an ambitious target of over
83,000 cases in the first year of full operations.
As already reported earlier, UB plans
to export 10% of their production, primarily to UK,
France and New Zealand.
Subhash Arora
Januray 12, 2008
|
