Victoria-based Barokes Wines has become the first wine-maker to launch canned wine in India, despite the pandemic.
The Australian Senior Trade and Investment Commissioner for South Asia, Stuart Rees, launched the Barokes Wine brand in Mumbai on 18 February. The wine is being imported by Hover Barrell LLP in Mumbai.
Award-winning brand bets on wine retail in India
Barokes Wines is a global leader in canned wine. The company has won over 400 medals and its slim, aluminium cans are sold around the world.
Five varieties of Barokes canned wine are now available in India. These include three sparkling wines (white, rosé and red), as well as a cabernet-shiraz-merlot and a chardonnay-semillon.
The concept of canned wine is new to India. According to sources, the canned wine format is suited to India, where the wine market is comparatively small but aspirational, and dominated by domestic production.
The company's patented Vinsafe® process is able to preserve wine stability and longevity for up to five years.
India's wine imports growing at over 10% per year
The key market segment for wine is dominated by the 'on-trade' hospitality sector. On-trade sales accounted for 70% of the wine sold in India prior to the pandemic, according to Euromonitor International (2020), Wine in India – Country Report (September 2020), accessed 11 May 2021.
Retail sales of wine were not hit as hard during 2020 than sales from restaurants and other hospitality venues. Restaurants have been closed for protracted periods since the onset of the pandemic.
Meanwhile new opportunities to sell wine have emerged. State governments in Maharashtra, Odisha (Orissa) and West Bengal authorised e-commerce wine and liquor purchasing and home deliveries during 2020.
Source: Euromonitor International (2020), Wine in India – Country Report (September 2020), accessed 11 May 2021.
Overall, wine sales in India are growing fast. Annual growth rates exceeded 10% per year from 2013 to 2019, according to Euromonitor. Sales are expected to grow by approximately 8% per year to 2024.
Austrade helped Barokes Wines into India, including an introduction to Mumbai-based importer, Hover Barrel LLP.
According to local sources, the entry of Barokes canned wines into India should help to redefine wine-drinking for aspirational young consumers in India. It will likely expand Australia's market share by broadening the market for wine imports.
The Australia–India Business Exchange
Austrade has also launched a program to help increase trade and investment between Australian and India.
The Australia-India Business Exchange provides insights, advice, and business connections to grow two-way trade and investment between Australia and India.
