India’s wine consumption to rise by 73%

Wine consumption in India due to increase by 73% by 2017, according to the latest figures from Vinexpo.

Rajeev Samant, CEO of one of India’s most prominent wineries, Sula Vineyards

As reported by The Indian Express, by 2017, wine consumption in India will have increased to 2.1 million cases, up 73% from the 1.10 cases consumed in 2013.

According to the Vinexpo survey, Indians are likely to drink 1.15 million cases of red wine, 0.63 million cases of white wine and 0.10 million cases of rosé by 2017.

Consumption of red wine is expected to grow from accounting for 61% of total wine consumption in India to 71.6% in 2017.

“Many factors are behind it as there is rise in the salary in the country, people are traveling to the West, local production is increasing and people are becoming sophisticated.

“For similar reasons, wine consumption in China has increased. It triggers demand in any country,” Vinexpo chairman Xavier De Eizaguirre said.

Spirits consumption is also set to shoot up by 20% over the next four years to 373.5 million cases, the Vinexpo study predicted.

The 20% predicted growth illustrates a leveling out of spirits consumption in India, which grew by 74% between 2008 and 2012 fuelled by brandy and Scotch sales, which were up by 155% and 110% respectively over the four-year period.

If the forecast is correct, by 2017 India will have be the fourth largest Asian spirits importer ahead of Thailand.

Vinexpo also predicts that Indian sparkling wine consumption will have doubled by 2017.

While one in four bottles of wine consumed in India today is imported, by 2017 imports are set to increase from 0.28 million cases to 0.48 million cases.