Ipsita Das, managing director at Moet Hennessy India said: “Aurva is a significant step in the made-in-India direction. We are expanding our wine portfolio while maintaining a clear focus on authenticity and quality.”
Priced at Rs 4,250, Aurva is being made available in select upscale retail stores for now, and will be extended to other markets subsequently.
Moet Hennessy’s existing portfolio in India includes Dom Pérignon, Moët & Chandon, Veuve Clicquot, Hennessy and Belvedere wines and spirits. In India, the wine and spirits company imports, sells and markets luxury wines and spirits, in addition to operating the Chandon winery in Nashik.
The development comes at a time when India’s wine consumption has been surging, fuelled by younger consumers, lower prices, flavour innovations and the mushrooming of neighbourhood bars. An India Wine Insider (IWI) report estimated the country’s wine market to be valued at $238 million currently.
Apart from select homegrown brands, imports into India have also been increasing, with reduction in excise duties.At an overall level, sales of Indian-made foreign liquor (IMFL) increased by 14 per cent by volumes to 385 million cases in FY 2022-23, and premium spirits priced at over Rs 1,000 per 750ml bottle grew by 48 per cent, a recent report by industry body CIABC said. The report said sales were close to 12 per cent higher than pre-Covid levels of FY 2019-20, signifying that the sector has overcome the downturn which it saw during the Covid-19 pandemic.
