Globalisation seems to be the order of the day. More than ever before, one gets to hear and read this word and its synonyms in the media. Globalisation of markets, global economy, internationalisation - even globalisation of tastes, which refers to the changing food habits of people all over the world. With higher economic growth individuals and families in many countries are attaining higher standards of living and are acquiring new habits and adopting luxurious life-styles. The increasing liberalization and free movement of goods and services is facilitating and making it more economically viable to transfer products across continental borders and offer them to new consumers. Add to it the ease with which it is possible to communicate at global levels thanks to new and inexpensive means of communication, and the increase in number, by millions, of young and the not so young people travelling from one continent to the other, be it for work or for pleasure. All these factors are important stimulants to adopt new habits and acquire new tastes.
More and more people in more and more countries in Asia, Europe and the Americas are inclined towards changing the gastronomic and cultural traditions acquired from the native country and adopting, either permanently or occasionally, foods and drinks of other regions. The interesting fact is that while earlier this may have been caused by reasons of social prestige, imitation of foreign models or of the lifestyles of the rich and famous, today there are other reasons as well. The curiosity about different cultures, the desire to explore the unknown, the belief that certain foods and drinks are more suited to the rhythms and demands of modern day living, are other factors bringing about this turnaround.
In today's world, the border dividing beer and wine drinking countries is becoming increasingly faint. Initially, climate and geographical location determined the choice of one over the other, as the combination of these factors created the availability of materials for production. With a wider choice of raw materials for its production, beer has been traditionally consumed across continents, while the production of wine was restricted to the European end of the Mediterranean basin. Here, for centuries, wine has been the principal drink. As an expensive product, sought after in non-producing countries, wine was also an excellent source of income for the Mediterranean countries that bottled it. The spread of wine to other parts of the world was also handicapped by the fact that, until about 150 years ago, wine was a difficult product to transport. Only a very few wines such as port, sherry or Marsala could withstand months of travel without their quality deteriorating and making them undrinkable. Progress in cultivation and ageing techniques have allowed wine makers more control over the ripening of the grape and harvesting and production methods. Meanwhile, weather and climate permitting, colonisers from Mediterranean Europe planted vines wherever they went. Hence the emergence as wine producers of ex-Spanish colonies in the Americas such as California, Chile and Argentina. In Australia, the arrival of new immigrants from Europe, especially Italy, towards the end of the nineteenth century coincided with the country's becoming a producer of quality wines. South Africa is another non-European country to have acquired a reputation for fine wines. |
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Nevertheless, until recently, wine remained a drink for connoisseurs or for the wealthy. The average person only drank wine on business or pleasure trips to countries like Italy, France or Spain, where wine is a way of life. Wine is drunk as an aperitif before lunch or dinner, at the dining table at home, in a café with friends. A bottle of sparkling wine or a special vintage is uncorked to celebrate a wedding, the birth of a child, to honour an important guest or on other special occasions. But for the tourist or businessman, these rather limited contacts with wine fail to provide the required stimulus to explore it in detail and more frequently.
Over the last few years, however, enthusiastic consumers have adopted wine all over the world, including traditional liquor and beer drinking countries such as Great Britain, Germany and the United States. Australia and some Asian countries have followed them, with Japan taking the lead. Here, wine has become a mass consumption drink, available in supermarkets and general stores. In Japanese restaurants, it is now normal for a waiter to present the menu and wine list separately
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The United States and Australia are now members of the no longer exclusive 'Wine Exporters Club', whose other members include countries such as Argentina, Bulgaria, Chile, Hungary and Romania. Some time in the near future, Russia may also become an exporter. China is coming in as a strong consumer and producer of wines and will soon be an important player in the world market.
The Indian situation is rather complex. Wine as a drink is certainly not unknown. Evidence pointing to wine being drunk as far back as the Indus Valley civilisation is available, not to mention its consumption from the Vedic age to Moghul times. Wine consumption in India is however very limited today. With the tradition of natural foods, drinks and herbs so deeply implanted in India's gastronomic traditions, wine should have been a far more automatic choice than the high-grade alcoholic drinks that are consumed, despite their unsuitability considering the climatic conditions in most parts of the country. I guess 200 years of British Raj has had something to do with it, derailing what would have been a natural phenomenon for us Indians drinking wine. Things are changing though and how. There's huge interest in wine, both local as well as imported. Even though the base is small, the healthy growth rates of 25 to 30%, if maintained in medium to long term, will augur really well for the market.
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The Central government is also doing its bit and has planned to constitute National Wine Board with the aim of standarizing polices related to sale, distribution of wine as well as to remove anomalies in the system concerning state excise policies, label registration etc. The idea is to provide the necessary impetus to help the domestic market grow as it also has the potential, and is therefore in line with the governments policy in this regard, of providing strengthening growth in agricultural sector and provide agricultural diversification and value addition. The wine board will be constituted under the Ministry of Food processing industries in close coordination and support of Ministry of Agriculture. Cheers to that! |
