Development of a Strategic Framework for Benchmarking Indian Wines and Increase Wine Tourism in Karnataka

Abstract

newline In southwestern India, Karnataka is a wine-producing state. Although it is far closer to the equator than what is generally agreed for viticulture, there are still areas of the terroir where small wine industries are developing, particularly in the southern parts of the state near Bangalore. The state is located at 11 18°N latitude, placing it squarely in the tropics, where temperatures scarcely change during summer and winter. Though being one of the country s best wine-producing regions, wine consumption is least when compared to all other alcoholic beverages. The preliminary stages of the study analyzed that the wine awareness among consumers of Karnataka is very low. Adding up to this, India has a ban on alcoholic advertising and thus the wines cannot be advertised and affects the consumption at the domestic level. On the other side, the wineries are struggling to reach the global market due to competition and other related policies. Therefore, this study was done to analyse this issue and benchmark Karnataka wines and recommend strategies to enhance the quality of wine with well-informative labels, promote wine as a health benefiting drink and develop strategies to make Karnataka a renowned wine destination.