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Outstanding Cabernet Sauvignon 2015
 Krishna Prasad, the owner of KRSMA is very happy as a vintner today. The Cabernet Sauvignon 2015 resting in bottles at his winery in Karnataka and not released yet, received a roaring approval from the connoisseurs in the US where he had conducted a few private tastings. However, the production has been much lower and still he is in no hurry to release it; iit must be fully mature and ready to release to his satisfaction. The higher quality and lower yields have necessitated him to increase the price of the Estate Cabernet Sauvignon from the current Rs. 1,500 to Rs. 2,000 for the latest vintage 2015, a steep hike of 33%. In the process, it would make it the most expensive Indian wine in regular production-surpassing both Sette (Fratelli) and Chene (GroverZ). Incidentally, their highly acclaimed KRSMA Cabernet Sauvignon 2014 retails for $45-50in the US; there is no such thing as MRP there.
Et tu Sangiovese?
If you think the increase is too much-wait till you hear the new price of his Sangiovese! At the renewed price from Rs. 1250 it is being increased to Rs 2000 for the 2016 vintage to be released at the end of this year- a jump of 60%! ‘Our Sangiovese is coming much better in this vintage. In fact, the flavour spectrum is somewhere between Sangiovese and Pinot Noir, not an easy task,’ he says with a grin.
There is enough similarity between the two grapes for the Sangiovese producers in Tuscany to try to compare their wine flavours with the Pinot Noir flavours. ‘Besides, we produce a mere 100 cases out of the plot of 4 acres! We have now suspended the export of this wine to the US though we have got very good response in New York, the only place in the US where we are selling,’ he adds.
Besides, the Sauvignon Blanc which used to sell for Rs. 950 now sells for around Rs. 1200. A small quantity of Shiraz 2016 is currently maturing in the casks; the prices and release time in 2018 will be announced at the appropriate time, he says. It goes the same with around 100 cases of Chardonnay.
 With a total production of around 50,000 bottles, Krishna and his wife Uma are more particular about the quality which is going north also as the vines grow older and the constant experimentation helps the couple with an open mind, make consistently better wines. ‘But with quality we are being forced to increase our prices. When the Cabernet brings much higher price in the US, it does not make sense to sell at much lower prices in India, especially as the quantities available are too small’, he asserts.
Value-for-money K2
For the budget conscious, K2 happens to be the best bet despite an increase in the price from Rs. 750-900 a bottle. At the moment only the maiden 2013 vintage is available- this was released because Krishna was not happy to release the Cabernet Sauvignon as the Estate wine in that vintage and chose to create a new label. There would be no 2015 vintage of K2 as the grapes and the wine are superb in quality and have been used totally in the estate wine.
With the 2015 and 2016 vintages, KRSMA plans to show that the quality of their wines is ascending fast in quality-partly due to the lower yields than the industry. KRSMA is also betting that there exists a market for higher priced wines with better ageing quality. K2 2013 is expected to last for another 5 years, according to Krishna and may be a good collectible for future drinking. The Estate Cabernet is expected to last for 15-20 years after the vintage.
Other producers may have to measure up to these benchmarks in the near future. Only time will tell if they can surpass the quality and the price consistently with much higher volumes they produce on a regular basis. But for now, the boutique producer is laughing all the way to the US.
Subhash Arora |