04 January,2013 10:57 AM IST | | surekha S
This isn't just another wine tasting festival. It's a venue where you can meet and hobnob with wine experts of every kind, taste some of the best wines in the world, take part in grape stomping sessions and learn more about this celebrated spirit.
"The fourth edition of the Mumbai Wine Festival, which begins this weekend, is bigger and better," informs Pratap Arora, Event Director, The Mumbai Wine Tasting Festival, adding that this year they have got support from a lot of quarters including Maharashtra Tourism. "It is great that they are recognising the need for promoting it," he adds.
Like last year, The Mumbai Wine Festival will be held at the Radio Club
What's in store?
There will be 15 stalls at the festival set up by different brands with some of the best labels from Australia, Italy, France, Portugal, Spain and Chile being a part of the event. "We have six to seven boutique wines (wines from small wineries that are specialised) that will be part of the festival. We also have Wine - Art and Quirky, where we will feature wines with arty labels. We will present wines from six countries including the Tuscan region in Italy, with a focus on its art aspect. These wineries are as much experts of wine as much as they are artists," he explains.
Apart from tasting great wines, the guests will also have an opportunity to interact with the wine experts and learn about different kinds of wine, how to make wine-based cocktails, how to taste wines, wine pairing and a lot more. They also have grape stomping and a Salsa workshop, for those who are interested.
Adman Prahlad Kakkar, who is also the Vice President of Terrior One (Mumbai Chapter of the Delhi Wine Club promoted by Indian Wine Academy) recounts an incident related to wine, which he finds hard to forget. "Someone got a barrel of cheap wine, and I got totally hammered with it. When I woke up in the morning, my tongue was stuck to the roof of my mouth and when I unscrewed it with difficulty I realised it was green with wild life designs on it," he says, breaking into a laugh. "Obviously, this won't happen here as some of the world's best wines are going to be part of this festival," he adds.
Wine drinking, he feels, needs to be encouraged and promoted as it makes men romantic and sentimental. "Hard liquor, on the other hand, makes men aggressive. Look at Europe, where wine drinking is prevalent. Men are charming and try to woo the women. While in places like Russia, where hard liquor is common, men are more aggressive," he reveals.
"Wine is the oldest drink made by man. It forms a part of many cultures like the Christian and Greek tradition. Besides it's great, as wine makes ugly men seem more sophisticated and fat women look better," he signs off with a laugh.
