Wine Sauvignon Blanc "SULA" 750ml

This sunny Sauvignon Blanc comes from Nashik, located to the north of Mumbai in the Western Ghats Mountains of India. And it's the country's first ever Sauvignon Blanc. Sula has obviously taken its inspiration from New Zealand, because this is bristling with nettle, grass, grapefruit, gooseberry, guava and crunchy green bell pepper. Super summery and highly enjoyable, especially when paired with sunshine, Caesar salad, asparagus, paneer tikka, Vietnamese summer rolls, hara bara kebabs (we highly recommend Meera Sodha's recipe with a burnt lime raita), matar paneer, palak dal, spicy chaat, Thai mango salad or pea-camole (that's guacamole substituting half the avocado for peas). This is sure to inspire a raft of Indian Sauvignon Blanc, but it will always be the forerunner. Sula Vineyards - described by Jancis Robinson as India's "leading wine producer" - was established by Rajeev Samant, who began planting vines in 1996. It became the first winery in the ancient city of Nashik, and that area of Maharashtra has since emerged as the country's largest grape-growing region. Inspired by his time spent in Napa Valley, Rajeev Samant not only pioneered the cultivation of French grapes, like Sauvignon Blanc and Chenin Blanc, but has also experimented with Zinfandel, for which he took a pruning from California and stuffed it into a duffel bag, then five days and four fridges later, planted it in Nashik. This is not an obvious place to launch a winery. The tropical climate, monsoon rains, high investment required, complex taxes and inability to advertise alcohol locally, all create significant challenges. However, Sula Vineyards have made such a success of it, they no doubt inspired the multinational luxury goods brand LVMH (Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton) to create Chandon India about an hour's drive away.  The wine industry has a diversity issue. So, it's great to see wineries like Sula vineyards opening up new frontiers and breaking down old barriers. The company follows susta.