SULA VINEYARDS

As a part of our project we had been given to explore Nasik. A group of 7, we had no idea what was in store for us. Until we reached the Sula vineyards which completely took our breath away.

Set against the rolling green plains around Nasik, a sort of Napa Valley in western India, we approached the Sula Vineyards, one of India’s largest wine producing wide varieties of whites, reds, roses and dessert wines to offer the wine lovers.

Sula Vineyards is located about 180 km from Mumbai on the Gangapur Road.  We arrived before dusk and the view was spectacular. Acres upon acres of land, planted with wine vines, the vines heavy under the weight of ripe grapes, the hills rolling gently into the Gangapur Lake in the distance. It was truly magical. Sula treats to a completely new world with the panoramic view of its vineyards.

The winery buildings are situated on the property which is a major asset for Sula. Sula Vineyards gives a visitor the complete picture, land under cultivation, the winery and a tasting room, all within easy walking distance. The winery buildings are reminiscent of Spanish architecture with sloping red-tiled roofs and clean white walls. 

We took a tour of the facility from the grape picking, to the crushing, fermentation processes in gigantic vats, to the final bottling, corking and labeling. It truly was an extremely interactive session with detailed process being explained in depth right from “vine” to the end product “wine . Our tour guide took us around. He started by showing us the vineyard, explaining about the viticulture process right until the harvest. He then guided us towards the winery and explained the varied process starting from sorting the grapes, removal of stems & leaves and their transfer to the grape crushing machine. The main difference between red and white wine is that grape juice used to make red wine contains skins, seeds, and stems. This is significant for by leaving juice to mix together with the woody bits (known as maceration) causes the finished product to contain a deep red colour and tannins. Ultimately the guide explained how the juice ferments into wine. This was followed by the racking of wine, the process of transferring the wine while separating the residues from one container to another. The white wines from Sula vineyards reach the shelves about four months after crushing while the reds reach the stores anytime between 8 and 18 months. This results in young, fruity wines with pleasant aromas. Some of the Sula wines are then aged for a short period before being bottled. We ended our tour in Tasting Room. The Tasting Room over seeing the lush green vineyards and the beautiful Gangapur dam water body is an eye soothing view. I must say you can expect all pleasant surprises. It sure was an experience of a different kind to most. The wine tasting room where we were led through the proper steps to see, swirl, sniff, and sip wine. We assessed the wine’s taste characteristics by checking for its Sweetness (or dryness), The acidity of a wine causes a tingling sensation in the mouth, Tannins derived from grape skins, seeds, and stems and the other things to look for when tasting a wine which include mouthfeel (weight/body of the wine in the mouth), alcohol levels, finish and aftertaste (can be short, medium or long). They have all the Sula wines available by the glass, a few also by the half bottle and bottle. There are maybe a dozen options in all. Prices are a bit below what we pay for retail in. All their wines are also for sale to take with you as well as various merchandise. Sula Vineyards is an Amazing place to spend your evening over wine. If you are a wine lover, then for sure you are bound to enjoy the place. Wines are of excellent quality can match the par of any other Californian Wine. All in all, I thought the Sula experience was pretty great. Environment was classy, wines were good, and very beautiful and relaxing

Today Sula is the powerhouse for wine in Nasik. The one winery it had built back then has expanded to several more, containing huge numbers of new vats, barrels and cellars. There’s a swanky tasting room and wine shop, an amphitheatre for performances and restaurant franchises like Little Italy. On weekends it can be like a wine mela, with visitors enthusiastically stomping on grapes (somewhat to my relief, I was told that these were reject grapes and the juice was not used).

After the wine tour and tasting it was time to head back home. But the beauty of the vineyard is something that will stay on for many days to come.