From Farm to Table: The Journey of a Bottle of Wine from a Boutique Vineyard in India

Time stands still here. You can wake up to mynahs feasting on figs and grapes, birds chirping joyously, hold the cottony clouds as they waft in with the first rain showers and follow the sun as he sets off on his journey home, behind a lofty hill. In the tranquil surroundings of Vallonné Vineyards, which we proudly state is India’s premier boutique winery, you come alive to nature and its many wonders.

Finding this scenic spot was a labour of love. More than 10 years ago, my father, Shailendra Pai, made 40 trips Nashik to look for land until he fell in love with this place—at first sight!

Seven years after we started making wines here with an all-French set-up, we built a beautiful little house bathed in yellow with a sloping roof and a fantastic view of the landscape. Guests started pouring in to sample and buy our wines which were fast being reckoned as high quality Indian wines.

The surroundings were captivating and people wanted to stay and eat. The wine experience could only be enhanced with comfortable hospitality. So, we transformed this beautiful home into a boutique vineyard resort with four rooms that cradle a large living area that offers expansive views of the picturesque landscape. After all, they say, that wine nurtures conversations and friendships. So we created an area where guests could meet and mingle over glasses of wine or sit in cozy nooks with book or board games.

We are nestled in a tiny village in Igatpuri where we have more cattle strolling on the tar roads than cars zooming across. There are no traffic sounds; no noise and none of the trappings of city life. Except modern comforts.

We spent months picking and putting together the space. In times when the wabi sabi philosophy is defining creative works, this décor with its little imperfections, fits in perfectly. We roped in Forest Essentials to get our toiletries and brought in coffee from a women’s cooperative in Coorg. We used little patches of land amidst the vineyards to grow basil, chili, papayas, tomatoes and seasonal vegetables.

Wines are best enjoyed with food but breaking away from the conventional European food-and-wine pairings, we brought in South East Asian cuisine with noted restaurant chain Malaka Spice. The non-air conditioned restaurant brings in ample sunshine and breeze and has a deck that offers vistas of the vineyards and mountains. The coconut curries, stir-fry and herb-infused sauces, inspired by the street fare in the Far East, we discovered, complements the aromas and flavours in the wines, be it the delicate floral notes in the whites or the deeper fruit and chocolate hints in the reds.

Our philosophy all along has been to focus not just on quality but also on innovation. There’s no fun in being a me-too after all! So, we introduced several firsts in the Indian wine market—a reserve Malbec that brings out the vibrant characteristics of the Argentinean grape, a refreshing rosé made from the robust cabernet sauvignon, unconventional blends of syrah and merlot and a delectable and much-loved dessert wine, the vin de passerillage (VDP) made along the lines of a straw wine.

Good packaging is the cornerstone of marketing a good product so we have each label designed to showcase the elegance of the wine. The VDP comes in a beautiful slender bottle with a hand sketch that highlights the grapes that are used. Some of the other labels depict the stunning south sloping vineyards where we grow our grapes. This year, we are celebrating 10 years of making wines with a special edition Cabernet Sauvignon that proudly showcases our winemaking style. We have made just 374 bottles of this wine which is a collectible with a classy wood case.

Our little property over 10 acres is a conscious step back in time. It blends modern wine making technology and techniques with a charming resort that is reminiscent of family-run vineyards that dot the European countryside, all presented with good old Indian hospitality. It’s a place that, like wine, grows on you with time. With clean air and sounds of crickets and birds, it’s perfect to reconnect with loved ones as you watch the miracles of nature, rediscover yourself on long walks through the woods and savour the place at leisure. It is in these little moments that you let the magic unfold.