SOMEWHERE ELSE NASHIK
THE GIFT
of
THE GRAPE
MANEK S. KOHLI VISITS A BOUTIQUE WINE ESTATE ON
THE OUTSKIRTS OF NASHIK. PHOTOGRAPHS BY
PUNEET K. PALIWAL
F
irst, lift the wine glass from its
stem. Take care not to touch
its bowl, since you don’t want
any fingerprints. And then, see. Hold it
against a bright white background—the
ceiling or a wall should do—and observe
its clarity. Particulate matter of any
kind is unacceptable. Then, observe
the colour. Assess its richness, evaluate its depth and focus, particularly at
the top rim of the liquid. For red wine,
the brighter this rim, the older it is. For
whites, darker is older.
And then, swirl. With a free, loose
wrist. Watch your drink rotate, almost
hugging the rim of the glass, and then
watch it settle. You have now released its
fragrance. Sniff. Take a strong whiff, and
describe what you smell. A fruity, citrusy
or perhaps nutty, caramel-like aroma? Or
spicy? And finally—sip.
This formulation isn’t mine. As we sat
in Soma Vine Village’s winery, at a table
surrounded by wine-themed display
pieces, humongous barrels and rows
of sparkling wine at various stages of
fermentation, we were being educated
in the art of wine tasting by Cellar Door
Manager, Amritpal Singh.
Soma Vine Village is located 12km
from ‘India’s Napa Valley’, Nashik,
Maharashtra, in a belt of wine estates
The cheese platter goes
well with Sauvignon Blanc
Dessert; and (left) the wine
came from these vineyards
which also includes the well-known Sula
Vineyards. Continue on the same road,
enjoying the freshness of the lush rainfed vegetation coupled with the constant
scent of petrichor, and turn left to find
the splendid vineyard resort. Slanting
roofs supported by wooden panels, its
balconies and verandas overlooking a
hill on one side and the infinity pool, the
Gangapur Dam, vineyards and distant
hills on the other.
Every story looks a bit prettier if it has
a hero. In Soma’s tale, the protagonist
is Pradeep Pachpatil, chairman and
managing director, fondly called PSP.
He’s a jovial and enthusiastic individual
OUTLOOK TRAVELLER • SEPTEMBER 2016
119
NASHIK
Sauvignon Blanc Gold, fresh
from the tank
Soma’s hospitality is lavish. Can
the same be said of its wine? On
the contrary, we encounter humility and a glimpse of PSP’s vision
120
OUTLOOK TRAVELLER • SEPTEMBER 2016
pursuing a unique idea—that of fermenting wine suitable to the spice-loving,
masala-obsessed Indian palate.
The PSP-owned Vine Village is a
nearly decade-old 25-acre complex. Its
15 acres of vineyards grow all five Indian
grape varieties, allowing for a yearly
output of 85,000 litres of wine. Pachpatil
previously worked with Sula, concentrating on their wine tourism sector.
What resulted, in 2010, was the Beyond
Vineyard Resort, which Sula ran till June
2016. A couple of months ago, Beyond
became the Soma Vine Resort. Suddenly, Pachpatil had 46 rooms under his
wing—29 in the erstwhile Beyond, three
in a magnificent villa he had originally
built for his own use and seven each in
two other massive villas.
While the rooms at the resort have
simple interiors, and are all equipped
with either a balcony or a sit-out and
lounges/bathtubs in the case of the
pricier options, such as the luxury suite,
the villas are even more stylish. The
three-bedroomer, especially, is gorgeous,
with wooden flooring, sitting room with
beanbags and barrel-shaped tables,
dining table at the centre embellished
with bottles of different kinds of wine,
winding staircase, many large rooms and
garden with a large pool.
Soma’s hospitality wing is lavish. Can
the same be said of its wine culture? On
the contrary, we encounter humility
and a glimpse of PSP’s vision. The first
vintages were presented in 2014, and the
winery’s 19 fermentation tanks produce
a limited yearly output. So this makes
Soma, as Amrit said, “India’s only boutique winery”. PSP wishes to keep it lowkey. The idea isn’t to expand aggressively
but to promote wine connoisseurship
through an honest tourism experience
where people come, experience wine
and all its facets and go back wiser. It was
left to Kalyani Jadhav, Soma’s marketing
manager, to tell us of plans to increase
production five- to six-fold in the future.
The winery produces 13 blends—some
of them white, some red, some sparkling,
one rosé, and all of them delicious. The
vineyards grow five varieties of grapes to
produce these blends—Sauvignon Blanc,
NASHIK
The three-bedroom villa is
our pick of the lot
Chenin Blanc, Zinfandel, Shiraz and
Cabernet Sauvignon.
On our second day, Puneet and I
had lunch with Jadhav at Suffiana, the
resort’s multi-cuisine restaurant. We ordered a Sauvignon Blanc Dessert (“white
wine made with Sauvignon Blanc; extra
sweet”) which is basically wine acting
as dessert, and which we enjoyed with a
cheese platter. I’d take a sip of the ‘dessert’, quite pleasing to my sweet tooth,
and immediately neutralise it with a bite
of cheese. At nights, we enjoyed some
of the Sauvignon Blanc Gold (“white
wine made with Sauvignon Blanc; dry or
absent of sweetness”) and Chenin Blanc
Silver (“white wine made with Chenin
Blanc; sweet”). Puneet preferred the
drier wines—he thoroughly enjoyed the
Sauvignon Blanc Gold, which he found
refreshing and rich. I enjoyed the Silver,
with its citrusy sweet flavour. And we
both loved the Rosé (“made of Zinfandel”), which tasted just right in every
way imaginable.
Soma Vine Village has a few more in122
OUTLOOK TRAVELLER • SEPTEMBER 2016
teresting tricks up its sleeve. The newly
opened restaurant Vintage: Rotisserie,
Grill and Wine Bar, presents a unique
concept—every dish has a touch of wine
in it. Their Spa Nilaya offers vinotherapies, using wine-related ingredients.
Puneet and I took a, well, couple’s
massage, where an ‘Insta Life Red Wine
Therapy Masque’ had us rejuvenated
and smelling, quite strongly, of wine.
The Sensation Vine Lounge is a garden
amphitheatre for larger events and
Zonkers, Soma Vine Village’s adventure
park, offers go-karting, rope activities,
rock climbing and other activities at just
a slight walk away.
The first time we met the staff, we
joined them at the winery where a meeting was underway. A couple of chocolatiers had come, and we ascertained how
different kinds of chocolate went with
the wine. Seventh on the list was popcorn chocolate, with its burnt and smoky
flavour, to be tried with one of Soma’s
reds. We then had a, well, chocolateflavoured wine. I thought it delicious.
Most others thought it too sweet. As
Puneet and I walked back, I said, “Wine
and chocolate. Wine and popcorn. Wine
and Gujarati cuisine. What’s next?” He
responded, “Wine and samosas?” Now,
that’s a new idea for anyone looking...
THE INFORMATION
GETTING THERE
The closest airport is Mumbai (174km/3.5hr),
although Pune (222km/5.5hr) is also close.
Soma Vine Village is 12km from Nashik. Cross
Sula Vineyards and York Winery to find it on
your left. The nearest station, Nashik Road, is
25km away.
SOMA VINEYARD RESORT
The resort has options for all budgets. The
cheapest are the standard rooms (from
`6,000 doubles), but the `7,000 deluxe
rooms are worth the extra buck. For larger
groups, the three-bedroom villa begins at
`24,000 and the seven-bedroom villas at
`42,000 (taxes extra; rates inclusive of
breakfast, vineyard and winery tour, winetasting sessions). Contact: +91-7028066016;
somavinevillage.com n manek s. kohli