Zampa by Vallee de Vin

Great Chenin Blanc !

Actually, I was reluctant to buy this being a new name in wines. I was veering towards the favourite Sula Chenin Blanc and the Indage Sauvignon Blanc, but the shopkeeper insisted I try this new wine. After some dilly-dallying, I decided to take the risk. The problem in trying out bad whites is that my wife only prefers chilled whites and I obviously wanted to take less of a risk with a known, tried and tested one !

However, the Zampa turned out to be a pleasant surprise. Easy to drink, it had a pleasant finish with “overtones of honey and confectionery”. I really enjoyed it. May be Indage is better, but it is a wrong comparison anyway. Zampa grapes are grown by Australian viticulturist, Simon Robertson, and the winemaker is Paul Bailey from Australia. No wonder they have created some good magic from the Sahyadri Valley of Nashik District.

At Rs 600 (USD 12 or SGD 18 appx) it is around 25% more expensive than the Sula Chenin Blanc, and even 10% higher than the more renowned Indage. I think they should correct the pricing, as beyond Rs 450 – 500, the tolerance levels for incompatible pricing diminish in buyers. This is not a question of affordability, it is price to value ratio for long-time wine drinkers. If one can get excellent wines in Australia for A$ 10, why not a similar price for good wines made in India ? Unfortunately, Indian wine makers continue to price high to tap the well-heeled, not really promoting wine as an all-time drink or aperitif, as it can well be positioned as such. So, a large portion of the market goes for hard liquor or beer.

Well, try the Zampa.

Cheers

Vijay Srinivasan
14th March 2009
Mumbai