Indigenous spirits lack support

India has a rich legacy of producing indigenous alcoholic beverages from fruits, flowers, and rice. From mahua to feni and from kiwi-based wines to xaaj – the rice-based brew from Assam – they flow gracefully across diverse palates, through the length and breadth of India. But sadly these indigenous drinks do not get their due recognition across India’s food & beverages industry. Neither do they figure prominently in the consumption basket of alcoholic beverage consumers across urban India. But that does not mean these brews, wines and spirits do not have their market potential; they have, but that potential is being seldom explored by our mainstream alco-beverage manufacturers. Swarnendu Biswas here discusses some of the few success stories in the niche and often neglected segment of indigenous alcoholic beverages of India, and also how the market potential of indigenous alcoholic beverages in India can be harnessed.

Arunachal Pradesh is one state from the north-east India which has recently made a place for itself in the map of indigenous wines of India. For that credit must go to Tage Rita Takhe, a young engineer turned entrepreneur from Hong village of the picturesque Ziro Valley of Arunachal Pradesh, who quit her stable and well-paying government job to jump into the turbulent sea of entrepreneurship.

The urge to economically uplift the people of her valley and to listen to her inner voice to do her own thing led her to create kiwi wines. “Lots of kiwi in our valley was rotting around as there were not enough takers for them in the market. From this rampant wastage I sensed a business opportunity,”the lady elaborated.

She decided to productively use the kiwi fruit to make kiwi wine. Despite  facing impediments due to rigmarole of paper work and also due to the geographic location, she eventually became successful in translating her vision into a heady reality. “Bringing machineries from Nashik to Ziro Valley was a huge task,” she recollected calmly.

Kiwi Wine Production

According to her, her company is the first producer of pure and organic kiwi wine in India. Her company’s name is Lambu Subu Food and Beverages and her wine brand’s name is Naara Aaba. Her winery is located at the basement of her village home in Ziro Valley and it is endowed with sizeable tank capacity.

“The production of kiwi wine on commercial scale in Arunachal Pradesh began from October 2017 and the production of wines from pear and plum on commercial scale began in the state in October 2020. Lambu Subu Food and Beverages under its brand Naara Abba began the production of these fruit-based wines in the state,” affirmed Tage Tatung, MD, MIDH & JD, Directorate of Horticulture, Govt. of Arunachal Pradesh, while acknowledging the contribution of Tage Rita in fostering the fruit-based indigenous wine culture in Arunachal Pradesh.

However, according to Tage Tatung, though kiwi wine production in the state with breathtaking scenery began on commercial scale with Naara Abba, but the idea of producing kiwi wine in Arunachal Pradesh began during 2013.

“The idea emerged when I was Managing Director, Arunachal Pradesh Horticultural Produce Marketing & Processing Board (APHPM & PB), under the Department of Horticulture, Government of Arunachal Pradesh. I realised that Arunachal Pradesh, despite being the largest producer of kiwi fruit in India cannot market this fruit profitably due to its high transportation cost to the areas of high demand. So, I thought of converting the marketable surplus of kiwis into wine,” the bureaucrat elaborated. “Consequently a kiwi wine under the brand name of Arun Kiwi was produced on a pilot project, under a MoU with Rhythm Winery of Hill Crest Foods & Beverages Pvt. Ltd. Arun Kiwi was launched in Mumbai in September 2014 and in Itanagar on 6th May 2015,” he said.

“During its launching in Itanagar, many wine makers were invited from various parts of the country and they shared their technology. Also many of them brought their samples of wines from various fruits like orange, pineapple, etc.” explained Tage Tatung further.