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Fruzzanté, an offshoot of the Indian company Hill Zill Wines Pvt. Ltd., specialises in sparkling fruit wine and was founded by Priyanka Save in 2017. Save has overseen the production of more than 25,000 cases, each carrying 24 bottles, since then. Fruzzanté’s wine does not need added sugars as the diluted juice of the fruit is enough to achieve the concentration of alcohol required. The fruits used for making this wine are sourced directly from farmers to maintain quality standards. The wines range from chikoo, starfruit, mango, strawberry, pineapple, to orange flavour, and are vegan and gluten-free.
We chat with Save about producing chikoo wine and the future of fruit wine in India.
What gave you the idea for chikoo wine?
I come from a farming background and we have plenty of fruits on our property. When I returned from the US, I noticed that 40% of the chikoo on our farm was getting wasted. I wanted to do something about this and spoke to my husband, who was also in agreement. We started working on ideas and after a lot of research, we narrowed on the idea of making an alcoholic beverage from chikoo. This way, Fruzzanté, the first-of-its-kind homegrown range of 100% sparkling fruit alcoholic beverages was born and with it our journey into entrepreneurship. Fruzzanté is a carbonated alcoholic beverage and hence to identify with fruit and fizz we coined the word Fruzzanté.
What does Fruzzanté aim to do?
At Hill Zill, our core concept and philosophy for making Fruzzanté are farm-to-bottle and we are on a journey to encourage farmers and ensure that the local fruits get their due. We do not add any external flavours or colours in our products. We source fruits directly from the farmers across Maharashtra and ensure that famers get the right price for their products. Coming from a farmer’s family myself, such farmer benefits have also been close to my heart. Having first hand experienced the complexity of supply chain process when too many middlemen are involved and how it affects the quality of the crop, we have always made it a point to procure directly from local farmers. We use produce from our family farms as well. The advantage of sourcing directly from the farmers is that we get fresh and quality produce from them which contributes to better quality of the final product.
How has the response to sparkling fruit wine been?
Fruzzanté is gaining immense popularity and our products have been well received in the market. People who have tried the product have been regularly exploring our new range of launches too. We often receive emails and Instagram DMs or comments telling us how good a job we are doing and how the people like our products.
Do you think India is ready for fruit wine?
India’s median age is 28 years which means that we are a country of young people. The youth of this generation are spoilt for choices, and they keep asking for more. So, drinks like wine or any easy to consume drinks become an instant hit. Gauging from the responses we have been getting I would say that the Indian market is ready for new products and trying different things.
What do you think is the future of fruit wine in India?
India is one of the fastest growing alcobev markets in the world. The alcobev industry in the country has been growing at more than 12% CAGR for the decade starting 2001 making it one of the fastest growing markets in the world. We are expected to be the third largest consumer economy as the consumption is expected to triple to $4 trillion by 2025. This growth will be led by a shift in consumer behaviour and expenditure pattern. The Indian millennial consumers present an exciting opportunity for the alcobev industry given their increasing aspirations, disposable incomes and exposure to global brands.
What is your favourite wine from the Fruzzanté range and why?
I have a favourite one for every mood actually. Fruzzanté pairs well with Indian cuisine and you can make your own interesting cocktails as well spritzers.
