The one of a kind event was attended by a concoction of hospitality stalwarts, industry veterans, and senior journalists and influencers.

The inaugural India Wine Summit and the second delWine Excellence Awards concluded successfully on a wine-drenched note recently at The Pullman, Aerocity. The theme of the Wine Summit was The Game Changer and the event took the audience through three back to back Industry Round Table sessions with illustrious names from the wine producing industry, F&B professionals, wine importers and promoters.

The one of a kind event was attended by a concoction of hospitality stalwarts, industry veterans, and senior journalists and influencers. Amongst those who graced the occasion were  Eleonora Dimitrova (Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Bulgaria), Loic Pasquet, Creator of Liber Pater, Bordeaux’s highest priced boutique wine, Viswanathan (Singapore-based wine investor and Chairman for Grover Zampa Vineyards), Mr. Tristan Beau de Lomenie (General Manager of Pullman & Novotel Hotel), Vishal Kadakia (Founder-The Wine Park), Aman Dhall (Brindco), Sonal Holland (India's most accomplished wine professional), Madhulika Bhattacharya and celebrity chefs like Akshay Malhotra, Sabyasachi Gorai, AD Singh

After the introduction by leading food columnist, blogger and author Sourish Bhattacharyya and the welcome address by Subhash Arora, Editor, delWine and President, India Wine Academy, H.E Eleonora Dimitrova, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Bulgaria delivered the opening address. She gave a brief history of Bulgaria’s wine producing heritage, stressing on the importance and love of wines the Bulgarians have, as well as detailed statistics ion what makes Bulgarian wines special. The keynote address was delivered by Ravi Viswanathan, Chairman, Grover Zampa Vineyards. His speech was an eye opener in many ways, tackling the state of the wine business in India, the problems faced by Indian wine producers and his hopes of the Indian Wine Industry being at par with China in the next 25 years.

The showcase was followed by the DelWine Excellence Awards ceremony, kicking off with the Women of Wine awards preceding the other popular categories, and culminating with the Hall of Fame awards for excellence and contribution to wine culture in India and the world. Kaveree Bamzai, noted media personality started the commenced the evening’s proceedings with Awards that recognized 10 women who have made extraordinary contributions to the wine industry, in areas as diverse as wine making, wine sales and marketing, and wine education. This was the first time since 2015 that those named in delWine's biennial Women of Wine honours list were publicly recognised for their stellar contributions.

The Leela Palace New Delhi (Chanakyapuri) and Pa Pa Ya (Select Citywalk, Saket) bagged Delhi's Best Wine Destination Award in the five-star and standalone categories respectively. Le Meridien Gurgaon and The Wine Company (Cyber Hub, Gurgaon) went home with the same award, but for the NCR. The Oberoi New Delhi's Rakesh Awaghade and Ravi Batra of Pa Pa Ya got the prestigious Sommelier of the Year Award.