A major highlight this November was the successful conclusion of the 4th edition of ProWine Mumbai. Organized jointly by Messe Düsseldorf India and All Things Nice, the event wrapped up seamlessly, setting a new benchmark in India’s wine and spirits industry. Over the course of two days, this world-class business event for the Indian wine, spirits, and hospitality industry engaged visitors with a variety of workshops, entertaining performances, tastings, and more. Keep reading to find out what went down at ProWine Mumbai 2024.
About ProWine Mumbai 2024’s Inauguration
ProWine Mumbai 2024 took place on the 8th and 9th November 2024 and was hosted at Pavilion 2 and 3 of the Jio World Convention Centre in Bandra. Prominent dignitaries and trade representatives have consistently attended the show’s inauguration. This time, Chile, France, South Africa, the United Kingdom, Hungary, Ireland, and Portugal graced the event with their esteemed presence. With the exciting pop of a Casa Bottega Prosecco and the ribbon-cutting ceremony, the gates opened to welcome everyone.
Exhibitors About Prowine Mumbai 2024
A simple glance at the atmosphere at ProWine Mumbai showed that trade visitors from relevant sectors were networking on the floor. This network ranged from large hoteliers, prominent restaurateurs and bar owners, importers, and distributors to retailers, sommeliers, chefs, food & beverage teams and even consumers.
Many exhibitors shared that the event provided the perfect opportunity to connect with buyers for their portfolios, network with fellow exhibitors, and engage in discussions about the future. They unanimously emphasized their admiration for the scale and quality of the event, highlighting how it offered a global and professional platform for the wine and spirits sector. Also, many were overwhelmed by the high-quality footfalls and networking opportunities.
Exhibition & Tastings
This year, the show reached new heights, with a sprawling exhibition space of over 7,000 sqm, 170 exhibitors, and more than a thousand brands from 18 participating countries. The organizers set up a special 10-country pavilion for two days of business and market learning. Participating countries included Australia, Bulgaria, Chile, Denmark, France, Germany, Hungary, India, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom, and the United States.
Gold Partners – Casa Vinicola Costanza S.R.L and Tenuta San Giorgio di Sant Patrizia & C. (Staffilo Winery) from Italy invested their brands at ProWine Mumbai, in an attempt to enter the bustling Indian market. Adele Tosanotti – Brand manager, Casa Vinicola Costanza SRL, expressed the brand’s delight, stating that they are “looking forward to next year’s edition”.
ProWine Mumbai 2024 attracted approximately 5,947 attendees, including India’s extensive community of wine and spirit brands, importers, distributors, wholesalers, and retailers, as well as international brands looking to enter the Indian market. Noteworthy large-scale buyers including hotels, restaurants, bar owners, and wine & spirit enthusiasts also marked their presence at the 4th edition of ProWine Mumbai.
Ajay Kumar Gulati, General Manager of Messe Düsseldorf India expressed that “the success of ProWine Mumbai 2024 exceeded our expectations”.
“We are blown away by the sheer scale of ProWine Mumbai this year with amazing engagement, higher footfalls than ever before and participation from a record number of wine and spirit companies from India and all over the world”, Nikhil Agarwal, Founder of All Things Nice.
Masterclasses At Prowine Mumbai 2024
The show organized 11 well-attended Masterclasses. The discussions at the event not only introduced visitors to new brands and tastings but also featured truly one-of-a-kind storytelling experiences. In fact, some exhibitors even donned traditional attire to capture the true essence of their brands – a display of remarkable dedication!
This combination of insightful knowledge paired with the access to tasting high quality brands made the masterclasses a roaring success. Almost all sessions were running at full capacity!
The Panel Discussions
The highlight of the show was the informative panel discussions. Panellists took on thought-provoking questions from an equally insightful audience. An insightful exchange of thoughts, answers, perspectives occurred between the panellists and the audience.
The panellists across the three sessions facilitated healthy conversations that led to productive discussions. Here they are listed below:
- For Sommeliers, By Sommeliers: Taking India’s Wine Journey to New Heights
- Hosted by: Kevin Rodrigues – Indian Accent, Comorin, Hosa, Fireback
- Panellists: Bazil Moniz – I Think Foods, Charles Donnadieu – The Lalit Group, Ravi Punia – The Quorum & district150, Hridhay Mehra – Masque, Arth Jain – Taj Hotels
- Creating a World Class Bar Program – Showcasing India’s Talent & Culture
- Hosted by: Shatbhi Basu, Creative Consultants.
- Panellists: Aditi Dugar – Masque, Sweta Mohanty – Aspri Spirits, Pankaj Balachandran – Countertop, Vikram Achanta – Tulleeho/30 Best Bars, Evonne Eadie – Perfect Serve India, John Leese – Avant Garde Bar Consultancy, Anirudh Singhal – Speedx Hospitality Pvt. Ltd
- The Realities & Opportunities of Importing Wine & Spirits in India
- Hosted by: Sanjay Menon, Sonarys Co-brands Pvt. Ltd
- Panellists: Jackie Matai – Aspri Spirits /VBEV, Vishal Kadakia – Wine Park, John Southwell – Australia Trade and Investment Commission, Vianney Meynier – Business France
The ProWine Mumbai Night
The ProWine Mumbai Night is a grand celebration of networking, bringing together the who’s who of the industry. Today, it stands as the most coveted networking event, uniting the crème de la crème of the wine and spirits world.
The ProWine Mumbai: Honoring Excellence Awards also acknowledged noteworthy contributions within the wine & spirit sector. ProWine Mumbai organized the awards not as a sign of competition but as a mark of respect to recognize, reward, and celebrate the backbones of the wine and spirit trade.
The ProWine & Prospirits Challenge
The ProWine & ProSpirits Challenge opened doors to Indian and international wine and spirits brands available in India to ascertain the quality of their products vis-à-vis the preferences of the local palate. The judging took place on 2nd September at Four Seasons Hotel, Mumbai through a systematic blind tasting. This was done not only by industry professionals but also by significant wine & spirits consumers, connoisseurs, and enthusiasts, giving them a platform to express their opinion on their favourite wines & spirits.
The aim of this challenge was to judge the wines & spirits based on their quality alone. This unique method revealed an independent list of the finest wines & spirits available in India, as chosen by the very people who drink them. Now, that’s innovative!
The winners and partners of the competition were featured at the exhibition and the prestigious ProWine Mumbai Night. Guests at the ProWine Mumbai Night had all-access to taste the winning labels at the dedicated ‘Winning Wines & Spirits Bar’.
The Prowine Bartenders’ Competition
The show provided an excellent platform for talented bartenders across the country to showcase their skills at the ProWine Bartenders’ Competition. In partnership with Fay Barretto, Mixologist & Founder of Mr. Bartender & The Crew, Round 1 took place in September. With over 100 registrations, only 7 exceptional semi-finalists were selected to compete for the prestigious title of ‘ProWine Bartender of the Year 2024’.
Rounds 2 and 3 took place on 9th November at ProWine Mumbai, showcasing a mesmerizing display of skill, storytelling, and presentation. After exciting rounds and challenges, Nikhil Kamble from Nho Saigon, Mumbai won the competition. Peter Schmitz, Director of ProWein, Messe Düsseldorf, and Nikhil Agarwal, Founder of All Things Nice awarded him his certification. In addition to the title, Nikhil Kamble received a cash prize and an all-expenses-paid guest shift at an international bar.
Judges for the ProWine Bartenders’ Competition include the powerhouses of the bar world – Minakshi Singh – CEO & Co-Founder, Sidecar; John Leese – Bar Consultant, Avant Garde Bar Consultancy; Pawan Shahri – CEO & Co-Founder, Chrome Hospitality and Fay Barretto.
Hold on! That’s not it. The competition also rewarded bartenders who did not make it to the competition but engaged online audiences through the promotion and presentation of cocktails made for Round 1. The People’s Choice winner, chosen unanimously by the online audience, was Yashwanth Mukkati from Jamming Goat 3.0, Bangalore.
The ProWine Mumbai 2024 concluded on a triumphant and promising note. It will be back for its 5th edition from October 31 to November 1, 2025 at Jio World Convention Centre, Bandra, Mumbai.
About The Organisers
Messe Düsseldorf India Pvt. Ltd., a subsidiary of Messe Düsseldorf GmbH, is a major player in organizing trade fairs worldwide. In India, they’ve successfully run events like Medical Fair India, In-Store Asia, and ProWine Mumbai. They also represent Messe Düsseldorf Group in the Indian market.
All Things Nice, founded by India’s leading wine and spirits expert Nikhil Agarwal, is known for its wine and spirit experience-led events and consultancy services that connect directly with consumers and the trade.
