Moët and Chandon

I was surprised to find that in 2013, LVMH setup a winery in Dindori, a town about 20km away from Nashik. It is situated in very serene surroundings a couple of miles inwards from the closest highway.

The long entrance to the winery is lined with palm trees and looks pretty.

There are many mountains in the area and the winery has a scenic backdrop.

The area where the wine tasting is held is very elegant.

Tasting can be done in the outside patio as well and the lawns outside make the experience delightful.

People love taking their pictures next to the Chandon letters on the lawns.

The vineyard is managed by local farmers and the production of the sparkling wine is done by LVMH in this facility. It cannot be called Champaign because it is not made in Champaign, France.

The fermentation tanks are visible right behind the tasting area.

The Brut, Rose and Delice bubbly sparking wines are made here and the Delice is the sweetest of the three with 30gm sugar/liter. Delice is only sold in the winery.

The overall winery area is well manicured and the miniature version of the overall property layout is seen in an artists rendering.

It was interesting to note that besides, France and Napa California, the Moet wineries were established in Argentina and China as well.

The fermentation tanks can be seen through glass windows all around the courtyard.

The wine tasting is conducted by a sommelier who trained in France. The tasting consists of the Brut, Rose and Delice tastes in that order.

The Delice was everyone's favorite and we bought some.

On weekends, they serve a full food menu. On weekdays, they have a snack tray and visiting hours are limited to 11am - 5pm.

We could see the different grape vines brought in from France to start the winery. The Chenin Blanc was first.

The Pinot Noir grapes were planted adjacent to the Chenin.

The Shiraz grapes which were used for Delice were next to the Pinots.

The view of the grape vines plantations was accentuated by the mountains all around the area.

The wine, food and views were enjoyable and we all returned home happy and a bit tipsy.