(New Delhi, 14 January 2026) – The Vinitaly India Roadshow officially kicks off tomorrow. The travelling promotional format organised by Veronafiere in collaboration with ITA – Italian Trade Agency opens its 2026 edition with a first stop dedicated to the development of Italian wine business in India, a market increasingly at the centre of European commercial interest.
With the participation of over 30 companies, the Roadshow features an ITA collective (8 companies), a delegation from the Valpolicella Wine Protection Consortium (9 companies), and 13 companies participating directly. The objective is to facilitate engagement with more than 200 importers, distributors and HoReCa professionals, while also selecting and recruiting operators and buyers to be invited to the upcoming Vinitaly (Veronafiere, 12–15 April).
According to Veronafiere’s General Manager, Adolfo Rebughini: “India is currently at the centre of attention among European partners in view of the long-awaited free trade agreement. Initiatives such as this are essential to building solid relationships, transferring value, and positioning Italian wine in a structured and long-lasting way. In a still-young market,” Rebughini explains, “our commitment goes beyond commercial promotion and aims to develop a culture of Italian wine through training, education and long-term initiatives, including the promotion of wine tourism through Vinitaly Tourism, as a tool to connect territories, businesses and new international audiences.”
The programme opens in New Delhi on 15 January with visits to the capital’s wine shops and continues on 16 January at the Taj Palace, where the event comes to life with B2B meetings and tastings for buyers and, in the afternoon, also for wine lovers. The day’s highlights include two thematic masterclasses: the first dedicated to the breadth of Italian wine production – from Prosecco to indigenous grape varieties, focusing on the fundamentals of terroir expression – and the second exploring Italy’s great red wine regions, between regional identity and stylistic evolution. The New Delhi stop concludes with a gala dinner at the Italian Embassy in New Delhi, hosted by Ambassador Antonio Bartoli.
The Roadshow then moves to Goa on 18 January, with a walk-around tasting hosted at the Taj Cidade de Goa, attended – among others – by Rohan Khaunte, Minister for Tourism, Information Technology, Electronics and Communications of the Government of Goa; Walter Ferrara, Consul General; Srinivas Dempo, Honorary Consul; and Kedar Naik, Director of Tourism for Goa. The two masterclasses will be repeated in Goa, both conducted by Sonal C Holland, India’s first and only Master of Wine and a leading figure in wine and spirits education and consultancy in the country.
According to data from the Uiv–Vinitaly Wine Observatory, with imports valued at USD 30.5 million (2023 data), the Indian market remains marginal compared to global wine trade values. Nevertheless, excluding the Covid period, the market has matured in recent years, recording a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in value of +12%. In this context, Italy ranks as the fourth-largest supplier – behind Australia, France and Singapore – but stands out with growth rates of 14%, above the market average and among the strongest among top suppliers.
According to IWSR estimates, the total value of wine consumption in India stands at just over USD 415 million, expected to exceed USD 520 million by 2028, with a value CAGR of +3% from 2019 onwards.
Following India, Veronafiere’s international calendar for 2026 will continue in Norway with Vinitaly Preview Oslo (28 January) and in Poland with Vinitaly Preview Warsaw (17 February), before heading to Asia in March with Vinitaly China Chengdu (22–25 March), and finally returning to Verona for the 58th edition of Vinitaly (12–15 April 2026).