Sula Vineyard-Day Out with Family

Having itchy feet can be quite troublesome as routine life starts feeling mundane quite so often. One such dull Friday evening early this year, me and my sister looked at each other and exclaimed -“I am so bored!”, “Okay let us go somewhere tomorrow!” Scrolling through the “Best One Day trips from Mumbai” search results, we quickly concluded it was going to be Sula Vineyard in the Napa Valley of India. Little did we know then this would be our last outing of 2020. Sigh!

Ride From Mumbai to Nasik

Sula Vineyard

We, my parents, sister and myself, started from Mumbai at around 9 am Saturday morning having booked our Ola outstation cab the night before. We reached Sula post noon, bought the redeemable Entry coupons and entered the scenic estate.The first thing you notice about Sula Vineyard is how colourful it is! It was like a mini disneyland with a Wine theme, if you know what I mean😃 Whichever way you look, you can spot eye-catching installations shaped like or made of wine bottles and barrels. Needless to say, the Instagrammer in me was delighted! But famished as we were, sorting out lunch was the first priority. Due to the weekend crowd, It took us close to an hour to get a table after making a reservation.

Day Out with Family at Sula Vineyard

Lunch & Exploring Sula

After a ravenous lunch at The Rasa, we started exploring the beautiful scenic property. Before that, we hurriedly signed up for the Wine Tour and Tasting activity which is conducted in batches every one hour.Our batch was scheduled for 5:30 pm so we had enough time to relax and look around the luxurious property.The leisurely walk around the vineyard would have been incomplete without taking insta-worthy pictures at all those instagrammable spots right?

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As it was spring time, the flowers were in full bloom turning the vineyard into a photographers heaven. The bright pink and magenta hues added another layer of gleeful vibe.Even the scorching sun could not deter the visitors, including us, from posing against the vividly colourful backdrops. No wonder the best pictures clicked and tagged by patrons are displayed on a whiteboard right outside the Gift & Bottle Shop 🙂

The spring flowers and yellow bicycle make for the perfect backdrop – Sula Vineyard

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Fun pictures with the wine bottles and barrels- Sula Vineyard

Wine Tour & Tasting

The Winery at Sula Vineyard

As the clock struck 5:30, we approached the designated assembly point outside the Store for the scheduled Wine Tour and Tasting activity. After some brief formalities, we were guided to the Winery. The Tour started with an informative introduction to the history of “Sula Vineyard”. Post that, we were escorted to the different sections of the Winery, the Tour Guide carefully explaining the whole process of wine making. It was nice to see so many wine lovers in the crowd coming up with interesting questions.

The six different Sula wines for sampling at the Tasting Cellar

Sunset & Sula

The last leg of the activity was the personalized Wine Tasting at the Tasting Cellar. My mother being a strict teetotaller, only the three of us had signed up for the Tasting. The guide took us through the five steps of wine tasting – See, Swirl, Smell, Sip, Swallow or Spit with quick demonstrations. Our wine glasses were poured with six different samples of the rich Sula wines, the ingredients of every sample explained, the flavors ranging from light to full, dry to sweet. As the sun set across the vineyard, the view from the Tasting Cellar was magical.The heady concoction of wine and the breathtaking sunset made for an unforgettable experience, and one that I highly recommend!

By the time we were done,it was almost 7 in the evening. To be honest, we were feeling a little light headed from all the wine tasting. The sky was painted completely orange by this time. It felt so surreal that for a while I regretted not planning to stay overnight.We casually walked around taking in the view for another half an hour before finally heading back to Mumbai.

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Expenses

• Ola Outstation from Thane -5000 INR
• Sula Vineyard Entry Tickets for 4 – 800 INR
• Lunch at Rasa – 1500 INR ( We redeemed the entry coupons worth 800 INR so it came down to 700 INR)
• Wine Tour & Tasting – 250 INR per head for Tour and Tasting of 6 wines, 150 INR per head for only Wine Tour ,entire cost for family was 900 INR

Travel Tips & Recommendations

• Like me if you believe “What’s a visit to Sula Vineyard without Wine Tasting?”, make sure to avoid the designated Dry days as the Tours and Tastings are not conducted on those days.
• Please check the weather beforehand. Since it was February, the unexpected heat had taken me by surprise.The weather during monsoon or autumn months might be more pleasant for exploring the vineyard estate.
• For weekends, please be prepared to stand in long queues for your lunch reservation as well as the Wine Tours due to the influx of Pune and Mumbai crowd.If you are planning to visit with elderly or infants, this might be something to keep in mind.
• Sula houses three restaurants – The Tasting Room, Little Italy and The Rasa. Try to grab a table at The Tasting Room to enjoy a panoramic view of the vineyard.
• Check out The Bottle & Gift Shop for their wine varieties and souvenirs.
• For overnight stay, Sula offers two gorgeous properties – Beyond by Sula and The Source at Sula. The tariffs are pricey unless you are planning for a luxurious staycation; in which case, please make reservations in advance for weekends.

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