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After India-EU FTA, premium European wine and whiskey may cost less in India

The India-EU Free Trade Agreement proposed tariff reductions on imported European alcoholic beverages. How will it trickle down to consumers? Here's what industry experts say

Written by: Abhimanyu Hazarika, Nirbhay Thakur

4 min readGurgaonUpdated: Jan 28, 2026 05:27 PM IST

delhi Liquor merchants, lower duty on EU wines, EU wines, Gurgaon, India-EU FTA, free trade agreement (FTA), Piyush Goyal, delhi news, India news, Indian express, current affairs

At Open Tap, a bar in Gurgaon. (Nirbhay Thakur)

Even as market players anticipate an increase in the competition among global players, the proposed tariff reductions on imported European alcoholic beverages, including wine and whiskey, under the India-European Union Free Trade Agreement has been largely welcomed. The move is expected to help in the ‘premiumisation’ of what has traditionally been a protected market.

As per the FTA, the duty on European wine will be reduced from 150% to 20% for the premium range and 30% for the medium range. For wines below 2.5 euros, there will be no duty concessions. For spirits, the duty will be reduced from up to 150% at present to 40%, and for beer from 110% to 50%. The agreement is likely to be implemented within the 2026 calendar year, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said.

Reacting to the announcement on Tuesday, Rahul Singh the Founder & CEO of The Beer Cafe, which has pan-India operations, told The Indian Express, “Indian consumers today value variety, authenticity and global provenance far more than ever before. The FTA supports this shift by enabling wider access to international beers, wines and spirits, which in turn, strengthens the overall drinking experience. For consumer-facing brands like ours, this is a positive step towards building a more mature, discovery-led alcobev ecosystem.”

No details, however, are yet available on the timelines and actual price reduction yet, he added. “Any custom duty reduction directly benefits the consumer pricing. It also provides access to specialities which were hesitant to enter India”, he stressed.

Rakshay Dhariwal, Managing Director, Passcode Hospitality, a premier Indian F&B group, and Maya Pistola, manufacturers of Agave-based spirits, said that any price reductions can come only once the agreement is implement and the existing stock finishes

“The move will take time to trickle down to the purchaser and kick in for menus. There is no uniform pricing in India and every state has its own methodology. So the price drop in states like Maharashtra (where retail costs are high) will be more versus say Goa or Haryana,” he underlined.

Dhariwal said that he estimates a 20-25% reduction in the overall price per bottle, but that too will depend on how each manufacturing company makes its cost card or if importers decide not to pass on the benefits.

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On the impact of the move in the domestic space, he said, “Local wines will have the biggest impact. They will have to compete with European brands. Also for brands like mine, we’ll have to deal with imported competitors, where for (imported) tequila in Delhi, the label registration costs are Rs 1 lakh per year…while for the Agave (despite being from the same plant) drinks, it is Rs 25 lakh per label per year, which is insane.”

Hansel Vaz, founder of Cazulo Premium Feni, whose cocktail mixes are sold in Delhi, said the move is good for ‘premiumisation’ of what has traditionally been a protected market.

“The disappointment is that unlike the FTA with the United Kingdom, there is no reciprocal-based zero tariffs for GI products, which would have been good to take Feni to the premium European market. Otherwise, I do not see a significant overall reduction in prices, as even after the Australian FTA wines didn’t become cheaper,” he opined.

Minakshi Singh, co-founder of Gurgaon’s Cocktail and Dreams speakeasy, The Brook, and Sidecar bars in Delhi, welcomed the move. “Some of the prices were prohibitive earlier. The move is great for the premiumisation of spirits, and improves both prices and access. It will open up our market for further creativity, especially in the cocktail space. While prices will definitely see a downward trend, the percentage will only be clear later once more details are available,” she said.

Abhimanyu Hazarika

Abhimanyu Hazarika is a Senior Correspondent with The Indian Express, based in Gurgaon. He covers southern Haryana. Education - Post-Graduate Diploma in Print Media, Asian College of Journalism (Class of 2020) - B.A. (Hons) Liberal Arts with a major in Political Science, Symbiosis School for Liberal Arts (Class of 2019) Professional Experience Before joining The Indian Express, he worked with Bar & Bench (legal journalism) and Frontline magazine, where he developed experience in court reporting, legal analysis, and long-form investigative features. Reporting Interests His work centres on civic accountability, environmental policy, urban infrastructure and culture, crime and law enforcement, and their intersections with politics and governance in and around Gurgaon. Recent Coverage (2025) - Crime: Reported on the recovery of 350 kg of explosives and an AK-47 from a rented house in Faridabad, linked to the 2025 Red Fort car explosion case (November 11, 2025). - Environmental policy: Covered protests outside a Haryana minister’s residence against a Supreme Court order that environmentalists argue could allow mining and real estate development on large parts of the Aravalli hills (December 21, 2025). - Pollution control measures: Co-authored coverage of the Rekha Gupta government’s enforcement of vehicle restrictions at Delhi-NCR borders (December 21, 2025). - Road safety and infrastructure: Examined response lapses in the Delhi-Mumbai Expressway hit-and-run case and ongoing investigations into high-speed road crimes in Gurugram. - Animal welfare policy: Reported on concerns regarding the low budget allocated for stray dog sterilization by the Municipal Corporation of Gurugram (November 30, 2025). - Urban culture: Featured the social media-driven popularity of a new Magnolia Bakery outlet in Gurugram (December 15, 2025). Contact X (Twitter): @AB_Hazardous ... Read More

Nirbhay Thakur

Nirbhay Thakur is a Senior Correspondent with The Indian Express who primarily covers district courts in Delhi and has reported on the trials of many high-profile cases since 2023. Professional Background Education: Nirbhay is an economics graduate from Delhi University. Beats: His reporting spans the trial courts, and he occasionally interviews ambassadors and has a keen interest in doing data stories. Specializations: He has a specific interest in data stories related to courts. Core Strength: Nirbhay is known for tracking long-running legal sagas and providing meticulous updates on high-profile criminal trials. Recent notable articles In 2025, he has written long form articles and two investigations. Along with breaking many court stories, he has also done various exclusive stories. 1) A long form on Surender Koli, accused in the Nithari serial killings of 2006. He was acquitted after spending 2 decades in jail. was a branded man. Deemed the “cannibal" who allegedly lured children to his employer’s house in Noida, murdered them, and “ate their flesh” – his actions cited were cited as evidence of human depravity at its worst. However, the SC acquitted him finding various lapses in the investigation. The Indian Express spoke to his lawyers and traced the 2 decades journey. 2) For decades, the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has been at the forefront of the Government’s national rankings, placed at No. 2 over the past two years alone. It has also been the crucible of campus activism, its protests often spilling into national debates, its student leaders going on to become the faces and voices of political parties of all hues and thoughts. The Indian Express looked at all court cases spanning over two decades and did an investigation. 3) Investigation on the 700 Delhi riots cases. The Indian Express found that in 17 of 93 acquittals (which amounted to 85% of the decided cases) in Delhi riots cases, courts red-flag ‘fabricated’ evidence and pulled up the police. Signature Style Nirbhay’s writing is characterized by its procedural depth. He excels at summarizing 400-page chargesheets and complex court orders into digestible news for the general public. X (Twitter): @Nirbhaya99 ... Read More

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