"Not for me an aerated drink - nothing but calories. Wine is my choice. If I want fizz, I can always go for a Champagne or a sparkling wine. For a romantic evening a sparkling rose is another option. Unlike a whisky, a glass or two of wine does not make you miss a step," Iyer says.

"Wine drinking among upper middle class women has gone up, since many family members feel it is less on alcohol and women will be fine with it," said Subhash Arora, president the Indian Wine Academy and founder-president of the Delhi Wine Club.

Bahl and Arora also said those days are gone when women just could not go to a liquor shop, what with a long queue of tipplers jostling to reach the caged selling counters. Upmarket outlets have come up today where buying wine is like shopping for a branded watch or apparel.

"The culture of Indian women visiting these well-appointed stores is catching up fast in metros. Overall, too, wine drinking has matured in the past 10 years. Many restaurants now have a good cellar and sommeliers. Overseas travel is also adding to the exposure," Arora says.