15,000 Sq Ft ‘Tonique’ in Hyderabad-Largest Liquor Store in India
As per the Guinness Book of World Records ‘Daveco Liquors in Thornton, Colorado, U.S.A, spread across 1,00,073 sq. ft. is the world’s largest store- but now in India, ‘Tonique’ a liquor store in Jubilee Hills-Hyderabad spread across 15,000 sq ft with over 500 brands is listed to be the largest liquor store in India.
Mangaluru: For Mangalureans, if a couple of the mega liquor stores here namely ‘Wines and Spiritz’ and ‘Wine Gate’ seems to be the largest liquor outlets in Kudla- how would they feel walking into a 15,000 sq ft liquor store ‘Tonique’ now opened in Jubilee Hills- Hyderabad. Anyone who enjoys their drinks on the weekend after days of hectic schedules at work will relate to a fantasy of entering this liquor store which has a large collection of the best wine, whisky and scotch from all over the world, arranged in endless rows. This liquor store seems like a dream come true for wine aficionados and people who are choosy about their booze since it’s the biggest liquor store in the nation.
Tonique in Jubilee Hills, Hyderabad is nothing short of a liquor supermarket with spacious premises offering thousands of brands. Apart from a strategic location, Tonique has brilliant lighting and stunning interiors to create an unforgettable experience for visitors who wish to have a taste of every top alcohol brand in the world. So now people of Hyderabad have a new destination before a night of boozing and partying with friends. A prospective buyer walks in and examines a bottle of King George V, only to replace it with a smile after looking at the price tag of ₹86,000.
With a two-storeyed sheer glass frontage, it looks like anything but a liquor outlet. But buyers are not just checking out the labels, they are also fishing out their cards. It is on the first floor of the outlet that the ‘global’ choice is on view. New world wines from South Africa, New Zealand, Chile and Australia compete with the local Sula as well as French and European wines. The shelves are stocked according to the countries of origin, with rows and rows of bottles of sparkling wines as well as Champagnes.
If a wine bottle from New Zealand is the most expensive at the moment with a price tag of about ₹7,000, a 2004 vintage Dom Perignon champagne retails for ₹31,500. Sources reveal that a customer named Shravan Reddy, spent about ₹27,000 in a matter of minutes, who had said “It is amazing … like you have stepped into a mall where whatever you want is available. I picked up a South African wine, a Jagermeister liqueur and a few other bottles,”.
Managing Director of ‘Tonique’- Anith Reddy speaking to the media had said “Telangana is a ₹12,500 crore liquor market, of which the share of imported labels is ₹200 crore. I want to capture that. I wanted to give people an experience. We currently stock about 500 brands and by the end of a month, we will be fully stocked with about 1,100 varieties. I want all top 50 brands of each variety to be available here. We are going to have a separate wine tasting room with sommeliers from across the world sharing their knowledge. We will help people make a choice about what to buy and about wine and food pairing. Most women head to the first floor, the selfie spot, where they can click pics in front of a huge faux bottle of Moet & Chandon inside an ice tub”.
Though the shop is said to be the largest of its kind in the country, it pales in comparison to the world record holder. The Guinness Book of World Records lists Daveco Liquors in Thornton, Colorado, U.S., spread across 1,00,073 sq. ft. as the world’s largest store. Cheers!
