Russian wine refers to wine made in Russia, at times also including the disputed region of Crimea.[1] The vast majority of Russia's territory is unsuitable for grape growing, with most of the production concentrated in parts of Krasnodar and Rostov regions, as well as Crimea.[2]
The Russian market is characterized by the presence of many low-cost products, with a significant part of local wines having a retail price of less than 100 rubles ($1.71).[3] Attempts to shift away from the low-quality reputation of Soviet wines has been moderately successful, though 80% of wines sold in Russia in 2013 were made from grape concentrates.[2]
In 2014 Russia was ranked 11th worldwide by the area of vineyards under cultivation.[3] The Russian wine industry is promoted by local authorities as a healthier alternative to spirits, which have a higher alcohol content.[4]
The founder of modern commercial wine-making in Russia was Prince Lev Golitsyn (1845-1915), who established the first Russian factory of champagne wines at his Crimean estate of Novyi Svet.
After the Russian Revolution of 1917 the French wine-savvy professionals fled Russia, but the industry was gradually reestablished, starting from 1920. According to Denis Puzyrev, before the 1917 Revolution wine was drunk in Russia only by the aristocracy, a situation that only changed under Soviet rule.[7] The wine industry experienced a rebound in the 1940s and 1950s during the Soviet era until the domestic reforms pushed by Mikhail Gorbachev in 1985 as part of his campaign against alcoholism. After the fall of the Soviet Union, the transition to a market economy with the privatization of land saw many of the area's prime vineyard spaces being utilized for other purposes. By 2000 the entire Russian Federation had only 72,000 hectares (180,000 acres) under cultivation, less than half the total area used in the early 1980s.[5]
Semi-sweet and sweet wines account for 80% of the Russian market, a share exceeding 90% in the economy segment.[7] Since 2006, Russian wineries have adopted European techniques and standards. The Abrau-Durso winery is considered the flagship of the new wine industry.[7]
In 2020 Fanagoria Blanc de Blancs Brut, a 2017 wine from the Fanagoria Estate Winery in Fanagoria on the Taman Peninsula, was awarded a gold medal at the "Chardonnay du Monde" ("Chardonnay of the World") international tasting competition.[8]
Since 2020, wine has almost doubled in price, due to an increase in excise.[9][10]
The "Law on Viticulture and Winemaking" in the Russian Federation entered into force on June 26, 2020; the document enshrines 80 basic concepts for the field of viticulture and winemaking, among them "wine", "fortified wine", "sparkling wine", "grape planting", etc. The bill also defines that products designated as "Russian wine" must be produced exclusively from grapes grown in the country.[11]
Geography and climate
North Caucasus in Russia
The climate of the North Caucasus region, where most of Russia's vineyards are located, is typical of a continental region. To counter the severe winters many vine growers will cover their vines over with soil to protect the vines from frost. In the area of Krasnodar there are anywhere from 193 to 233 frost free days during the growing seasons that allow the vines in the area to grow to full ripening.
The area of Dagestan has a varied climate with some areas semi-desert. About 13 percent of Russian wine is produced in the area around Stavropol which has 180-190 frost free days. The region of Rostov is characterized by its hot, dry summers and severe winters which produces grapes in lower yields than other parts of the country. Nevertheless Rostov is a region with a great diversity of autochthonous grape varieties which originally from the Don Valley including such az Tsimlyankskiy Tchernyi, Kumshatskiy, Krasnostop Zolotovskiy, Plechistik and others [12]
A Russian wine guide published in 2012 lists 55 wines from 13 wineries, including names such as Fanagoria, Lefkadia, Chateau du Talus, Abrau-Durso, Chateau le Grand Vostock.[2] The market is largely fragmented, and even the market share of leading producers (such as Kuban-Vino or Viktoria TD) is below 3%.[4]
