1. Abrau-Dyurso: Russia’s best sparkling wine
Vitaly Timkiv / Sputnik
This winery on the shores of Lake Abrau was founded during the time of Tsar Alexander II. Since then, it has survived German occupation and a factory explosion. Today, it’s the largest center in Russia for wine-making and tourism.
The winery in the foothills of the Navagir Mountains, not far from the Black Sea, released its first shipment of sparkling wine in 1898. Afterwards, the assortment only broadened, including still wines, alcohol-free and strong alcohol beverages.
Aside from learning about the factory’s history, the process of wine-making and its wine-tasting, Abrau-Dyurso offers unusual tours. During one of them, visitors learn about the secrets of Abrau-Dyurso. The tour program has walks along the winery’s dim underground tunnels, a meeting with local ghosts, the trial of a “drunken staircase” and tells about the legend of an unhappy Circassian young woman whose tears remain as a stream over a rock.
Vitaly Timkiv / Sputnik
Among Abrau-Dyurso’s vineyards, which cover 3,300 hectares, there are two observation decks offering a view of the grapevines and the Black Sea, as well as the emerald-green Lake Abrau. People come here to enjoy the romantic and astonishing sunsets, with a glass of sparkling wine in hand.
Abrau-Dyurso is also a resort with a sailing club, a beach, hotels and campsites. There’s a campsite for travelers with tents, an eco-campsite with cabins in the woods, as well as a car campsite at Round Lake for tourists who journey with trailers.
The Krasnodar Region, Novorossiysk, Abrau-Dyurso village, Promyshlennaya Street, 19.
2. Southern Wine Company: a wine bath
Mikhail Voskresensky / Sputnik
On the southern shore of the Taman Peninsula, between two estuaries – Kisiltashskiy and Tsokur – unfolds the vineyards of the Southern Wine Company, which is a part of the Ochakovo company.
Its vineyards occupy about 1,500 hectares and they grow classic European grape varieties, as well as indigenous varieties – Tsimlyansk black; Saperavi northern; and Citron Magaracha.
Southern Wine Company
Tourists come here for the winery and vineyard tours, as well as for wine tasting in a pavilion with a view of the estuaries’ expanse. During the harvest season you can crush grapes by foot in a wooden tub or take a wine bath. A hydro-massage tub is filled with water mixed with wine, berry and grape leaf extracts, aromatic oil and flowers. All that’s left for you to do is to enjoy the wine with every cell of your body.
The Krasnodar Region, stanitsa Vyshesteblievskaya, Zastanichnaya Street, 4a.
3. Skalisty Bereg: wine and stars
Mikhail Voskresensky / Sputnik
The modern winery Skalisty Bereg (Rocky Coast) perfectly suits the local landscape – its shape resembles a light-gray pebble. In the lower part of the winery, sitting on the cliffs of the Semisamsky Mountains, there are workshops; the upper part hosts a tasting hall and a wine shop. A panoramic terrace offers a view of the vineyards and the sea shore.
The first vineyards were planted in 2011. Vines of three white varieties were planted: Riesling; Sauvignon blanc; and Chardonnay, along with five red varieties: Pinot noir; Merlot; Cabernet Sauvignon; Cabernet Franc; and Krasnostop.
Skalisty Bereg
The vineyards are situated on a rocky coast – at a height of 150 to 250 meters above sea level. They neighbor old conifer and juniper-pistachio forests. It’s worth taking the winery’s “Wine and Stars” tour – this can serve both as a romantic date and a scientific lecture. In good weather, when the clouds don’t drape the sky, you can look into a modern telescope on the winery’s observation deck and see the Moon’s craters, as well as galactic nebulae and the star clusters of the northern hemisphere.
The Krasnodar Region, Anapa, Varvarovka village.
4. The Sikory Estate: a dinner with wine
The Sikory Estate
Some of the best Riesling wines are produced at the family winery of Alexander Sikorsky in Semigorye Valley. The vineyards occupy 47 hectares, growing varieties like Bordeaux blend, Burgundy varieties, Riesling and Krasnostop.
During a tour around the Sikory Estate guests will have a walk among picturesque vineyards, a deep dive into the secrets of wine making and a tasting of local wines. In the wine cellar for wine aging, you should pay attention to the concrete spheres that are unique in Russia. Due to their shape and the effect of the external temperature, these spheres help the wine proceed through the sediment mixing in a natural way.
The Sikory Estate
While at the winery, you should also enjoy an enogastronomic dinner in the grill house and spend the evening meandering among the vineyards. During the dinner, the chef’s dishes are accompanied by perfectly matched wines.
The Krasnodar Region, Novorossiysk, Semigorsky village, the 24th kilometer of the Novorossiysk-Kerch Highway.
5. Myskhako: a modern winery with history
Alexander Ryumin / TASS
At the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century, Cabernet Myskhako was considered one of the best red wines of the Russian Empire. The first vine was planted here in 1869. During Soviet times, the winery was the favorite holiday spot of the Communist Party elite, and at the beginning of the 2000s the winery was an official supplier to the Kremlin.
However, in 2013 the company faced financial problems. It gained a new lease on life only in 2021 when it was thoroughly modernized. In 2022, 14 hectares of new vineyards were planted – with the Chardonnay and Marselan varieties. In total, Myskhako has 227 hectares of vineyards.
Apart from a tour of the vineyards and the wine production facilities, guests are invited to visit the historic wine tasting hall, which was opened in 1973 for Leonid Brezhnev’s arrival in nearby Novorossiysk.
Sputnik
For a long time, only government delegations and celebrities were welcomed here. Today, not only a politician or an actor can enjoy wine tasting in this hall, but rather, anyone who has the desire to do so.
The Krasnodar Region, Novorossiysk, Myskhako village, Tsentralnaya Street, building 1.
Tours should be booked in advance.
READ MORE:Top 5 Russian wine grape varieties
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