Once dominated by French and Italian imports, Russia’s wine shelves are now filled with local vintages. Western sanctions and rising import taxes have reshaped consumer habits, giving rise to a homegrown wine revolution. From the Côte Rocheuse vineyards in Krasnodar to supermarkets in Moscow, Russian wine now makes up 60% of the national market — up from just 25% a decade ago.
Winemakers like Irina Yakovenko say demand is soaring despite limited capacity, while experts note that the 2014 annexation of Crimea gave Russia’s wine industry a powerful boost. As imported wines grow costlier and local pride deepens, more Russians are raising a glass to their own creations — declaring, “Our wines are the best.”
Explore how sanctions turned into opportunity, reshaping taste, trade, and tradition across Russia’s vineyards.
#russia #wine #apt
3 Comments
Great initiatives for this winter season🇺🇳🏳️🌈🇧🇩
Russia misses the Biden Crime Family. They were easily bribed. 😮
As a Russian and longtime wine enthusiast, I can confirm this. The explosive growth of our winemaking in Kuban and Crimea can be compared to the development of the Chinese automobile industry. And yet, our wines have already achieved very high quality. I don't want to compare them with traditional European wine countries; we have different histories, but ten years ago, I would never have believed that we could grow grapes for excellent wine.