Producers of wine from Crimea and Italian Tuscany agreed to create wine from Crimean grape varieties which will receive expert assessments of Italian critics and subsequently enter the Russian market.
The idea of co-production of wine was suggested by a Crimean winemaker Valery Zakharyin together with an Italian connoisseur, an author of wine guides Luke Maroni. Zakharin invited Ettore Falvo as a partner who is the owner of one of the largest enterprises in the Apennines.
"After that Falvo had visited Crimea, we had an idea to create a joint brand which would be called Duos, and we would like to explain to our consumer that the world's wines are already produced in Crimea ... Maroni was first to give an assessment to Russian wines and opened a separate section on his site", - Zakharin said.
He says that an external appreciation and international recognition are important for Russian wine lovers, so the entrance of Crimean wines the Italian market and local exhibitions can give rise to their promotion in Russia.
The plans of manufacturers are to create a blend of two or three varieties of grapes which are considered as "Saperavi" and "Kefesia" and produce in Crimea the first batch of several thousand bottles. Winemakers want to present results in March at the Düsseldorf wine exhibition, and also in May at the Russian exhibition Prodexpo.
"The period in which the Crimean winemaking is now very resembles the situation in Italy in the 1980s.Then we started there the so-called" Winemaking Renaissance. "And Ettore Falvo was one of his main characters, as he managed to restore a high historical status of autochthonous varieties of Italy in the world. This person can become a real guide for Zakharin whose goal is also to restore a former glory of Crimean grape varieties", - Maroni said.