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Vladimir Putin, despite being involved in the war in Ukraine, has turned his attention and resources towards wine. He is building an extravagant complex called ' ... Wine City' on the Black Sea coast. This luxurious project will include Russia's largest wine store, an interactive museum, tasting rooms, a school for sommeliers and a private beach.
The project is being developed near the infamous 'Putin's Palace', a 1.3-billion-euro estate complete with a helipad, ice palace, church and an amphitheatre. Meanwhile, Roman Abramovich, former owner of Chelsea Football Club, owns a modest 3.7-million-euro bodega next door. Although originally designed as a commercial investment, the companies managing the two wineries are reportedly losing money at a rate that equals the entire budget of Gelendzhik, a neighbouring city with 80,000 residents.
Clarión 2020
Regulars of this column will have come to realise that for interesting wine experiences they can ignore Rioja and Ribera del Duero and try some of the other 60-odd Spanish wine regions
Forbes reported in 2020 that Putin owns a gold-plated golf cart in his enormous underground winery in Cricova, Moldova. This winery, built during the Stalinist era and opened in 1952, is now a tourist attraction for world leaders.
As any readers of this saga may recall, Putin is also one of the world's conspicuous teetotalers. Indeed, starting with his humble beginnings as a St Petersburg cop, he has allegedly never let a drop of alcohol pass his lips. So why this interest in something he can never physically enjoy? It says something for wine's appeal and status that it has become a signpost to a person's cultural standing. Rather like an illiterate having a magnificent library he can never appreciate.
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