Of course, one of the most popular and most interesting excursions in Moldova is a trip to wine cellars. There are many of them, and you probably won’t be able to visit them all, but the most famous ones, such as Cricova, Malye Milesti, Purcari, Branesti, Cojusna, Romanesti, are a must-see! Each of the cellars is unique and deserves a separate story. I will tell you about one of them today.
I remember the distant Soviet times, when in Chisinau, the capital of sunny Moldova, many different all-Union and international conferences were held, including in physics. I had to participate in many of them, and some of them I organized. According to established tradition, the last question of any conference was a visit to one of the wine cellars for which Moldova was so famous! There was also a tasting room in Chisinau, where girls in national costumes first told the history of the preparation of this or that wine, then described the bouquet of which it consists, in what cases and for what diseases it is recommended to drink red or white wine, and in conclusion they brought a dozen glasses (for each) various wines, and the same number of small glasses of cognac. The tasting took place for an hour or more to the accompaniment of violin music, Moldavian dancing and light snacks. It was great, but visiting the cellars was still more interesting, and they were more popular. Nowadays, booking an excursion to any basement in Moldova is not a problem, if you had the money, but getting to the Cricova cellars under Soviet rule was not easy. Even a letter from the President of the Academy of Sciences did not help; permission from the Party Central Committee was required. Alas...at that time it was an unattainable dream. Much later, already during perestroika, while working at the Chisinau Polytechnic University, the gates of the Cricova cellars suddenly opened wide. The casket opened simply: my students majoring in winemaking were doing internships there, and each time they invited me to visit with them the world-famous Cricova cellars.
With students in practice in the Cricova cellars
Now I will try to explain why cellars have become so famous. Firstly, Moldovan wine cellars such as Cricova or Malye Milesti are the largest in the world, and they are listed in the Guinness Book. Secondly, there are entire underground wine cities with their own infrastructure, roads (more than 120 km of underground streets!), road signs, traffic lights, wine rivers flowing through wine pipelines, along the banks of which there are huge barrels instead of houses.
Scheme of an underground wine city with many kilometers of streets and avenues
After driving a few kilometers along the central Champagne Avenue, you can then turn onto Cabernet Street, cross Chardonnay Boulevard, Feteaschi Street (12 main underground streets bearing the names of wine varieties), and stop at the Wine and Cognac Museum.
Wine Museum in Cricova Cellars.
The Cricova collection includes more than a million bottles of old collection wines. Of course, these are mostly Cricova wines, but there are also wines from many countries around the world, including the famous Goering collection.
According to one legend, wines began to be collected here precisely on the basis of the collection of the Minister of Aviation of Nazi Germany, Hermann Goering. They say that he had the most beautiful paintings of naked women, the best watches and the best collection of wine. At the end of World War II, the Soviet army was advancing, and Goering was forced to leave his wine collection in Cricova. But this is just one of the legends, and it is not entirely true. There is indeed a Goering collection in Cricova, but it did not come from Goering. The Cricova wine cellars were built in 1952, after World War II, and wines from Goering’s collection were brought here from Moscow as reparations for the war. Some of the wines ended up in Georgia, some in Ukraine, and most of them ended up in Moldova, since the storage conditions here turned out to be ideal.
The wine collection is constantly updated. There are unique wines here, some of which are over a hundred years old. For example, Mosel wines, Burgundy, Sicilian, Portuguese ports...
And this is some of the French wines
I had to visit this museum several times, and I took more than one excursion, so I myself can work as a guide and answer many questions. People often ask about the cost of a particular bottle. I remember some examples. For example, a bottle of Muscat, made from late-ripening grapes, when the wine is still pure and the alcohol and sugar are natural, then the starting price of such a bottle is about 25 thousand dollars. Last year at Sotheby's, at the most expensive auction, a bottle of dry wine "Chateau Mouton Rothschild" was sold for 60 thousand dollars. There are 5 bottles of the same wine from the 1936 vintage in Cricova.
In general, the cost of collection wines depends on many parameters, and is not always determined only by their age, but is also determined by the number of such bottles in the world. The most expensive bottle of the Cricova cellars is Jewish Passover wine from Jerusalem 1902. This unique bottle is just one bottle produced in 1902. They offered 150 thousand dollars for it, but even at that price they refused to sell it, and it is now a worthy decoration of the collection and the most expensive exhibit of the museum.
If you continue your car ride further through the Cricova wine cellars, then at a depth of about 80 meters underground there is a Champagne wine factory operating using French technology. In our country, semi-sweet champagne is traditionally preferred. This is also produced here, but in Cricova they are proud of their brut. It is aged in bottles for 3 years, and all this time they work on the champagne. If in France this is done by men, then in Moldova it is entrusted to women. They regularly rotate each bottle 45 degrees so that the sediment is distributed more evenly. One worker turns up to 40 thousand bottles per day. When the champagne is finally ripe, the neck is frozen and the temporary cork is removed, the sediment is removed, a permanent cork is installed and a label is glued. As the keeper of Cricova wine, Andrei Kholostenko, said: “When opening, champagne should not clap loudly, the sound should be like the sigh of a satisfied woman!” Well said!
When my friends from France come to visit me, I always try to organize an excursion to this plant for them. After small French cellars, to see many kilometers of adits with music stands of bottles is a state close to shock! They had never seen anything like this in France, and did not even imagine that it was possible. The quality of the wine is excellent, and many even liked it more than their native champagne. After the tasting, the French bought dozens of bottles and took them to their home in Paris or the province of Champagne to treat their family and friends with Moldovan champagne!
Kilometer-long adits with bottle stands
During these trips, I often had to drive myself, so I couldn’t join my friends in the tasting. But I often stopped the car at the filters, where they could scoop wine into a mug from a red, pink or white river and compare the taste. But in order to truly appreciate the quality of the wine, you must definitely stop by one of the tasting rooms. There are a lot of such halls on different wine streets, and it is advisable to know them. Among them there are such “thematic” decors as: “Sea Bottom”, “Casa Mare”, “Hunter (or Fireplace) Hall”, “Conference Hall” and others. This is the venue for a variety of events: national and international tastings, official and less formal meetings, high-level meetings, etc.
Part of the interior of the Cricova cellars for high-ranking persons
Not everyone is allowed into all the halls, but the books of Honorary Visitors contain many interesting names and stories. N.S. loved to be in Cricova. Khrushchev and L.I. Brezhnev. Not a single president who visited the Moldovan region avoided visiting wine cellars (including such personalities as Mao Tse Tung, Kim Il Sung, Jacques Chirac). Almost all high-ranking persons tasted wine from the Cricova collection. Everyone..., with the exception of the main alcoholic of Russia, Boris Yeltsin, whose wife was categorically against the excursion.
V.V. visited these cellars several times. Putin. By the way, he celebrated his fiftieth birthday in the Cricova cellars! Moldovan President Vladimir Voronin presented his Russian colleague with a crystal crocodile, explaining that “the crocodile is the only animal that does not give up.” Not long ago, while traveling from Germany, Putin and his family visited Chisinau one more time. The president's wife (albeit by now ex-wife) Lyudmila Putina enjoyed tasting Moldovan cognacs, and the president's daughters drank wine. The archival books even indicate that the eldest drank “Noir Dionysus” - Burgundy wine, and Putin’s youngest daughter preferred Cahors.
Many of the outstanding world figures of our time, including V.V. Putin, buy racks of wine for themselves, considering this as a good investment - after all, the price of wine from a good harvest grows from year to year and is more stable than any world currency.
V.V.Putin's shelving in the Cricova cellars.
These racks are still waiting for their buyers
There is also a special tasting room in Cricova - Gagarinsky!
The hall was named after the famous guest - cosmonaut N1 Yuri Gagarin, who, while visiting the cellars, even managed to get lost in the Cricova labyrinths. Yuri Gagarin not only made a short visit, but also stayed in the labyrinths of the wine library for a whole day. In the book of honorary visitors to underground wine cellars, his words are quoted: “I entered on the eighth, I left on the ninth.” And he also said: “It is more difficult to part with the Cricova cellars than with the Earth.” He was probably right!
In recent years, at the beginning of October, National Wine Day is held in Moldova, and on this occasion, foreign citizens who want to take part in this holiday will even be able to receive free entry visas for 30 days - this decision was made several years ago!
Invitation to a tasting!
Prices for Moldovan wines per glass and per liter. To get the price in dollars, divide by 13, and if you want in Russian rubles, then multiply by 2.5.
I would like to wish all readers, on occasion, to visit here at least once and see everything with their own eyes. Cricova Cellars is a place that will certainly leave a unique mark in the memory of every visitor!
01.05.2014
At different times, the author was lucky enough to visit not only these, but also other equally famous cellars in Moldova. About the wine festival in Chisinau, about tasting, how to choose and how to book an excursion to a particular cellar, and essays about all wine cellars with a lot of photographs and interesting information can be read in the book below:
WINE ROADS OF MOLDOVA
This book could well serve as a guide to the wine cellars of Moldova! Not everyone knows that in Moldova there are huge underground wine cities with roads over 200 km long, the names of wine streets flashing in the white light of car headlights, as well as boulevards located under almost 100-meter thick rocks, underground waterfalls and the world's largest collections of wines , one of which was included in the Guinness Book of Records.
By visiting, you will get acquainted with his other works!
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The largest collection of wines in the world, consisting of more than one and a half million bottles, was registered in the Guinness Book of Records in 2005 in the Republic of Moldova.
Called the "Golden Collection", it is stored at a depth of 80 meters, in Gothic wine cells, in the underground galleries of "Milestii Mici". The oldest wine in the collection is from the 1969 vintage. The collection is replenished every year with thousands of bottles of wine, white and red, dry and dessert. The maturation of wine is facilitated by the ideal microclimate of cellars with constant temperature and humidity.
The wines stored in the "Golden Collection" are exported to dozens of countries, such as Japan, China, Taiwan, the Netherlands, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, Malaysia, etc.
Having become the emblem of Moldovan winemaking, the underground wine-growing city of Cricova has galleries stretching for 70 km, with symbolic street names: Dionysus, Feteasca, Cabernet Sauvignon, etc. The cellars of Cricova are located eleven kilometers from the capital of Moldova, the city of Chisinau, carved out of the natural limestone, at a depth of 35-80 m. 30 million liters of wine are stored in the cellars at a constant temperature of 12-14˚C and humidity 97-98%.
Founded in 1952, the Cricova plant is the largest producer of sparkling wines using traditional Moldovan technology, the maturation of which takes place entirely in underground cellars. Cricova houses the State Wine Library, a wonderful collection of legendary wines, both local and foreign. The wine collection originates from the collection of Goering wines, among which are the famous wines of Moselle, Burgundy, Bordeaux, and Porto. The oldest wine in the collection and the only one of its kind in the world is the Easter Jerusalem wine, produced in 1902.
The Cricova cellars attract thousands of tourists and famous personalities, politicians, social leaders and famous people from all over the world. At one time, the Cricova cellars were visited by: Yuri Gagarin, Angela Merkel, John Kerry, and others.
The Cricova Cellars are legally declared a national cultural heritage.
Most wine companies have their own cellars, built in the traditional way. Some of these cellars are legends of Moldavian Winemaking:
Purcari – has cellars built at the end of the 19th century, where temperature and humidity are maintained at the required level. The Purcari wine library stores the most successful wines, prices for which start at $100 per bottle. The oldest wine in the collection is from the 1951 vintage. The cellars also store oak barrels in which the wine matures and bottled wine before going to market.
The cellars in Branesti are carved at a depth of 60 meters in the rocky ridges of the Old Orhei tourist complex. The length of the basements is approximately 58 km.
Chateau Cojusna - has underground galleries in medieval style, with small streets that are filled to the brim with collection wines, mainly fortified wines, as well as wines in the ripening stage.
Chateau Vartely is a modern complex, which is equipped with a magnificent cellar, built in accordance with local traditions.
According to Moldavian tradition, every owner must build a cellar and store his own wines in it. Moldovans are a patriarchal people, and for them the house is of great value. There are two important elements in a traditional Moldavian house: the Casa Mare, the room where guests are received, and the cellar, where food and wine are stored.
Cellars for simple peasants are traditionally dug at a depth of 5-7 meters, under or next to the house, with 10-15 steps and walls whitewashed with lime.
One of the main attractions of Moldova is wine. If you want not only to taste good Moldovan wine, but also to see with your own eyes the places where it is prepared and matured, then be sure to visit the Moldovan wine cellars. There is a small wine cellar in almost every house in Moldova, and the friends you come to visit will definitely take you there. And below, we offer you a list of several wine cellars that are unique and become world famous due to their size, collection or other features.
Cricova
Cricova Cellars is the first thing many tour operators suggest when they mention wine tours. They say that the most impressive excursions are here - the so-called underground wine city has done its job. There are 6 excursion packages available here, which, in addition to visiting the underground vaults, include a wine tasting, a snack menu and signature souvenirs.
Where: Cricova
Price: 250-1300 lei/person. or 350-1450 lei/person, depending on the package and the inclusion of a souvenir. After 16:00 on weekdays, weekends and holidays, the price of any package increases by an average of 100 lei.
Duration: 1-3 hours, depending on the tour.
Contacts: 022 453 659
cricova.md
Mileştii mici
Where: Ialoveni
Price: Depending on the excursion program, the price of the tour varies from 200 to 1500 lei/person. on weekdays from 9:00-17:00. On weekends or weekdays after 17:00, the minimum price of the tour is 300 lei, the maximum is 1650.
Duration: 40 min – 2.5 hours, depending on the selected package.
Contacts: 022 382 333
milestii-mici.md
Purcari
Where: With. Purcari, district Stefan Voda
Price: 7-39 euros/person, depending on the program and inclusion of a souvenir in the price.
Duration: 1.5-2 hours, depending on the program.
Contacts: 022 856 028
purcari.md
Chateau Vartely
Where: Orhei
Price: Depending on the number of people in the group and the tasting package, the price varies from 75 to 440 lei/person. An excursion without tasting can cost the whole group from 100 to 350 lei, depending on its occupancy.
Duration: 1-2 hours
Contacts: 022 829 891
vartely.md
Cojuşna
Where: With. Cojusna, Straseni district
Price: A tour without tasting will cost you 10-15 euros/person, depending on the number of people in the group. Excursion + tasting will cost from 20 to 30 euros per person on a weekday, and 35-45 euros on weekends.
Duration: 1-2 hours
Contacts: 022 596 101
Branesti
Where: c. Branesti
Price: On weekdays, an excursion will cost you 10-12 euros/person, an excursion with tasting - 20-45 euros. On weekends, the same positions will cost 15-18 euros/person and 30-68 euros, respectively. Transport is paid separately - 25-100 euros, depending on the number of people in the group.
Duration: 40 min-2 hours
Contacts: 022 430 035
Moldova has always been very closely associated with wine, so when in this country, it is impossible not to visit the underground wine city, which is talked about so much - a real pearl of Moldavian winemaking. Still, “In vino veritas.”
How to get to Cricova: Bus no. 2 and 47 (two blocks down from Stefan cel Mare Blvd. along Vasile Alexandri Street); the duration of the journey is 40 minutes, in Cricova they will already tell you where to go next; fare - 4.50 lei, taxi: journey duration - 15-25 minutes (depending on traffic on the roads), fare 60-100 lei
There are different types of excursions in Cricova: simple, with tastings, with gifts, etc. You can study in more detail on the website http://cricovavin.md/ru. You can find out the time of a particular excursion and book it through the website or in Chisinau in the company store at the address: st. A. Shchuseva 96, 1st floor, and at the same time you can buy specialty drinks there, which is what I did. I chose the simplest one without tasting for 155 Moldovan lei, it starts at 9 am.
At the designated time, this electric car came for us, and we drove into the dungeon. In the cellars, natural limestone helps maintain a constant temperature - 12-14 degrees and a humidity of 97-98% - optimal conditions for aging fine wines of the highest quality category, but driving at such a temperature in an open electric car is a bit cold, especially on turns when it gets very windy. Therefore, when going to the Cricova cellars, take something warm.
The Cricova cellars are former building stone mines, resulting from the historical mining activities of the area. Many buildings in Cricova, Chisinau, Balti and other cities of the Republic of Moldova were built from limestone, which was mined here. Some branches of the excavation are still in operation, so this huge underground city continues to grow. The plant was founded by the famous Soviet wine specialist Petr Ungureanu in 1952. With a declared 120 kilometers of underground corridors and tunnels, only three have been prepared for the tourist route, the rest are workshops, production facilities, etc.
Cricova is a real underground city with its avenues and streets, which are named after the brands of wines that are stored in the niche of this street: Cabernet, Riesling, Feteasca, Aligote, Sauvignon, Dionysus.
Along the wine streets along the whitewashed walls there are large barrels...
And huge
Each barrel has a metal plate with the emblem of the plant and a piece of paper with all the data on the ripening wine.
We were shown the sparkling champagne production workshop and the whole process. The wine is poured into glass bottles, yeast and sugar are added. Bottles are placed on special shelves at a slight angle. Yeast forms sediment in the bottle. From time to time, the bottles are turned around their axis at a certain angle so that the sediment slowly descends to the neck. They say that this work is trusted only to women and only by hand. It's a special profession to turn over bottles. The process of turning bottles is called remuage. By the end of this period, the sediment from the yeast goes down to the cork itself. The bottles are placed in a special machine in which the neck is frozen, the cap is removed and the frozen sediment is removed. Clear sparkling wine remains in the bottle. The bottle is capped and a wire mesh is put on.
Special attention should be paid to the exhibition of winemaking development. The museum contains numerous exhibits telling about the history of viticulture and winemaking.
The cellars of the Cricova wine library are carved in the shape of a huge glass. Kazys are hollowed out in the thickness of the porous stone - alcoves for bottles. The wine library in Cricova is huge - 1.2 million bottles of 658 items. It is believed that this is the largest collection in Europe.
Among its first exhibits are wines from the collection of Hermann Goering. Nazi No. 2 understood painting, loved beautiful women and knew a lot about good wines. His amazing collection is war trophy from World War II.
I also found the collection of Russian President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin here.
The wine library also has unique exhibits. For example, a crystal bottle of red "Easter Jerusalem"
and liqueur "Ian Becher" 1902 - the only ones in the world.
Photos of famous people - politicians, businessmen, actors who rent storage units here to store their collections.
Of course, such a storage facility cannot help but have a tasting room. The tasting rooms of Cricova are united into a single complex and are unique in that they are located underground. The tasting complex includes several large halls, different in style and designed for different numbers of guests. Here are a few of them:
In 1966, in the hospitable galleries of Cricova, Yuri Gagarin got lost for a day. Having escaped from the dungeon, the world's first cosmonaut admitted: it was easier for him to break away from the Earth than to leave the Cricova cellars.
Having visited the underground cellars of Cricova, you will definitely not regret the time spent!
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