Despite sanctions
The Russian elite does not have to do without Bordeaux and Burgundy
Fine wines had to disappear from the menu in Russia. But that doesn’t stop the Russian elite from diligently buying Bordeaux & Co. despite the sanctions – no matter what the cost.
Published: 8:10 p.m
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Updated: 8:13 p.m
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Putin’s daughter Katharina Tikhonova is said to have a weakness for European luxury wine.
Jenny WagnerEditor News
Because of vodka! The Russian elite loves grand crus like Bordeaux and Burgundy. But noble wines are no longer delivered to Russia. In order to bring the elite and rich oligarchs to their knees, an import ban was imposed on bottles costing more than 300 euros. But that doesn’t stop President Vladimir Putin from importing wine for his daughters or friends and skilfully circumventing the sanctions.
Smuggling is a very expensive undertaking. Up to 10,000 dollars are paid per bottle. As “The Insider” reports, a friend of Putin’s youngest daughter Katarina Tikhonova smuggled the bottles into the country. In the most expensive gourmet restaurants in Moscow you can still find the finest wines in the world, which have completely disappeared from the store shelves in Russia.
After Russia invaded Ukraine, American and Australian wines were completely banned in Russia. European wine over 300 euros is also no longer available in Russia – but only 1 percent of society can afford it anyway. But the rich and powerful are finding ways to circumvent the sanctions—the price doesn’t matter to them.
Noble wine hidden next to soy sauces
The price of Burgundy or Bordeaux is also due to the fact that the bottles are only available in limited quantities. Depending on the harvest, there are more or fewer bottles of wine. The world’s elite want to get their hands on bottles, but some end up in the Kremlin’s wine cellars, of all places. Shadow imports are booming: fine wines are suddenly being smuggled to Russia with soy sauces.
There are different methods of circumventing the sanctions. Fine wines can be ordered to Kazakhstan, for example. The transmission route runs via Russia. If the Kazakh company refuses the cargo, it stays in Russia. But according to research by The Insider, one thing is clear: “The Kremlin’s wine lovers would not have been able to buy wine without the help of European companies that helped them circumvent the sanctions.”
State Duma buys wine in bulk
But the luxurious scarce commodity is very expensive. Hardly any Russian can afford that. If you look into the past, you realize that politicians in the State Duma in particular are addicted to European wine. In 2017, the Sobesednik magazine published the Duma alcohol supplies, which in 2005 amounted to 1.5 million rubles.
And when ex-president Dmitry Medvedev, now known for his radical statements about Ukraine, hosted a banquet in 2014, he ordered the most expensive wine on the menu: a Romanée-Conti – at the expense of the state. And Putin’s daughter Tikhonova is said to have a weakness for Grand Crus.
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