As you know, Russian viticulture, like winemaking, originated in the Crimea. It happened at the end of the 19th century thanks to the efforts of the famous Russian philanthropist Lev Golitsyn. In 1894, the first wine cellar was laid in Massandra.
Untouched by time
The Massandra Wines Factory is a domestic enterprise that was not affected by historical vicissitudes and even war. The plant still looks like it opened today.
Crimean Massandra is a place with a unique microclimate. It is warm and humid here, just as much as the vine needs. And the wine material needs low stable temperatures. For this, a huge wine cellar was laid in the rocks. The galleries were cut down by hand. Even today they amaze with their size: 150 m in length and 5 m in height. The work was carried out colossal: in the cellars for more than a century, even in the heat of about +15̊ С.
Massandra today
Modern production association Massandra is a world-famous enterprise open to tourists.
The most visited part of FSUE "Massandra" is the tasting room. Here for a glass of amazingly deliciouswine guides tell about the difficult history of the factory and the cellar, grape bushes brought from abroad and carefully planted in the valleys, about the first wine and samples, about the emperor’s laudatory speeches and about the fact that less than five years have passed since the wines of the Crimea were squeezed out many European manufacturers, including French ones.
Popular Crimean excursion route
Tourists from many countries of the world are attracted by the Crimean urban-type settlement of Massandra. An excursion to the famous factory leaves no one indifferent. It starts from the factory yard. It has two buildings: the old factory and the new one. Then the tour moves to the Museum of Winemaking. Its halls contain a unique exposition. It allows you to trace the history of the plant and the production of wine from ancient times to the present. Most of the exposition is devoted to the construction of a wine cellar.
In the basements of the factory buildings there are galleries for the noble aging of wine and a tasting complex. It consists of four halls. The first for 72 guests is made in the Greek style. The second for 35 people is called Maderny. The third hall is Sherry, and the fourth is VIP (can accommodate only 20 guests). FSUE "Massandra" always gladly welcomes its guests.
The tasting room, decorated in Greek style, takes you back to the era of Ancient Greece. On the walls are frescoes depicting Greeks enjoying wine and playing musicians.
Madera hall is the deck of a medieval ship that transported barrels of Madera to the island of Java throughAtlantic. There they were aged on the hot sand under the scorching sun, which is why spicy notes appeared in the taste.
The end of the 19th century - the middle of the 20th - this is the period of the formation of winemaking in the village of Massandra. Anyone can visit the tasting room today. There are many photographs of the Crimea and the vineyards of Massandra, and you can also see grape brushes on the walls. This is a tribute to the hard work of planting the first vines brought from Europe.
Excursion programs
Several tourist routes around the Massandra plant have been developed. The small tour lasts 45-50 minutes. The guests get acquainted with the exposition of the museum, then go to the middle basement. They inspect the workshop where collection wines are aged. The big tour lasts almost an hour. It begins as a Small excursion, and ends with a visit to the Tsar's cellar. In it, guests are shown the pride of Massandra - a gallery of collection wines.
There are tailor-made tours that end with a mandatory tasting of nine types of fine wines. The best samples are offered for sampling from ports and dry wines to muscats.
The tasting room in the Massandra production association operates according to a certain schedule. VIP tours are held only in the tasting complex and are negotiated in advance.
Tasting after the tour starts with "Saperavi". This dry red wine is served as an aperitif. Then the men are treated to sherry. After four years of nobleaging, it leaves notes of roasted walnut and grated almonds on the tongue. The female half of the guests are served Madeira. Vanilla sugar and dried fruit flavors made this wine once used as a perfume.
Then guests are treated to Massandra red port, Massandra certified Pinot Gris and other signature wines.
Legendary cellars of Count Vorontsov
You can taste the famous Massandra drinks not only in Massandra. For more than 30 years, a modern tasting room "Massandra" has been opened in Alupka. it is located in the former wine cellars founded by Count Vorontsov.
Here, guests are offered samples of ten branded drinks for sampling: dry wines, fortified wines (famous Crimean ports), cognac-type wines, liqueurs and desserts.
In the tasting room, in addition to the guide, who tells many interesting facts about the production and the drinks themselves, there is always a taster with great experience. He will tell you how to properly hold a glass and take the first sip, teach you how to evaluate the taste and aftertaste of wine. The tasting room is located in Alupka, Palace Highway, 26.
