Many people go to the Krasnodar Territory for the sake of the sea and beaches and are unaware of other corners away from the hustle and bustle. There is fresh air, endless expanses, beautiful landscapes and delicious sparkling wine.
It will be about Abrau-Durso. "Where is it?" - you ask. All in the same place, in the Krasnodar Territory, not far from Novorossiysk.
Abrau and Durso
In fact, the village near the lake is called Abrau. Durso, where the sea coast is located, is 7 kilometers further. You can get there along a winding mountain road.
Durso, like any settlement on the sea coast, got beaches, recreation centers, boarding houses, hotels.
Abrau has all the attributes of the "central estate": hospital, police, post office, local administration and, of course, the famous lake of the same name.
Lake Abrau
It is large, about 200 hectares, and warms up well, so it is suitable for summer swimming.
Scientists are still struggling with the mystery of its origin. "Failure" - this is how the name of the reservoir is translated - could be formed as a result of a shiftmountain layers, or maybe these are the remains of the fresh sea. There are still a lot of fish in the lake.
The second mystery lies in the drainage system. Abrau feeds from the river and from underwater springs, but there is no obvious runoff. It is speculated that the excess evaporates, but does it?
There is no vegetation inherent in closed reservoirs in the lake, and the freshness of the water is beyond doubt. This fact may well confirm the bold assumptions about the still existing connection with the sea.
Not far from the lake is the Abrau-Dyurso forestry, where there is another small reservoir - Bam. There, enthusiasts started breeding lotuses. When a headwind blows, the fragrance can be felt long before approaching the water.
Legends of the lake
About any mysterious place legends are composed and passed on from generation to generation. There are several of them near Lake Abrau.
The first one tells about the love of a young Circassian woman for a poor young man. She did not dare to disobey her parents and yearned for the chosen one alone.
The beauty was not lucky, she lived surrounded by idle people who did not value anything but their pleasures. For this, God punished them. One fine day, the village fell into the ground.
The orphaned girl cried so hard and for a long time that it turned into a stream that filled the hole with water. This is how the lake was formed.
The Circassian went to drown herself, but she was disappointed. She walked across the water to the opposite shore. There, a young man in love was waiting for the girl. Howfound in fairy tales, they lived the rest of their lives in love and harmony.
Another legend tells of a dissolute girl who was imprisoned in the rocks as a punishment and forced to swear on the well-being of her native village. A shepherd passing by changed her plans radically. The aul collapsed, the girl repented and cried until the tears filled the gap. The end of the legend is as happy as in the first case.
But the most beautiful fairy tale is about the dragon living at the bottom of the lake. The sun's rays reflect off its scales and turn the water an emerald blue.
On moonlit nights, a path appears on the surface of the lake. Some say that it surprisingly resembles a chain of footprints of a girl who could not drown herself. Others claim that it is the glowing crest of a sleeping dragon.
Besides legends, a story about a treasure is connected with Abrau. At a time when the Nazis were rushing to the Caucasus, an order was received to drown all stocks of champagne from the factory's cellars in the lake. There were several tens of thousands of them. No one wanted their enemies to celebrate their victories with the best sparkling wine in the country.
After the war, attempts were made to find the priceless treasure, but to no avail. It is known that there was a flood, but no one remembers where. Abrau-Durso keeps its secrets securely.
Champagne Factory: Past
After the sad events described in the legends, the Circassians never again settled on the shores of the lake. Centuries after the end of the wars in the Caucasus, the Russians came here.
Prince Lev Golitsyn drew attention to these places and gotEmperor's nominal decree on the establishment of a settlement on the lake. Where the Abrau-Dyurso plant is located today, once only the virgin forest roared and the river flowing into the lake murmured.
A special commission was assembled to decide what type of agriculture this region is suitable for. Anything but growing grapes was offered.
Fortunately, another enthusiast F. I. Heyduk, who is in love with viticulture just like Prince Golitsyn is in winemaking. Thanks to their perseverance, a factory appeared in 1870.
Brought the first vines. They took root perfectly and provided the basis for the future vineyards of the plant. Initially, vintage wines were made. The arrival of the 20th century was marked by a batch of champagne. From the first 13 thousand bottles of sparkling wine, the triumphal procession of the Abrau-Durso plant began.
Several times the production was on the verge of collapse. The revolution, the war, the collapse of the USSR - all this caused enormous damage to priceless premises and equipment.
Some time passed and people like Geyduk and Golitsyn appeared, they revived the traditions of winemaking, restored the ruined ones and again delighted connoisseurs with fine champagne.
Abrau-Durso plant: present
The present day of the plant is directly related to the production of the best champagne wines made according to the classical technology. It is believed that the best elite grape varieties grow exactly in the places where Abrau-Dyurso is located. The champagne factory uses not only local varieties, but alsobrings from other regions and other countries.
The production still adheres to the manual method of making sparkling wine. Prince Golitsyn argued that only women's hands are capable of methodically performing the same operations day after day. Only they are able to feel and listen to the ripening wine.
At Abrau-Durso, women are still involved in the main operations. For their skill and patience, they should be greatly commended. The quality of champagne is not inferior to similar wines from France and Italy.
Despite the popularity of the products, the plant's management put forward the idea of creating a complex of services for tourists on the territory of the Abrau-Durso plant.
Factory Tour
The initiative received support. The old building was restored, in which the museum was organized. We built three restaurants, a company store and a hotel with 40 rooms.
The territory and cellars of the Abrau-Dyurso plant, where the main production is located, are visited daily by hundreds of tourists. Workers act as tour guides. They talk interestingly and with great enthusiasm about the process of making sparkling wines.
If you find yourself in those places, be sure to set aside 2-3 hours for the tour. You will be told about the champenoise method, a traditional technology for the production of champagne.
See and learn about processes such as cuvée making, assembling,remuage and disgorging. Each process is unique and quite complex, takes a lot of time, requires focus and skill. Even associated with a risk to life. Bottles sometimes explode and cause injury.
At the end of the tour, it will be emphasized that Abrau-Durso is a full-cycle enterprise - from a bunch of grapes to a packed bottle. This is a rarity for wine production.
Then you will be invited to a tasting, where you can appreciate the proposed wines, make a choice and buy a few bottles in the company store.
The Abrau-Dyurso region, where the famous plant is located, is one of the most picturesque places in the Krasnodar Territory. Endless vineyards escaping into the distance, relict forests, murmuring rivers, a lake covered in riddles and legends leave few people indifferent. And a sip of cool champagne of excellent quality will perfectly emphasize the beauty of travel.
