Champagne Wine Factory “Novy Svet”, Tour with Tasting

The Novy Svet factory of sparkling wines is a significant part of the history of Russian winemaking. It was here that they started making champagne, which won the Grand Prix in Paris in 1900. The development of winemaking on such a scale took Prince Lev Golitsyn more than 30 years. Moreover, he began his experiments in Massandra, in Feodosia, and in Abrau-Durso, and ended in the settlement Novy Svet (Eng: New World), located few kilometers west from Sudak in the beautiful Green bay surrounded by mountains. The fact is that the prince fell in love with these places, in the amazing Crimean nature, and then he realized that the Black Sea climate is very similar to the Mediterranean, which means that you can also make wine here! Over 30 hectares of “Crimean Sahara” with rocky soil was planted with vineyards. Golitsyn dreamed that his name would forever be written in the history of winemaking in Russia. And so it happened. Until now, the Golitsyn family coat of arms with the words Vir Est Vis (“It was. It is. It will be.”)  Flaunts on the labels of the well-known and popular champagne “Novy Svet”.

Enoteca in Old Tunnel and Sign “Vir, Est, Vis”
Interior of Enoteca of Novy Svet Winery, the repository of elite sparkling wines, in one of the old tunnels cut in the monolith of Koba-Kaya Mountain.

History of The Wine Factory

It can be argued that winemaking in Russia before Golitsyn did not develop at all. The prince was the first to set himself such ambitious goals and managed to achieve them. This required hundreds of hours of consultation with winemakers from around the world (even had to listen to their ridicule!) And thousands of hours of work for laying tunnels. After all, the cellars of the factory of Prince Golitsyn, where the wine was aged and stored, were cut in the Koba-Kaya Mountain (Mount Orel, Eagle). In total, about 4 kilometers of tunnels were built in the mount. It is hard to imagine, but it took a whole year to build each kilometer tunnel and a lot of funds invested by Golitsyn! However, it was precisely its location in the mount that made it possible to obtain the high-quality wines here, in Novy Svet. After all, the underground temperature is kept year-round at +8 – +14 degrees. Therefore, during excursions to underground storages it is advised to dress warmly enough (to keep you warm they can provide blankets in the tunnels).

But back to the beginning of the 20th century: Lev Sergeyevich Golitsyn managed to not only get unique local grape varieties, and then make champagne from them, but also win the favor of the imperial court. So, in 1907, at least 4 varieties of champagne were produced for nobles, courtiers and the imperial family. This is “Kavalergradskoe”, “Novy Svet Semi-Dry”, “Paradise Brut”, “Coronation”. Surprisingly, this wine was also recognized in Champagne, after Golitsyn submitted it for “blind testing” without opening the brand.

Novosvetsky Champagne Factory Today

Since the days of Golitsyn, they have been making delicious dry champagne, including brut, extra-brut and Cuvée. Currently, 18 grades of champagne and sparkling wines are produced under the trademarks “Novy Svet”, “Crimea”, “Prince Lev Golitsyn”, “Red Sparkling”, “Novosvetsky Serdolik”, and a new brand “WINE & OPERA” aged from 3 to 16 years . You can try the very “Coronation”.

The plant seeks to preserve the traditions of aristocratic winemaking, therefore, invites everyone to participate in the Club of Bruterians.

In the 1900s, meetings of the Club were held on the estate of Prince Golitsyn in the Novy Svet. A special guest album has been preserved, and it contains autographs of Emperor Nicholas II, Count Benckendorf, Prince Orlov, F. Chaliapin, M. Voloshin, A. Tolstoy. Today, collectors of fine champagne wines join the club. As in the days of Golitsyn, his goal is to popularize high-quality sparkling drinks produced according to the Crimean technology. For this, the emphasis is on obtaining quality certificates in independent organizations. So, one of the last was received a security certificate from the Regional Public Organization for the Protection of Consumer Rights “Consumer Union R.O.S. Control”.

Tasting in a Special Jasper Hall

Champagne and sparkling wine factory in Crimea conducts tours of basements and production workshops. They end in a tasting room. In itself, the opportunity to try all the elite varieties of champagne is very pleasant. But when you are tasting, do not forget to carefully look around. The fact is that the tastings are held in a special “Jasper Hall”. It seems that the walls and tables here are lined with natural landscape jasper – lend a hand and you will feel the veins. In fact, these are drawings by the Ural self-taught artist Min Klementyev. He grew up among gems but regretted that not everyone could see the beauty of the rocks. To experiment more confidently with paints, he moved to the warm Crimea, and here in 1978, he created his “Jasper Miracle” – a tasting room. What is interesting: this is the only work of the artist that anyone can see. The rest of his 400 works in the technique of “stone painting” belong to the family and are practically not exhibited.

The tasting room is decorated with a crystal chandelier with stalagmite pendants, and it seems as if you get into the very grotto where Golitsyn himself received guests!

Photographs from the Tour

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