Russian wine 'anarchists' use lake as cellar

Related tags Wine

Twelve bottles of prestigious French wines will be kept for six
months on the bottom of Russia's Lake Baikal by a group of people
looking to push the boundaries of wine consumption and production.
writes Angela Drujinina.

The promotional stunt, which is being carried out in the spirit of an organisation called Wine Anarchy, was organised by Sibatom and the Moscow-based fine wine importer Fort.

The wine, packed in a special case, was taken to a depth of 38 metres by divers. Each of the 12 bottles has a label with detailed information about the date, place and time of immersion. The wine will remain at the bottom of the Siberian lake until June 2005, when it will be raised, tasted and sold at auction.

"The idea behind this promotion was not to make Baikal's bottom 'the deepest wine cellar in the world,'"​ said Fort's brand manager Dmitriy Groshev. "We wanted to see what would happen after the wine had been 'loaded with Baikal'. The very essence of the Wine Anarchy movement is to create a 'live' wine, and many people consider Baikal as being a live creature."

There five wines from six different producers Château Tour de Gendres Moulin des Dames 2000; Château du Cedreles Prestige 2001; Domaine Santa Duc Gigondas 2001; Domaine Clavel Copa Santa 2001; Domaine Laffont Hecate 2002 and Domaine Laffont Pacherenc du Vic Bilh 2003.

The Wine Anarchy movement was born in France more than 10 years ago, the brainchild of Belgian producer Mark Belinks. Its aim is to unite winemakers seeking to push the boundaries of wine making by developing alternative production methods.

Related topics Beer, Wine, Spirits, Cider

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