The Abrau-Durso Museum celebrates its 50th anniversary

In 2024, the Museum and Historical Complex of the Abrau-Durso Russian Wine House celebrates its 50th anniversary. The exposition was opened in 1974, but the unique history of the museum began long before the official birth date. Five decades later, the historical complex continues to be the keeper of the Abrau-Durso chronicle and the most visited museum at the winery in Russia.

The museum and historical complex of the Abrau-Durso Russian Wine House has been repeatedly recognized on a world stage. In 2020, it was shortlisted as one of the world's top Travellers' Choice attractions by TripAdvisor, the world's largest travel digital platform. In 2022, the complex for the first time participated in the Corporate Museum National Award and won in the Best Museum Video and Best Museum Publishing Project nominations. In 2023, experts again awarded the victory in the New Exposition nomination, and also included it in the top 10 best corporate museums in Russia. More than 200,000 guests pass through the Russian Wine House tunnels every year. Today, it is a modern complex, where ancient production facilities and artifacts are harmoniously complemented by modern installations and multimedia technologies. But this was not always the case — this is the result of the work of several generations of specialists.

The history of the museum began at the end of the XIX century, at the time of the foundation of the Abrau-Durso estate. According to the archives of that period, the collection included an album of the winery photos, a herbarium, a library of 2 thousand books and brochures, which was based on specialized literature acquired at different times by the first agronomist of the Black Sea district Fyodor Ivanovich Geiduk, founder of sparkling wine production in Abrau-Durso Prince Lev Golitsyn, French champagne maker Victor Dravigny, and Soviet scientist-winemaker Anton Frolov-Bagreev. Among the exhibits was the first document confirming the existence of a museum at the enterprise, which dates back to 1927. However, during the Great Patriotic War and the occupation of Abrau-Durso, the collection of artifacts was almost lost.

They returned to the idea of reviving the museum in the 1970s, and on July 21, 1974, the museum of the Order of the Red Banner of Labor of the Abrau-Durso wine farm, organized by the chief champanist of the winery Eduard Klotz, was opened to the public. This date is considered the official birthday of the complex. The museum was located on the fifth floor of the Table Wine Factory building and consisted of just a few rooms with information stands on the enterprise history and wine production, as well as awards and pictures of Abrau-Durso landscapes. Of particular interest was the gallery of portraits of famous Russian and, first of all, Abrau winemakers specially painted for the museum, which has been preserved to this day. At the same time, the first tastings began. Thus, there are documentary proofs that in 1985 the guests were offered to taste locally produced wines: brut, dry and semi-dry Soviet Champagne, Krasnodarskoe Sparkling, Cabernet Abrau, Riesling Abrau. Russian cheese, bread and sweets were served as after-bites. Back then, the museum was visited by numerous Soviet and foreign specialists, delegations, and tourists who went on very popular excursions to the flagship winery.

The difficult 1990s could not but affect the safety of the museum's collection, many exhibits disappeared. In 2006, after the acquisition of the enterprise by SVL Group headed by Boris Titov, the task was set to restore and modernize the production infrastructure, as well as to create a full-featured enotourism destination. And just two years after a large-scale reconstruction, a modern museum and historical complex was opened in the building of the Table Wine Factory, which became a symbol of the continuity of traditions. The painstaking work on collecting and studying archives, writing historical articles began, the position of archivist was introduced - Elena Petrova, the keeper of the Abrau-Durso history, has been working at this position for more than a decade and a half. In 2010, the Abrau-Durso Heritage Foundation for the Revival of Winemaking Traditions was established to create and implement all historical and museum projects. Anna Levychkina, the Foundation's Project Director, has been engaged for 17 years in deep study of the rich history of Abrau-Durso and its popularization at various exposition spaces, in cinematography and publishing. Over the years, the complex has undergone fundamental transformations: new museum grounds have been created and continue to be opened, traveling exhibitions are held. Constant research and scientific investigations allowed us to replenish the collection of exhibits and documents, we systematize storage units accounting and digitize documents - all this is necessary to preserve the Abrau-Durso history, which is being created in the present.

Today, the Abrau-Durso Museum and Historical Complex occupies a special place among the Russian sights. It reflects three key periods in the history of the famous wine house: tsarist, Soviet and modern, covering events in the country from the mid-19th century to the present day. Visitors are given a unique opportunity to immerse themselves in the rich history of Russian winemaking. The complex includes five tunnels of the late XIX century, as well as five kilometers of tunnels of the Soviet era built by Metrostroy in the XX century. Here you can also see the real magic: the one-time aging of about 10 million bottles of sparkling wine.

The museum updates and expands its exposition every year to interest not only new visitors, but also those who are already familiar with its tours. Among the latest innovations are an aroma room for studying the "nose" of wine and the Heart of Abrau multimedia installation. As for the tastings, they have been significantly transformed. Now guests can choose from four tasting sets, including popular and premium lines of sparkling and still wines, as well as spirits and non-alcoholic drinks of Abrau-Durso.

"We are proud to talk about the 50th anniversary of our museum and invite everyone to get to know the unique exhibition better. We are happy to be the guardians of priceless traditions and to give our guests new, unforgettable emotions. When updating the exposition, we strive to realize a bright trend - Experience Economy, the concept of which is to have an emotional impact on the guest, when feelings, sensations and memories have new experience, aesthetics and entertainment. Despite its considerable age, our museum keeps up with the times and even outstrips them in some respects," says Irina Goncharova, Vice President for Tourism and Special Projects of Abrau-Durso Group.

"There are not many brands in Russia with a century-and-a-half history, and each of them is an invaluable asset of the country. The Abrau-Durso Heritage Foundation is proud that we are preserving our unique history, allowing future generations to study and admire the rich past of one of the oldest wineries in Russia. We want our history to serve as an inspiration for descendants and inspire respect for traditions," comments Igor Lozovsky, President of the Abrau-Durso Heritage Foundation.