Wine in Russia

PRE-COVID-19 PERFORMANCE

Official state support spurs the development of the local wine production industry

2018 saw the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Russia, with the support of the Ministry of Agriculture and Russian Quality System, initiate the Days of Russian Wines campaign. The aim of this campaign is to support domestic wine producers and the campaign lasted throughout 2019 and into 2020.

Champagne benefits from changing tastes despite regulatory issues

In Russia, there is a notable divide between generations when it comes to wine culture and wine drinking. Younger generations of Russians are increasingly looking to the west and becoming more interested in exploring new types and flavours of wine.

Kuban Vino OOO maintains leadership via its broad portfolio and wide distribution

Domestic wine producer Kuban Vino OOO continued to register very strong results in 2019 as it retained its leadership in sales of wine. The bulk of the company’s sales are derived from still light grape wine, although the company holds a strong position in sparkling wine as well.

2020 AND BEYOND

COVID-19 impact

On-trade volume sales of wine are expected to fall by 32% in 2020 in light of the impact of COVID-19. This compares very unfavourably to an expected 2% rise forecast for 2020 during research conducted in May 2019, ie before the spread of COVID-19.

Affected products within wine

The categories of wine that are expected to have been most negatively affected by the COVID-19 situation during 2020 are sparkling wine, specifically champagne and prosecco. The government-mandated shutdown of the country’s horeca industry and the significant reduction seen in socialising due to social distancing and home seclusion and the sombre national mood have reduced the consumption occasions for champagne and prosecco, drinks which are generally regarded as celebratory beverages, to vanishing point.

Recovery and opportunities

A partial recovery in on-trade sales is expected to be seen in wine during 2021 and 2022, although on-trade volume sales are not expected to return to pre-COVID-19 levels before the end of the forecast period. It is expected to take longer for off-trade sales of wine to begin recovering in earnest, with only moderately positive growth expected to be seen in off-trade volume sales over the second half of the forecast period.

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