Wine Innovation profile: Imperia

The tiny land-locked eastern European country of Moldova remains one of the poorest countries on the continent, with an economy that relies heavily on agricultural industries, such as wine.

Imperia, one of the entrants to our Wine Innovation Awards, has built a solid reputation for bringing UK consumers some of the best wines on offer from the country.

Founder Tomas Lankutis moved to the UK from Lithuania less than ten years ago and instantly noticed that there was a gap in the UK market for eastern European food products.

He had also been disappointed by the quality of the Moldovan wine available and realised there was potential for quality wines from Moldova to be introduced to the British public.

Tomas went straight to Moldova to talk to the wine producers and was welcomed into their secret cellars, regaled with their stories and experienced first hand their hospitality.  

His love for the country, the people and the winemaking tradition in the country fuelled his desire to introduce the wines to the UK.

It hasn’t been an easy road for Moldovan wine in recent years. Lankutis recalled: “In the middle of the 1980s Moldovan wine-making was hard hit by prohibition, when tens of hectares of vineyard were grubbed up, the authorities destroyed valuable wine.

“This national tragedy caused not only cultural but economic damage. Production areas decreased three times.

“Beginning in the 90s, the revival and quality development of the winemaking industry in Moldova become the main factor of a successful developing economy.

“The UN have invested a large amount of time and expertise to help bring the wines up to export standards.

"Moldova has the best potential of all former Soviet states for growing excellent quality international varieties," he said. "The country enjoys a favorable climate and good farmland but has no major mineral deposits. As a result, the economy depends heavily on agriculture, featuring fruits, vegetables, wine and tobacco. The air is very clean.”

These factors have contributed to making viticulture an important part of Moldovan life. Today, approximately 101,500 hectares of vineyards grow grape varieties of western European or indigenous origin. Nearly 86,000 hectares are dedicated to wine grapes, with roughly 70% white grapes and 30% red varieties.

According to Lankutis, every inhabitant of a Moldovan village has everything needed to make their own wine at home.

“In the autumn the courtyards of village houses are transformed into miniature wineries,” he said.

“The freshly picked grapes are placed in the wine press and squeezed. The ravac, the first must of unfermented wine to be squeezed out of the grapes, is poured into the waiting casks.

“All villagers have a cellar in or near their house in which a cask or two are kept for guests, for holidays, or simply for when everyone is in a good mood.”

Indeed, Moldovans believe that wine not only tastes good, but also does you good. At the time of the Chernobyl disaster, they sent thousands of litres of red wine to their afflicted neighbours in the Ukraine, not just as palliative gesture but as medicine, since it is a widely-held belief in the country that a good robust red has the power to reduce the effects of radiation on the body.

Whether or not there is any truth in that theory remains to be seen, but in terms of innovation in wine, it certainly would take things to a new level.

For more information on Imperia, visit www.imperia-uk.com

For more details on the Wine Innovation Awards, visit www.wineinnovation.co.uk

Alan Lodge, 29.07.2010