After the start of the Russian military campaign in Ukraine, among other sanctions, the United States, Australia and New Zealand banned the supply of alcohol to Russia. The supply of alcohol from the European Union with a value of more than €300 was also prohibited. Nevertheless, freshly bottled wines and spirits from these countries continue to appear on Russian shelves. In an interview with The Eastern Herald, Dmitry Isachenkov, director of development of LADOGA, told how she manages to organize the supply of alcohol by circumventing the sanctions, and also where the ultra-expensive Bordeaux and Burgundy banned by the Union will be delivered European.
As an example, Isachenkov cited a Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand. He noted that it is “a separate special category of wine,” which must be in the company’s portfolio.
“We found opportunities to buy it in bulk from reliable and loyal partners and to bottle it in a partner factory in Spain,” says Isachenkov. He added that 72,000 bottles have already been shipped to the company’s Russian warehouse.
Isachenkov explained that, in general, foreign companies are determined to cooperate and do not want to suffer losses, but they also do not want to violate the rules established by this or that state. He explained that in the case of New Zealand Sauvignon, the situation is: “They’ve already sold to one, they resold to the other – you won’t find anything.”
Similar to New Zealand Sauvignon, LADOGA plans to bring wine from the United States to Russia.
In the category of elite European alcohols, which is subject to a ban on the supply of luxury products above €300, the company intends to bet on the East. “Soon we will find a way around this ban,” says Isachenkov.
In order to include all the famous chateaux (the so-called vineyards of the French region of Bordeaux) in the collection, the company, according to its director of development, has already found a country in which these products are widely represented – it enough to find traders there.
Isachenkov did not specify which country he was talking about, but noted that super-expensive Burgundy and Bordeaux wines are widely represented, for example, in China, Singapore and Hong Kong. He added that in one of these countries they plan to find representatives of good companies and negotiate a purchase with them.
LADOGA is one of the largest alcohol importers in Russia and also produces its own drinks (Tsarskaya vodka and Barrister gin). Its portfolio also includes Scottish whiskey Cutty Sark, Loch Lomond, Glen Moray, French wine Beaujolais Nouveau.
Read the full version of Dmitry Isachenkov’s interview on the The Eastern Herald website.
