destinations |D E L I G HT S
Tourists can book a room at the Purcari Winery, shown above, to enjoy the views, the traditional cuisine and the wines a little longer.
taste of its produce is truly outstanding. This makes Moldova a great destination for delicious culinary experiences. But what about the wine? Perhaps the most famous attribute of Moldova’s heritage is the wine. Winemaking and viticulture are deeply embedded in the Moldovan patrimony, with evidence suggesting that its ancestors first used grapes to produce wine as early as 3000 BC. If you look closely at Moldova on the map, you will notice it resembles a cluster of grapes and it is indeed perfectly located to grow them.
Purcari Winery
Moldova ranks 14th in wine production
Given that, Moldovans have become quite talented at producing exquisite wines over the centuries. Moldova now exports topquality wines all over the world, including Canada. As proof of the popularity of Moldovan wine in Canada, in 2015, our wine exports grew considerably, up 10 times from 2013, and 4.4 times that of 2014. Last year, the LCBO was selling Rara Neagra of Purcari 2013 for $20.95 a bottle and it intends to restock the shelves with a shipment coming in October 2016, so watch for it. In 2012, with 1.5 percent of the world diplomat and international canada
The Purcari Winery is located in picturesque surroundings.
wine output, Moldova ranked 14th in the world in wine production. The country boasts more than 140 wine companies, employing more than 250,000 people. That means more than 67 million bottles of Moldovan wine are exported to more than 30 countries. Red wines edge out white at 55 per cent of our exports. Foreigners seem to enjoy them. The wines have continued to win awards at prestigious wine competitions, including the Decanter World Wine Awards, International Wine Contest and ProWein Düsseldorf. To fully appreciate its flavour, I strongly encourage you to dive into the full experience of tasting wine at one of Moldova’s famous wineries. They have become so popular that the country has developed a successful wine tourism sector, an excellent opportunity for wine connoisseurs. Perhaps the greatest difficulty will be to choose your favourite: Moldova has 148,000 hectares of vineyards. That’s more than the 120,000 hectares of Bordeaux grapes growing in France. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Moldova is also home to the world’s largest underground cellar and wine collections. Some of the storage cellars, with mazes carved in limestone, span hundreds 127