Джастин Кини (Великобритания)

Justin Keaney (UK)

Wine expert

“Let us turn our eyes to the east! – Kazakhstan enters the world arena Interest in wines from Kazakhstan first appeared at the London Wine Fair and now London continues to taste these wonderful wines. Over the past 15 years the quality of wine has improved argues Justin Kia, as the pearl of Kazakh wines are vines from revived vineyards that are 30 years old. Red and in particular white wines from Kazakhstan demonstrated true quality at a tasting event in London. On June 23 British voters took a step into the unknown by voting to leave the European Union. No one knows what awaits them now in the future. At the same time British drinkers have been undertaking far less dangerous experiments for years now as wine connoisseurs become increasingly familiar with wine from countries such as Lebanon, Turkey, Greece, Cyprus and now Kazakhstan. Kazakhstan? Exactly. After a premiere at this year's London Wine Fair Arba Wine launched a sale of its products. And it must be said very worthy products right in the center of London.

Despite the fact that this country became famous for its wines outside the Soviet Union and then the Commonwealth of Independent States winemaking has been practiced in Kazakhstan for many decades. Before compared to Moldova, Georgia and Armenia which are the main producers of wine in the Soviet and post-Soviet era, Kazakh wines were no among the best. Quality has always been a problem because most of the wines were destined for the Russian market characterized by excessive sweetness and low prices. Another obstacle was President Gorbachev's ill-fated anti-alcohol campaign in the early 1980s when many vines were uprooted.

“Soviet vineyards were very high quality as well as the fruits; the problem was the vinification process which was not sufficiently refined and made it possible to obtain wines for the mass market,” says Zeynulla Kakimzhanov, owner of Arba Wines, who put a lot of effort into reviving quality Kazakh winemaking at the beginning of the millennium. The climate in the areas occupied by Arba Wine, which is located near the village of Karakemer in the Assa Valley in southeastern Kazakhstan. It is about an hour's drive from the former capital of Almaty. It is excellent for winemaking with huge diurnal temperature fluctuations that give the grapes freshness and vitality. The excellent quality of the wine is also supported by the height at which the vineyards are spread - 1000 meters, as well as low humidity and organic winemaking skills adopted from the consulting company Donato Lanati Enosis which is working with Kakimzhanov to turn Arba into a quality wine producer.

A feature of the Arba Wine wines are ungrafted wild vines which were discovered after 30 years of total neglect. They've been given the necessary care and now make some of Arba's most intriguing wines characterized by low acidity and soft, warm tannins. Such as: Lagyl Arba Saperavi 2013 and Pino Arba Pinot Noir 2013 are rich in abundance of fruits, the former is a much softer and fuller opening of this grape variety than in many Georgian Saperavi wines, the latter is Pinot Noir warm, rich in taste and aroma of blackberries which are equally good. Another Arba red wine Kyzyl Cabernet Franc is also a very well made wine. However with a more traditional aroma and flavor. Perhaps, because it is made from newly planted rather than wild vines.

However, the white wines from Arba are really admired:

Ainala Gewurztraminer 2013 is a light, aromatic and perfectly balanced wine that will appeal not only to connoisseurs of this variety but also to those who have never particularly liked wines with floral and herbal characteristics before (here they are relatively limited, compared to the typical Alsace Gewurztraminer) .

AK Arba Kazakh Riesling 2013 is made from existing vines rather than imported ones. It is also a wonderfully light and aromatic grape expression with an aftertaste of lychee and white apricot on the palate. The last white wine presented is Sary Rkatsiteli 2013 which is also like Saperavi made from wild vines. This wine is great for beginners but with that distinctive Rkatsiteli flavor that might not be to everyone's taste.