Russia opens ‘wine Disneyland’ to boost enotourism
Earlier this month, The Bely Mys wine city was opened in Gelendzhik as the largest of four major wine and tourism complexes opening across Russia and Crimea in 2026, backed largely by Bank Rossiya.
In a bold statement about its wine ambitions, on 13 June, Russia inaugurated Bely Mys – a 42,000 sq m wine complex on the seafront embankment of the Black Sea resort city of Gelendzhik, already being dubbed ‘Putin’s wine Disneyland’.
The complex is home to the Lev Golitsyn Wine Museum, an enoteca carrying the largest collection of Russian wines, more than a dozen restaurants, event venues, a five-screen cinema, a wine academy, a testing and laboratory centre, tasting rooms, a registry office with panoramic views, and a yacht dock.
One of the project’s principal investors is Bank Rossiya, owned by businessman Yuri Kovalchuk. Its stated mission is to promote domestic winemaking and cultivate a new generation of wine-curious Russian consumers.
Dmitry Levitsky, restaurateur and co-director of the project, said the team’s priority was accessibility over academia. “Our mission is to make people fall in love with wine – and through that, to motivate them to explore its nuances, flavours, and the technology of winemaking,” he said. “We created an atmosphere in which they feel good and comfortable. And part of that enjoyment is a glass of fine wine.”
Bely Mys is the largest but not the only wine destination currently under development in Russia. A second complex is under construction at the Krinitsa winery, also near Gelendzhik, with an estimated value of 27 billion rubles (£273.8m) – making it the most expensive winery project in the country.
Two further centres are planned for Crimea. The first, at the historic Novy Svet ‘champagne house’, will be the largest by footprint at 87,000 sq m, and will include a museum of Soviet winemaking, tasting rooms, an observation tower, a floating bridge, a craft centre, restaurants, and a yacht dock. The second is at the Inkerman winery. Both Crimean projects are also backed by Bank Rossiya and are scheduled to open later this year – though ongoing Ukrainian military strikes on the peninsula could delay their completion.
About the Bely Mys complex
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- Bely Mys (White Cape) opened June 13 in Gelendzhik on the Black Sea, developed by Bank Rossiya’s group across 4.2 hectares
- 42,000 sq m, capacity for 5,000+ guests simultaneously, 700+ jobs created
- 28 locations including 15 restaurants and bars, the Lev Golitsyn Wine Museum, an enoteca, wine academy, testing and laboratory centre, theatre (a branch of the Leningrad Center), cinema, expocenter, and a registry office overlooking the sea
- Architecture is by English firm Dyer in a ‘biotech’ style – curved, wave-like forms designed to blend with the natural landscape, with rare Pitsunda pines preserved
The Lev Golitsyn museum and enoteca
- The Lev Golitsyn Wine Museum is a three-level, 3,000 sq m interactive exhibition – Russia’s first large-scale museum dedicated to industrial winemaking history
- The enoteca claims the world’s most complete collection of Russian wine, representing nearly all of the country’s wine regions, from large producers to small family farms
The bigger industry context
- Since Russia’s 2019 wine law*, vineyard numbers have grown 15% and grape production exceeded 950,000 tonnes by end of 2025 — a modern record.
- Industry bodies believe Bely Mys could double Russia’s enotourism volumes
- Gelendzhik is being positioned as Russia’s wine capital, with Bely Mys its flagship showcase
Other projects in the pipeline
- A second complex is under construction at Krinitsa winery, also near Gelendzhik, valued at 27 billion rubles
- Two Crimea projects: Novy Svet (87,000 sq m site, museum of Soviet winemaking, floating bridge, observation tower) and Inkerman — both also Bank Rossiya-backed, targeted for 2026
* Russia’s 2019 wine law prohibited calling a product “Wine of Russia” unless it was made exclusively (100%) from grapes grown on Russian soil. The law also mandated that only Russian-made sparkling wines could be called “Shampanskoye” (the Russian equivalent of Champagne), sparking international controversy, as it required French Champagne makers to label their bottles simply as “sparkling wine” when sold in Russia.
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