History

OAO Moscow International Winery is one of Russia's largest facilities for production and bottling of wines, brandies, vodkas and related beverages.
The decision on the facility's construction was taken by the Council of Ministers of the USSR on 3 June 1964, with construction actually beginning in 1967. Over 250 organisations and enterprises, including from abroad, supplied construction materials, equipment, control stations, automation devices, etc. The facility was put into operation in stages over the period 1971-1975.
On 6 November 1970 the facility's first production rolled off the bottling line of the plant's souvenir section – 'Limanskoe Dessert' wine. This day marked the beginning of the facility's production activities. During the remainder of 1970 alone, 45 thousand dl of 12 different types of wine were produced.
Moscow International Winery, with production capacity of 1150 thousand dl of wine products per year, was officially accepted for operation under order no.3 of the USSR Ministry of Food Production, dated 6 January 1971. On 1.1.1975 all remaining production facilities envisaged by the design documentation were put into operation, and the facility began operating at its full design capacity of 13100 thousand dl per year.

The facility's production and administrative buildings were set out on Ryabinovaya Street over an area of 10 ha, with modern architectural designs. The total area of the site's production and support facilities is around 100,000 square metres.
The site's main production facility was equipped with units for acceptance, storage and processing of natural wines and brandies, a vodka-production wing, and facilities for bottling, packaging, and storage of production ready for shipment, as well as an on-site laboratory.
In the wine-bottling section 6 automated bottling lines produced by well-known German, Italian, French and Indian firms were installed, with productivity of 6-12 thousand bottles per hour. Brandy and vodka are bottled in a separate three-story facility containing 3 modern automated bottling lines, which allow production of special souvenir-type packages as well as traditional 0.5 litre bottles.
These automatic bottling machines work under a continuous regime, which allows wine to be bottled by volume or by level. Filled bottles are transferred to a automatic closing machine, where stoppers are inserted, and are then fitted with decorative heat-shrinkable hood caps and finally fitted with front and rear labelling by the next machine, before being automatically boxed and forwarded to the relevant warehouse.
The facility's support services include a laboratory, which performs meteorological monitoring of measurement and automation equipment, as well as a maintenance engineering section, an electrical section, a construction section and a steam power exploitation service. The plant also has a cold compression unit producing compressed air and cooling agents for production purposes, and a recharging station servicing around 100 fork-lift trucks.

The organisation's production solutions are based on the principle of maintaining use of specific techniques for production of different wines, as developed by different enterprises of the former Soviet republics. For this reason the facility's wine warehouse is divided into seven sections, one for segregated storage and processing of wine materials and wines from each republic. Wine and brandy materials are supplied in special cistern-type railway wagons. For the purposes of their technical processing the wine warehouse is fitted with blending vats, chillers, filters, temperature-controlled ripening vats, central pumping stations and control centres.
The enterprise takes particular pride in its wine cellar. Even the dust there is worth its weight in gold. Its 1300 square metres hold over 200 thousand bottles of rare wine and 20 thousand bottles of brandy, stored horizontally in racks. Some of these bottles date back to before the Second World War, when they were initially stored against bombings as national treasures. As is well known, wine, as a living entity, goes through all principal stages of life: birth, maturity, aging, and death. Every wine has its own optimal age, and becomes finer with age due to formation of aromatic compounds. Dry wines begin losing their taste qualities after 3 years, whereas port becomes mature only after 10 years, and is at its best after 50 years. Muscats are finest after 10-12 years, while those wishing to assess the taste of a Jerez will have to wait around 50 years. For this reason, wine-producers must know the optimal storage periods of different wines, and the process of their aging, and this is the principal purpose of the wine cellar.

During the Soviet era the plant produced up to 170 million bottles per year and almost 200 types of wine. Its wines were exported to the UK, France, Austria and Japan. However, the onset of Glasnost and Perestroika and the subsequent collapse of the Soviet Union dealt a heavy blow to the enterprise. Thousands of valuable vineyards were levelled, and their replacement proved to be highly difficult. While, for example, vodka production can be resumed in a matter of months, for wine production the process takes years. After all, at least 10 years are required to grow good grapes. This was a tough time for the entire wine industry, and at the facility wine output fell by 40%. The plant's specialists excelled during this difficult period, reorienting a part of the facility's production toward juices and low-alcohol drinks. Low-alcohol drink production was set up over a very short period, and the plant's 'Kriushon Liubitelsky' red and white champagne cocktails, 'Vecherny', 'Prazdnichny' and 'Surprise' cocktails and 'Rosinka' low-alcohol drink were launched. All this allowed the enterprise's capacities to be utilised to the maximum possible degree, while avoiding cutbacks in production or staff.

One strategic error made during this period was the decision to rename the enterprise, which came to play a fateful role for the plant. The name MMVZ disappeared from the plant's wine bottles, replaced by the name 'Vivat'. Consumers, however, proved reluctant to experiment by purchasing products of an unknown maker. This dark spell dragged on for some time, resulting in the loss of the enterprise's market niche. The well-known old name eventually returned, but this again was a highly difficult process, and the enterprise had to overcome the mistrust of Muscovite consumers.
In 1995 the plant became an open joint-stock type company. With privatisation came the problem of new internal personnel relations. Clear economic stimuli had to be found for all workers and shareholders in order to differentiate the contribution made by each to the enterprise's operating results. The personal interest of each worker in ensuring the plant's success helped it overcome many of the difficulties associated with the changeover period and preserve consumer acceptance of its products.

The enterprise underwent a complete change of top management, and the first action of the new management team was to drop the name 'Vivat' and restore the plant's previous good name, in all senses of the phrase. In 1999 Musa Daudovich Paragulgov, a professional wine-maker, was appointed as the plant's general director, thus marking the culmination of his route from master viniculturist to head of a major business.
The new management team was able to preserve the best of what had made the plant famous. Remaining true to its traditions, MMVZ created 6 new technological units named after former Soviet republics, the largest of which is Russia. There is also a unit for production of semi-sweet and semi-dry wines, and two for fortified wines. 8 out of the 11 bottling lines were completely fitted out with the latest technologies.

But the basis of the enterprise's richness is formed by its people. The plant boasts a close-knit and capable team, all working together for the same cause. Practically every production unit has its own wine master, many of whom have been working at the plant for over 25 years. A good wine is a wine that commands respect, both when it is drunk and during its production. Wine-making is a process steeped in tradition, requiring substantial knowledge and significant labour. Therefore our wine-makers are thoroughgoing people, with huge knowledge and endless dedication to their profession. The plant's main suppliers of wine materials come from the world's famous wine centres – Moldova, Argentina, Chile, Spain, Georgia. It is not every enterprise that boasts specialists capable of judging and selecting the best. But MMVZ has been able to assemble and maintain a team of wine virtuosos whose names are known industry-wide, such as, for example, the plant's chief process-manager Anna Alexandrovna Tamarina.
The enterprise has extremely low staff turnover. Our people take pride in their work, and are rewarded for it handsomely (even by Moscow standards) and on time, with wages indexed on a constant basis. The enterprise aims to make OAO MMVZ the employer of choice for young specialists.

MMVZ's main strategic objective is to launch new production lines for sterile cold-bottling, allowing products to be delivered to consumers 'as is' while preserving all the product's taste and aroma.

There are around 15 wine and vodka enterprises operating in Moscow. But MMVZ is constantly one step ahead of its competitors, in terms of production, in terms of sales, and, most importantly, in terms of product quality and range.
Of OAO MMVZ's sales structure, 12% is accounted for by vodka, 6% by brandy and the remainder – by wine (50% semi-sweet, 50% semi-dry and dry). OAO MMVZ attempts to satisfy varying consumer tastes by expanding its range to take in new products.
In 2000 the plant sold 2,270 thousand decilitres of alcoholic beverages. Its product range is extremely varied, with around 60 types of wine, and core items including high-quality natural dry, semi-dry and semi-sweet wines, semi-sweet sparkling wines, and original wines, brandies and vodkas. 'Moscow International Winery' was initially conceived as a wine and brandy house, and today it is one of the top five brandy producers by sales.
The plant has received international acclaim for its outstanding successes in producing high-quality and competitive products, as well as for its role in the development of Russia's economy and its integration into the global system.
The winery holds a certificate confirming its status as 'Leader of the Russian Economy', or one of Russia's leading enterprises. The numerous prizes awarded to the plant at various international and Russian exhibitions and contests are also testament to the quality of its products. The plant has been a recipient of the prestigious international prizes 'Gold Globe', and 'Arch of Europe Star for Excellence and Quality', and also a winner of the international Prize for the Best Quality. It has also been awarded the distinguished prizes 'Golden Bunch' and 'Golden Label'.
In 1999 the plant's products were awarded 6 gold medals at the Gourmand-99 exhibition and gold and silver medals at the 'International Wine Contest' in St. Petersburg, and in 2000 they received 12 gold, 3 silver and 1 bronze medal at various international exhibitions. In 2003, the All-Russian Scientific Research Institute for Brewing, Non-alcoholic and Wine Production named OAO MMVZ as 'Best wine producer for 2003'. OAO MMVZ's products have also been awarded many other prizes and certificates.
OAO Moscow International Winery has some far-reaching plans for the future, and the enterprise's team is sure that they are realistic and achievable. The reason for such certainty is the plant's 30-year work experience, its qualified specialists, and its belief in the future and its own strengths.