What’s your tipple? The Ukrainians have still got loads of bottle

HAVING survived two world wars, one of Ukraine’s oldest and most prestigious wine producers faced enemy action a third time in the wake of Russia’s 2022 invasion.Within hours of hostilities, the Chateau Prince Trubetskoi in the Kherson region was occupied by Russian forces who proceeded to loot it – plundering bottles of 100-year-old wine.Tania Olevska, of the Ukrainian Wine Company UK, says: “The vineyards were mined and they still are, despite the territory being back under Ukrainian control.” It’s not a one-off, sadly.

The important Crimea region, where the ancient Greeks first introduced grapes along the Black Sea coast, has been occupied since 2014 and the Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions are being fought over in a bloody ground war, making grape growing and wine production impossible.

Yet despite these challenges – plus power cuts from missile attacks, economic hardship and a lack of manpower – wine production by makers unaffected directly by fighting is growing.

“When the war started, people realised how important it was to support the local producers and they started buying Ukrainian products, including wines,” says Tania.

Now a new brand,Wines of Ukraine, has been created to unite 15 leading wineries and bolster support and sales abroad.

Despite numerous awards – Ukraine’s fertile soils, ample sunshine and largely continental climate are ideal for growing grapes – its wine remains largely unexplored by British drinkers.They’re certainly worth trying, and not just as a way of cocking a snook atVladimir Putin.Tanya adds: “Our motto is, ‘Just one bottle on the shelf or the menu will help Ukraine’.”

So why not raise a glass to Ukraine’s heroic resistance?