Baku, Azerbaijan, Aug. 30
By Ilhama Isabalayeva - Trend:
It is being proposed in Azerbaijan not to consider wine as an alcoholic drink, and to widely advertise it. Such a proposal was made by director of the AzGranata plant Vugar Mikayilov, Trend reports.
Mikayilov made the proposal during the round table meeting titled "Prospects of wine industry development in Azerbaijan and development of export potential", which was organized as part of the 1st Azerbaijan Grape and Wine Festival held in the village of Meysari in Shamakhi District.
According to him, the export potential of wine has increased by 30 percent, thanks to state support.
“We receive criticism due to being unable to increase the wine exports. But because micro and macro elements in grapes that are less than 10 years old are not absorbed, wine from such products can only be used as a table wine. I would even say that the quality of table wine in Azerbaijan has reached its peak. The highest quality table wine is in Azerbaijan. But the price of such wine is in the range of $1.4-2.0. Unfortunately, vineyards are still not divided by geographical areas," Mikayilov said.
"So long as we do not have such a division, we will sell our wines cheaply. Not much is required for selling our wines at a higher price. For this, the state must decide on the names of the zones. Afterwards, the specialists of the factories located in these zones will be able to check each other’s gardens and grapes. Then it will be possible to produce the wine under the name of that particular geographical area," he added.
According to him, it is necessary to increase the number of small entrepreneurs involved in winemaking. The number of small farms in this industry equals over 10,000 in Georgia; in contrast, only 15 factories operate in this field in Azerbaijan.
"If we really want to develop viticulture, then wine should not be considered an alcoholic beverage. Why is wine considered an alcoholic beverage in Azerbaijan? Why is it not allowed to advertise wine until 11 o’clock in the evening?", Mikayilov asked.
He suggested that strong drinks produced from wild berries and fruits should also be produced in Azerbaijan, just as in other countries. According to Mikayilov, it may allow for opening tens of thousands of new jobs in the country. Mikayilov, who deemed the decision to increase the excise taxes on champagne wines to be an incorrect one, noted that champagne is the most healthy drink for people with a heart condition.