Discover Moldova with #MOLDPRES: Tourist experience from Gasca, with accents of French chateau

The story of sisters wine-makers from Kislov

Two young sisters from the Gasca settlement, Transnistrian region, have transformed the passion of their father into a family business. Alexandra Calasnic and Elizaveta Prihodko re-made the atmosphere of a French chateau in the yard of their parents. Now, any visitor can enjoy the tourist experience provided by the Kislov wine cellar – from the vine plantation, to yards and cellar – all adapted to the French specific feature.    

„I along with my sister have practiced the vine-growing ever since the childhood. We deal with the plantation, tying the vine and we fully know all aspects of taking care of the vine. Yet, at that time, we were  mere helpers for the parents,’’ Alexandra Calasnic said.          

The choosing of the name for winery was not at all accidental. The name of the winery is a heritage transformed into a legend which turns to good account the entire business.

„Kislov is the family name of our great-grandfather. It is extremely interesting that, in 1914, the entire region – the field and the hill – were covered with his vine plantations, where he was cultivating grapes 100 years ago,’’ Alexandra said.     

In 2014, when their father ruled to plant vine there, they discovered the story of the family vineyard  

Thus, at the entrance into the wine cellar, tourists first learn about the legend of the place; then, they discover the fact that, in Kislov, the tradition and innovation are harmoniously combined.   

„These wine presses represent the heart of our winery and we inherited them from Alexandr Kislov, our great-grandfather. Presently, we make use of them and they are part of our daily work,’’ Elizaveta said.   

While their father is in charge of the wine production technology, the two daughters manage the business plan, the promotion of the winery and the attraction of new opportunities.  

Thus, in 2022, the young women participated in a contest of grants financed by the European Union through the EU’s Confidence Building Measures Programme, implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). In this way, they got a sum of 15,000 euros, in order to endow the wine cellar with the things needed.          

„The wine cellar and the vine plantation are not too big. We have a small number of varieties; so that we are interested in experimenting something new. For this, we need additional equipment, equipment which, as a matter of fact, is pretty costly. Due to the grant, we bought French and American oak barrels, which allowed us creating a new line of premium quality wines.’’ Alexandra said.      

„The vessels for fermentation are of a huge importance, as the quality of the wine is determined namely here. Without these fermentation tanks, we cannot work. We can operate without additional vessels, but we cannot do without the fermentation tanks… as the fermentation process takes place in these vessels, the most important process,’’ Elizaveta said.     

Besides the barrels, other types of vessels, fermenters were purchased too, including a topping and labeller.  

„This is our topping/stapler, which we used before receiving the grant. Formerly, each bottle used to be bottled manually; only father used to do this, while we replaced him sometimes. This was physically complicated; yet, now, our grandmother makes this operation by only two pushes; so, she is involved in the process as well,’’ Elizaveta also said.

Everybody is involved in the family business - beginning with the two sisters, the parents and even the grandparents  

Although this is a family business, new jobs are created at the winery as well; so, besides the extended family, another four persons are employed, who get involved with the same dedication. Therefore, about 6,000 bottles of wine are annually produced at the Kislov wine cellar.   

„We are very much concerned about the quality, beginning with the cultivation of vine up to the last cork. Everything is made manually, by us, and we are proud of what we provide to people. The grant helped us improve even more the quality, so that we can fully meet our production requirements,’’ Elizaveta stressed.   

It can be complicated for one to make himself/herself distinguished or find the oneness, out of those over 240 wineries and wine cellars registered at the National Office of Vine and Wine. So, in order to be different and provide visitors with something special, Alexandra and Elizaveta set a movie theatre in open air.  

„This is a unique idea, as nobody has a movie theatre in vineyards in our region and in Moldova. This is something new and romantic and people are willing to come from far away, in order to experiment this,’’ Alexandra noted.    

„We have here a movie theatre in open air, excursions, diverse corporate events, weddings. We also provide courses of sommelier. So, we have a wide range of activities on our area and we want to extend them even more,’’ Elizaveta added.    

Another 13 young men and women entrepreneurs, such as Alexandra Calasnic and Elizaveta Prihodko, were selected by contest by the European Union’s Confidence Building Measures Programme, implemented by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in order to start or develop a business.

The Confidence Building Measures Programme, financed by the European Union and implemented by UNDP, contributes to the consolidation of the trust between the residents from the two banks of Dniester, through their involvement in joint development programmes. 

(Correspondent: Lilia Grubii, according to UNDP)