Wine related articles
Turkish wine industry on the up and up
By Gareth Jones
March 22 2006
Uyurca,
Turkey - When the Ozbek family began planting vines, their neighbours
told them they were committing a mortal sin and would face divine
retribution.
"They said it was wrong, against Islam, to produce wine. They said our
soil would dry up and it would no longer rain or snow. But that was more
than 10 years ago," said Cengiz Ozbek.
"Then they saw how much money we started to make. Now they too are
planting vineyards," said the 37-year-old farmer, his weather-beaten
face cracking into a smile.
Half of
the 40 families living in this tiny village some 100km northeast of the
Turkish capital Ankara now produce grapes for wine, despite the Muslim
teaching that alcohol is "haram", or forbidden.
Nearly all Turks are nominally Muslim but the
country's secular system keeps religion on a tight rein and has long
fostered a tolerant attitude towards alcohol despite the Koran's
teaching that it is sinful.
"The old imam here was against the vineyards,
but he left and was replaced by a younger, more pragmatic man who says
it is a matter for the individual's own conscience," said Ozbek.
Nestled beside the Kizilirmak river among the
craggy, treeless hills of central Anatolia, Uyurca boasts a mild
micro-climate and a soil ideal for grapes.
The village now produces about 500 tons of
grapes annually, up from just 12 tons in their first harvest in 1996. It
sells its entire production to Kavaklidere, Turkey's largest and oldest
winemaker.
Under Muslim-run Ottoman rule, Christian Greeks and Armenians dominated the wine industry. When the empire collapsed after World War One, many left Turkey, taking their expertise and knowledge with them.
Kavaklidere was founded by Turkish entrepreneurs in Ankara in 1929 and quickly won the praise and support of Turkey's revered president and founder, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk.
Ataturk - who kept a wine cellar and was known for his love of the potent aniseed-flavoured national tipple, raki - wanted to transform Turkey from a poor, religion-dominated society into a modern, European nation with European tastes.
Today, Kavaklidere has a production capacity of 18,5 million litres and a 35 percent share of Turkey's registered wine market. It exports about 20 percent of its total production, mostly to Europe.
The company's factories use state-of-the-art equipment to produce such wines as Kalecik Karasi, Okuzgozu and Narince and it has won dozens of prizes in international competitions.
But Kavaklidere Managing Director Ali Basman complains of rising taxes, hostile government attitudes and a large illegal market in liquor, which he says helped cut company profits by 15 percent in 2005.
Tax on wine has soared by more than 100 percent to 3,28 lira (about R15) per litre - about half the price of a bottle of table wine - since the Justice and Development Party (AKP), which has roots in political Islam, swept to power in 2002.
Tax on beer has risen by 50 percent and on raki by 26 percent.
"People in Turkey often avoid paying their taxes, but alcohol consumption is an easy target to tax, especially for a government that disapproves of alcohol on religious grounds," Basman told Reuters.
"But when you raise taxes, you also encourage the black market. About 60 percent of wine sold in Turkey is now produced illegally, though the quality is generally poor," said Basman.
"We face heavy competition from these illegal producers."
With its climate, soil and fast-growing economy, Turkey has great potential both as a wine exporter and a market, Basman said.
Turks still drink only about a litre of wine a year per capita, industry sources say, compared with 66 litres in France.
Turkey is the fifth biggest producer of grapes in the world, but only two percent are used in wine production.
"Wine is still considered a luxury item in Turkey. As people get richer, they are starting to experiment, to try better quality wines, but it is a slow process," said Basman.
Annual consumption of wine in Turkey now totals 90 million litres, up from 35 million 15 years ago.
Basman attributed the increased consumption partly to Turkey's booming tourism industry. German, British and Russian tourists drink Kavaklidere and other domestic wines when they visit Antalya, Bodrum and other Turkish resorts.
Like many others directly or indirectly involved in the $18-billion tourist industry, Basman is also concerned about new regulations on alcohol consumption introduced by some local councils controlled by the AKP.
After the government issued guidelines, AKP-led councils began to ban alcohol from the restaurants and cafes they run.
The AKP denies any plan to outlaw alcohol and says it only wants better regulation of the trade. But the guidelines sparked a rash of negative headlines in Europe's press, and some fear this could hurt tourism this year.
Back in Uyurca, the Ozbeks are sanguine.
"We have no problems, we are planning to expand the acreage sowed to vines," said Cengiz Ozbek.
"Besides, wine is good for our health," added his uncle Halil Ibrahim, a sprightly 65-year-old.
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