The House of Ruinart recently celebrated 250 years’ presence in Russia in style! In 1765, under the reign of Catherine the Second, the francophile Empress, the first order for Ruinart champagne was shipped to Saint Petersburg. It was intended for H.E. Baron d’Assebourg, chamberlain to the King of Denmark. 

In 1897, with the succession to the throne of Nicolas the Second, sales in the Russian market soared. The House of Ruinart was present in most of the principal places of celebration and entertainment, including great restaurants, luxury hotels, leading wine merchants and speciality food shops. This remarkable expansion was due to two particularly efficient agents - Murinick and subsequently Henry Pavlovitch du Bellet – who deployed promotional measures extremely innovative for the period, such as placing advertising posters on the Saint Petersburg tram.

On 17th November 2015 an exceptional gala dinner was given, attended by Frédéric Dufour, President of Ruinart, and Frédéric Panaïotis, Cellar Master. This reception for a select list of VIPs was held at one of Moscow’s most prestigious venues, the House of the Union. 

In a sumptuous, softly lit decor a spectacularly long table, appearing to float in the air, suspended with invisible feet and illuminated by a myriad of candles, was covered during the cocktail party by an exhibition of historic archives, before being transformed by a skillful batallion of maîtres d’hôtel performing an expert choreography into a magnificent dining table decorated to welcome the guests. This fabulous evening was orchestrated around Ruinart Blanc de Blancs served in magnums.