Academia can be a promise.

I promised RT the best Rară Neagră, and I finally brought the first edition of Academia Purcari to the table — three of the four bottles, one of them a Rară Neagră. And I think only now did I understand what Academia could truly be.

Not because the wines aren't good. Not because the idea isn't good. On the contrary.

Academia can be much more than a series of expensive wines in amphorae. A space for experiment. A laboratory. A place where Purcari doesn't only sell wine, but learns, tests, transfers know-how, and lifts the industry.

Yes, the amphorae are beautiful. Yes, they are spectacular. Yes, they speak of history and authenticity. But Academia can be about far more than amphorae. All the more so since the label reads "Purcari's most ambitious project".

It can be about concrete amphorae. About barriques of different woods. About glass. About experimental wines. About risk and about courage.

It can be the designer's wine, or the architect's wine. The wine of a young winemaker. A wine made together with a small winery.

The way Minis Terrios, Gogu, and Carpe Diem made Manifest. Three winemakers. One shared idea. A wine that wasn't just wine. That is exactly what Academia could be at Purcari.

• Purcari + a small winemaker.
• Purcari + a top student from UTM.
• Purcari + a risky idea… wine in a glass cask.
• Purcari + Moldova.

Because a great brand becomes greater when it has the courage to lift others too. That, to me, is leadership in an industry.

Not just having many sales. Not just having exports. Not just having history. But creating trust around you.

Too often, here, whoever can sell cheaper does so — without honoring any understanding. And then we're surprised that, in some markets, Moldovan wine is seen as good wine, but cheap. That's an industry problem, not just a company one.

That's why I believe Academia could become an umbrella larger than a product. Perhaps even larger, in symbolic impact, than many official initiatives. Academia could mean:

• an annual scholarship for the best UTM student;
• sending them to Montpellier or another strong school of oenology;
• their return to Moldova for an internship at Purcari;
• collaborations with small winemakers;
• experimental wines;
• educational tastings;
• editions that explain technology, not just luxury;
• know-how transfer to the sector.

A candle loses none of its light when it lights another candle. The room only grows brighter.

That is Academia, to me. To learn. To test. To fail beautifully. To make something that doesn't fit into an ordinary commercial range.

And here comes another observation. Academia shouldn't be more expensive than Negru de Purcari.

To me, Negru de Purcari is emblematic. It is a symbol. It is history. It is the peak of Purcari's emotional pyramid. Academia, in my view, must be something else. Not necessarily more expensive. But more curious.

A wine that as many people interested in wine as possible can taste. A wine through which you meet Purcari differently. Not only through status, or price, but through idea.

Especially now, when wine consumption is falling everywhere in the world. Italy produces enormously, but is starting to sell and drink with more difficulty. Young people drink differently. They seek less classical ritual and more meaning, experience, an original story, freedom.

And here Moldova has a chance. But not with "one more premium wine." With projects that make people curious. And, paradoxically, that is exactly what Academia could be for Purcari: a space where wine is honest, experimental, alive.

It's not too late. In 2027, Purcari turns 200. A perfect moment for Academia to be rethought.

Perhaps each year has a different bottle. Perhaps not. Perhaps the identity is only the Academia logo — and otherwise, conceptually different labels. Perhaps each edition has a different author, a different winemaker, a different material, a different experiment.

I don't know whether the new management wants to develop the idea in this direction. But I believe it would be one of the most beautiful signals that Purcari remains not only a strong commercial brand, but a national brand that feels responsibility toward Moldovan winemaking.

Because Academia shouldn't be just a series. Academia can be a promise.

That in Moldova we don't only produce wine. We learn wine. We think wine. We build the future of wine.

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On Monday I opened the Academia series with the lads at Boys' Night — three bottles, plus a Freedom Blend at the end, which isn't part of the series, but completed the table. And we drank not just the wines in them. We drank to the idea that some projects deserve to be taken further than they got the first time.

If you choose to call a project "Academia", people expect more than a winemaking technology. They expect learning, experiment, know-how transfer, and investment in the future.

Cheers. ★