Krasnodar in 3 days

Abrau-Dyurso (Абрау-Дюрсо — the wine estate and village 140km west of Krasnodar (2 hrs by car) on the Black Sea coast above Novorossiysk; accessible by organised day trip from Krasnodar (USD 40–60/person including transport and cellar tour)); the most famous wine producer in Russia: founded 1870 by the Imperial Russian government on land selected by the Tsar's agronomists as the ideal terroir for sparkling wine production (the Abrau valley, at 83m altitude above Lake Abrau, has a unique microclimate created by the lake's water mass and the protection of the forested hills from cold continental air masses)); the sparkling wine (шампанское — the Russian term for all sparkling wine; Abrau-Dyurso produces both Méthode Champenoise (traditional method, 'Abrau-Dyurso Cuvée Réservée') and the Soviet-era Charmat method (the continuous-flow method invented by the Soviet enologist Anton Frolov-Bagreev in 1954 for mass production of sparkling wine)); the cellar tour (the underground cellars (1.5km long, at 15°C constant temperature) where 8 million bottles are stored at various stages of riddling and disgorgement). Tour + tasting: ₽1,500.

Novorossiysk (Новороссийск — 15km from Abrau-Dyurso, on the Black Sea coast; the main deep-water port of southern Russia and one of Russia's largest cargo port (crude oil terminal, grain terminal, and container terminal)); the city is famous primarily as a 'Hero City' of World War II (Gorod-Geroy — a Soviet honorary title awarded to cities that resisted the German advance with exceptional courage): the Battle of Novorossiysk (1942–1943) was one of the most intense naval and ground battles of the Eastern Front; the Small Land (Малая Земля — the 4km² beachhead held by Soviet marines for 225 days (February–September 1943) against repeated German attacks; Leonid Brezhnev (the Soviet leader 1964–1982) served as a political officer on the Small Land beachhead and later claimed a disproportionate share of credit for the battle in his memoirs)); the Novorossiysk waterfront: the cruiser Mikhail Kutuzov (a 1950s Soviet light cruiser preserved as a museum ship at the Novorossiysk naval quay; adults ₽300).

Kuban Cossack Choir (Кубанский казачий хор — the most famous Cossack choir in Russia (founded 1811, 12 years after the Kuban Cossacks were settled in the region); State Academic Song and Dance Ensemble; the Krasnodar Philharmonic (Краснодарская краевая филармония — Krasnaya 45) is the primary venue for the choir's Krasnodar performances (check the programme — the choir performs approximately 200 concerts per year in Krasnodar and on tour)); the Kuban Cossack Choir repertoire: traditional Kuban Cossack songs (the 'Kuban Songs' tradition — a form of polyphonic choral singing using a drone bass (burdone) and highly ornamented upper voices; the harmonic language reflects both Ukrainian folk music (the Cossacks' origin) and Russian Orthodox choral tradition; some of the most complex and beautiful choral music in the Slavic world), Soviet-era arrangements of Cossack songs, and sacred music. Tickets ₽500–2,000.

Krasnodar's bar and restaurant scene has developed significantly since 2010 (the city's prosperity (Krasnodar is one of the wealthiest cities in Russia by average income outside Moscow and St. Petersburg, driven by the agricultural economy and the retail/services expansion) supports an extensive dining and entertainment sector). The key bar areas: the Krasnaya Street pedestrian section (the most concentrated restaurant and bar strip); the area around the Galitsky Park (the new cafés and bars that have opened since 2017 to serve the park visitors); the Brick Restaurant Quarter (the Kirpichny Pereulok area — a converted industrial building with artisan food stalls and craft beer bars). Krasnodar craft beer (the city has several craft breweries including Hophead Brewery and the Kuban Craft Beer Festival (annual, September)). Open until 01:00–02:00.

Anapa (Анапа — 150km west of Krasnodar (2 hrs by car)); the Fanagoria Estate (Фанагория — the largest winery in Russia by production (producing 34 million bottles/year); located on the Taman Peninsula between the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov); the winery is on the site of ancient Phanagoria (Фанагория — a Greek colony founded 543 BCE by colonists from Teos (Ionia, Asia Minor); the most important archaeological site on the Taman Peninsula, where excavations have uncovered buildings, amphoras, and mosaics from the 6th century BCE to the 4th century CE)); the Fanagoria wine tour (60 min; the largest underground wine cellar in Russia (8km of underground cellar at 12°C constant temperature); tasting of 5 wines (Cabernet Franc, Sauvignon Blanc, Tsimlyansky Cherny (an ancient indigenous Cossack grape variety, the 'black Tsimlyansky'), and the Fanagoria 'Russian Terroir' sparkling wine); ₽1,200.

Taman Village Archaeological Museum (Таманский музейный комплекс — Taman village, 170km west of Krasnodar; the Taman Peninsula has one of the densest concentrations of ancient Greek and Bosphoran (Cimmerian Bosphorus kingdom) archaeological sites in the world: the 'Sindian Shore' (as the Greeks called it) was the connection point between the Greek world and the Scythian and Sarmatian steppe (the Greeks exported wine, oil, and pottery; the steppe peoples exported grain, slaves, and gold in return — the wheat of the Taman Peninsula fed Athens in the 5th century BCE, and the connection between Athens and the Bosphoran kingdom was one of the most important long-distance trade relationships in the ancient world)). The Tmutarakan Stone (in the Taman Museum — the most important inscription in Russian medieval history: a marble slab inscribed in 1068 CE by Prince Gleb of Tmutarakan ('Prince Gleb measured the sea in winter on ice from Tmutarakan to Kerch: 14,000 fathoms' — a record of the first survey measurement in Russian history)). Adults ₽200.

Return to Krasnodar by evening. Kuban River Embankment (Набережная реки Кубань — the riverside promenade of Krasnodar (the Kuban River (Кубань — a major river of the Caucasus region, flowing from the Elbrus glacier (at 5,642m, the highest mountain in Europe) westward through the Krasnodar steppe to the Sea of Azov; the river's name is the origin of the name of the region (Kuban = the name of the river in the Turkic languages of the steppe peoples))); the embankment (the improved section of the Kuban riverbank in central Krasnodar) has a 2km walking path with views of the river, the wooded southern bank, and the Adygea Republic hills in the background; the sunset light (Krasnodar faces south and the sun sets behind the city rather than over the river, but the golden-hour light on the Caucasian foothills visible to the southeast is the best photographic light of the day).

Krasnodar Food Market (the Krasnodarski Rynok (Краснодарский рынок) — the central covered food market of Krasnodar; a Soviet-era colonnaded market hall with the most complete range of Kuban agricultural products in the city: the famous 'Krasnodar-style' adjika (аджика — the hot pepper and tomato condiment from the Abkhazian and Adygea traditions; the Krasnodar version (with tomato and garlic as well as hot pepper) is the most consumed condiment in southern Russia); Kuban sunflower honey (the monofloral honey from the vast Kuban sunflower fields (Helianthus annuus — cultivated in the Kuban since the 18th century when the Cossacks brought the crop from Ukraine; the sunflower is now the dominant crop of the Kuban steppe, covering 1.5 million hectares)); and the Kuban cheeses (the young sheep's cheese from the Adygea (Адыгейский сыр — a soft, mild brined cheese (similar to a mild feta) produced by the Adygean dairy farms; the most consumed local cheese in southern Russia). Final drinks: Kuban craft gin (Planer Gin from Krasnodar — the most acclaimed craft spirit from southern Russia) and a glass of Fanagoria red.