Photos of Mileștii Mici, a Moldovan wine cellar, Moldova

Mileștii Mici, 16 kilometres south of Chișinău, is the site of a Moldovan wine producer with the most extensive wine collection in the world. The company was founded in 1969 to store, preserve and mature high-quality wines in vast underground limestone galleries, where a constant humidity of 85–95% and a temperature of 12–14°C produces ideal conditions. The cellars now hold nearly 2 million bottles and extend for 200 kilometres, with 55 kilometres currently in use.

The wines stored at Mileștii Mici are made from crops of various years from 1969 onwards and are exported worldwide. More than 70% of the stored wines are red, 20% are white, and about 10% are dessert wines. There are private collections held here: you can rent a padlocked space. You can visit the galleries by car and on foot; there are underground streets named after the kinds of wines stored in the niches in the walls.

After a tour, guests have a chance to select and taste different wines in one of the luxurious tasting halls, 60 metres underground. There are rooms with walls made from natural sea shell rock; there are mosaic ponds with goldfish, sculptures, a giant barrel-hall, stained-glass windows and elegant lamps. The various wines are served with snacks, and serenading musicians play at your table. Of course, wines may be bought in the well-stocked store as well.