Ep 2393 Denis Salimzianov of ABR Restaurant Group | Asia Wine Market: Almaty Special Edition

I'm excited to be joined by Denise Salim Janaf. He is our fellow Italian wine ambassador from Kazakhstan. Denise currently is a Samuel restaurant group. And one of the exciting things about Denise is that he used to work as a vascular surgeon before he switched the careers and joined the wine industry. Today, we're going to learn about ABR. ABR is one of the biggest restaurant chains in ALmaty. Second, we are going to explore Blanca and Oscar restaurants. They're wine lists what is trending among consumers and also some best selling Italian wines. And third, we are going to learn about what wine styles or varieties have a potential in kazakhstani market. So let's dive in. Welcome to Asia wine market. Almati special edition with me, your host Rosa. In this special series, we're exploring the growing wine culture of Kazakhstan, with almighty at the heart of it all. Each episode will meet with Italian wine professionals, importers, psalms, and producers who are shaping the future wine in Central Asia. Whether you are a winery looking to expand into new markets or a local expert curious about the market dynamics, you are in the right place. Welcome to Asia wine markets, Almatis special edition. Today, we actually have the last episode of this special series, but we are going to come back with Asia wine market again. We are going to go across Asia in general. And maybe sometimes we're gonna come back to Kazakhstan or Pakistan to Central Asia in general too. So for today, I'm excited to be joined by Denise Salimzhanov. He is our fellow Italian wine ambassador from Kazakhstan. Denise currently is a Samuel at ABR Restaurant Group and within the group, he oversees two places, Blanca, an Italian bistro, and Astra restaurant. And one of the exciting things about Denise is that he used to work as a vascular surgeon before he switched the careers and join the wine industry. He can learn a little bit more about this transformative career move from his interview with Julia for next generation. In the show notes to this episode, I'm going to include the link. So you can find Denise's interview on how he decided to join the wine industry. So welcome, Denise, we're very happy to see you here today. Hi, everyone. I'm really happy to be back on the Italian wine podcast. We actually met here a year ago when we came to Omati for the first time and held the exam for the Italian wine maestro. It was a big moment for our wine community. That is true. And also last year, we were joined by several new fresh Italian wine ambassadors. I'm actually very happy because in these ten episodes, I think Denise's the only Italian wine ambassador that I'm interviewing for this special series. So before we move to our main topics, can you please briefly walk us through how it all began for you? So as you mentioned, my story didn't begin with wine at all. After going through some personal turning points and realizing it was time to change my life. I took a job as a sales manager at a small dental clinic, then I started, working as a waiter at one of the Almatis iconic restaurants, Afisher. That was my first introduction to the hospitality industry and also to the ABR group. After six intense months of working like a terminator. I felt the urge to move forward. This one, I joined, the IWine Sommelier School and start studying under my sensei at Home Lebative and the first course was Pro Italy, not France. It was very interesting for my next path this year. Thanks to my background in medicine. I had a discipline and focused to move quickly. I earned my my certification in May, then became an Italian wine investor in November third place in a local Sonide competition in Pakistan in October. And this year, I achieved ASI diploma. And now we're here recording the podcast, and I'm excited to share what's been happening science and to work ahead. And from my perspective, I must add here that Denise, first of all, he is the finalist of the Somalia competition, which happened last year. And as I mentioned before, also last year, he joined the Via Academy, and we all know that it's a very rigorous exam, and he showed very good results. He was moving in his career in wine quite fast that's very impressive. As for me, like, among the professionals in our country, he's one of those people who's very result oriented, and I'm pretty sure in a couple of years, we will see even bigger results from him. He has a great potential. Looking at Denise, he's just a different level for me. I'm so impressed with his results. And he also mentioned Arton Levidev. I'm gonna say again and again that Arton is one of the people who was at the start of developing this wine culture in our country, and we have to say cheers to him. And he's also our fellow Italian wine ambassador. Okay. Now let's move to our three key learning objectives for today. So today, we are going to learn about ABR. ABR is one of the biggest restaurant chains in Almaty. Second, we are going to explore Blanca and Oscar of restaurants. They're wine lists. What is trending among consumers and also some best selling Italian wines. And third, we are going to learn about what wine styles or varieties have a potential in kazakhstani market. So let's dive in. First of all, let's start with ABR. It's one of the largest and most recognizable restaurant groups in Almaty, can you give us a quick overview of the group and its philosophy when it comes to food and wine? I will try to do it. Fast ABR is a fast growing restaurant group with, over fifteen concepts and fifty venues across Kazakhstan, employing more than one thousand and five hundred people and serving around seven million guests annually. The company was founded in two thousand and seven with the opening of the pure restaurant, but chronic, translate like Barrick, and, has science grown into a community shaping Kazakhstan's gastronomic culture. The group was created, not just as business, but as a way to make life better promoting a taste for food as a taste for life, creating emotions with every visit. Every philosophy is, built on innovation, watching your restaurant formats, unique dinners, and festivals. There is, strong focus on digitalizing, including unique app that brings together all projects, delivery, partner source, and even a city wide in one place. Create unity, collaborations with international chiefs, bartenders, regularly updated menus, and immersive space, and urban integration. We are the part of the city through projects like urbanitarium and the Gogreen initiative. ABR shows how gastronomy can influence art, fashion, and ecology. When it comes to wine, ABR doesn't treat it as a standalone element, but is an organic part of overall gastronomy story. Because it's an wine market is still developing, and, our summary is curate, thoughtful wine list that reflect each venue's concept, a local thesis and current trends. In my view, we are seeing a positive shift away from overwhelming, bulky, widely released with hundreds of labels towards more compact, carried and character traffic selections. Our mission is to help people to learn how to enjoy themselves properly. Develop their pellets try different foods and drink broader range of wines. Okay. And that is quite impressive. Yes. At least across Almaty, I've seen some of the projects collaborating with some brands, influencers. It's a very good concept, very good idea, and also the app that I have to download. So you already started mentioning the wine list. Could you please tell me what sets ABR apart from other hospitality groups in Kazakhstan, especially in terms of its approach to wine culture? In addition to what has already been mentioned, a wide range of recent concepts from Italian, notorious to Asian cafes and fine dining allows us to experiment with wine selections in very different context. From idea to execution approach, all projects are developed in house by the ABR team, not through franchising, which give us full control of equality, branding, and concept tenseticon collaboration says we have already discussed and high service standard is very necessary. We have our own in house training center for preparing future stuff. Thanks to it. Even though had never worked in hospitality before. I was able to quickly adapt and become part of the city's top restaurants. I know that you are training the staff on wine I didn't know that you also have this training programs in hospitality and service, like, like, whole programs, not just separate, like, master classes or something. And now let's move to this two places that you currently manage Blanca and Astra. So you oversee the wine programs at these two restaurants. Could you please describe each of the venue and how there are wine concepts differ from one another. So I'm a chef for somebody only two months, and I have a big plans. Some of them was realized. Let me start with Blanca. It is a light Arie Gastro Bistro located in the historical center of the city with a focus on a military and cuisine. The design is minimalistic and bright. The atmosphere is, relaxed, very much daytime, sunny kind of place. The wine list here reflects the essence of Italian wine, which is all about diversity of grapes and styles. I tell the story of full Italian meal starting with classic appetites like Amaro and Vermot, a moving enter list of eighty five wines, fifty of which are Italian native varieties and, continuing with, wines from around the world that carry an Italian spirit, like, Australian, Nebula, or Chile, multiple channel. We enter naturally with Digestive like sweet marsala, vincent, or grape, and so on. This room for natural wine, biodynamics, and some skin contact selections too. With this list, I wanted to show that Italy can offer everything alternative to Champagne to Bordeaux and even to the every popular, New Zealand, civilian blah, of course. Now about Astra, it is a very different world. Is this a grand cafe, a place where you might feel like you're dining on the ground floor of a cheek historic hotel in Paris. It's more often evening venue with a moody, thirty colambiance. The food is elevated, French, comfort cuisine, and the service limbed toward fine dining. The one we see here is deeper more mature and a bit of more luxurious. It's centered around French wines and French inspired styles from the other regions with a total of one hundred and ninety labels including prestige bottles and collectible wines. Astra is for intentional enjoyment, a little more snubism in its, wine approach. Just a leak. Just a little. In short, blank is about pleasure and playfulness Astra is about depth, sophistication, and luxurious. Okay. So it's like two different approaches. Very, very different. It's another bolt. Well, yeah. And here, I also wanted to ask you, for example, currently with both Astra and Blanca, with how many suppliers do you work with for these two venues? There are three base companies, Almititrade. One of the biggest company in the Kazakhstan is, Kazakhstan wine and spirits and Rainbeck Alco. They give us so much different wines, and I took so much native PIPs variety from all of these partners to complete this interesting, not standard card in Blanca. Okay. And for Astra, also the same suppliers. We have this, three suppliers for all our company. This is the base, for this year. Twenty twenty five is the last year. It was like startup in, this big partnership with ABR and wine companies. Okay. So you already talked about the wine portfolio and the wine lists. What are some of the current best selling Italian wines in these two restaurants. Well, maybe in Blanca Moore, in this case, are there specific regions or styles that consistently perform well? Of course, Roseca remains the timeless best seller. No surprises there. In Blanca, we also see strong sales of Fastinium Blanc, but from ITG and the sweet, slightly sparkling brachieto daqui. Guess love its playful character. The set, what I'm most proud of a blank cam is that we have found the key to guess hearts when it comes to native Italian varieties. The trick was to provide clear, relatable associations and, I have writing them directly into the menu. For example, Ansonica and Katarato from Sisley is positioned as a sunny texture alternative to pinot grigio. Nacetta Dinavela also one one of the seller offers as a payment as a take on risk thing, aromatic, but with more earth and salty. Porets, our go to is Jalamaru sauce, entry level, Nerella Muskaleza, biodynamic, doctor and cousin of pinot noir, elegant, yet vibrant. What about Astra Attastra during this hot summer season? Guest mostly drinks, public wines, all of kinds. In the space and atmosphere are festive and elegant, the kind that almost makes the wine decision for the guests. A mocktail invites in Akrigio, Tosscon Vermentino, Zhibo from Sicily, dry style, and, suave, consistently popular for its, and, such and age styles are always is demand, especially barolo, candy classic co and, super touchcon. With the upcoming, one list refresh, we're also introducing Trento doc, and Edna Pemento de Plasico as a champagne and treatment chief, and I'm confident they will resonate well in this place. That's super cool. And thank you for sharing all this information. I think this is very useful information. Thank you for breaking it down precisely. What it means we have a surgeon is it's a landline ambassador. You just broke down everything precisely. So we already talked about some of the trends. And can you tell me about the consumers a little bit? Are they becoming more curious, or do they still mostly stick to their safe choices, like prosecco, pinadrijo? You're trying you're doing a great job trying to, find the alternatives to some popular styles, but how they respond? Yes, definitely becoming more curious and open minded, especially at Blanca. I often see people asking me about grape varieties. They have never heard of before, and they actually willing to try. Including so many native Italian groups, in the wild lists was a bold move, but it paid off. There is, growing appetite for discovery. Guest are open to trying orange wines learning about what's training in the whiteboard and stepping out of their comfort zone. But, and this is important, they will only do it hand in hand with the somalia, widens is the key. Of course, there is still a segment of guests who stick to the classics Penaigrigio, Pimentivo Prosecco, but even among them, we were seeing, shift the asking for a more interesting Penaigrigio or less sweet prosecco. And, that's a great sign. People who want to learn, they just need it to be presented the right way. And I'm also very happy to hear that that people are responding well and becoming more curious. That's very promising. Okay. And here's another question on the wine list. How do you balance between offering some classics? And introducing guests to something more unexpected. How do you find this line? For me, the most important thing, is building trust between guests and restroom and place We always start with what's familiar, classic, recognizable names, the one guess expected to see. And, then little by little, we open the door to something new. Something they might even know exists but that could truly inspire them. At Astra, I have constructed a concept of rotating wine flights that change every two weeks. These are designed specialty to help guests discover rare styles and less known wines in a guided and structured way. I mean, while the main wireless remains rooted in classic and familiar sections. At Blanca, the best format has been a large scale tasting and wine festivals. For example, next week, we will hosting Aetna Buine Week to showcase what modern stylish sicily looks and tastes like. It's all about creating the right environment for curiosity and giving people their confidence to explore. That is very nice. Yeah. And also not long ago, in the end of May, you were also hosting another event as I remember, because we were supposed to record this interview before. Okay. And from your perspective, what Italian grape varieties or wine styles have the most growth potential in the Kazakhstan market. Maybe they didn't grow as we want them to grow yet, but they have a strong potential for that. The Kazakhstan market is evolving. But for now, the general public still tends to prefer wines with, soft acidity and a touch of sweetness. That's why there is, still strong potential for wines like, as well as balanced white wines made from really low vermantino, Feano, and Greco de tufo. Juice fruit tea without aggressive acidity and easy to enjoy for a broad audience. Among rats, Dolieto, primitivo, and, negromaro stand out, warm structured with ripe, fruit, and, low tenings. This wine's, approachable, comforting, and farewell with thirty traditional dishes of nomadic cuisine. Considering shifting tastes, there is growing potential in dry styles of Lambrusco, surprise, white wines from a brusso, like Picarina and Pasadena for their brightness and freshness and in smokey, mineral driven wines from Aetna. This wines represent the next step in wine pairing, especially with local food that is soft and salty, fatty, heavy, and not overly spiced. And I'm very happy to hear that you see a potential in so many different styles of wine. And also, I think you are maybe the third or fourth person that is saying, drive, Lambrusco. I hope Lambrusco can sort you will listen to all of these episodes where we mentioned them and will not lose this opportunity to connect with local importers who are really interested in this style. Surprisedly, but our community is, adept of Brute style, Wambrozka, quality style from Wuska, and heavy tanning style of, Taurazi. It's very surprising for our very hot and dry climate in Kazakhstan. But it's very good for our dishes, I think. Mhmm. And, you're saying the community? You mean the wine professionals love this two styles? Yeah. Wine professionals, so many years. Waiters, managers, hospitality, management. It's very surprised for me. Mhmm. In a bridge, it's it isn't on the top. Okay. Yeah. Well, honestly, while I was interviewing people and hearing again and again, whatever I go out now, I don't have anything against. I'm not against these styles of wines, but I'm like, I'm not gonna order them because I want other styles to get more popular too. Everything starts with the wine community first. So if we are open minded to something new ourselves, then we can educate our consumers little by little. Okay. And among all of these mentioned styles, Are there any surprising wines that have recently gained popularity within your consumers? In May, I organized, wine salon at Blanca where guests could taste almost every wine from the new list and choose their favorite. The one that they had come back for next time. And, surprisingly, the winner was free Olano by Cormones, of course, from Freerli. I was genuinely and, pleasantly shocked that such a delicate fresh style resonate so strongly with our guests. I think we need some more silence, some more wine weeks to research more local tastes in native grape varieties that integrate varieties? That is really good that you mentioned. I think sometimes in our market, in central Asia, in general, we have less research and also less numbers For example, sometimes when I listen to interviews of my colleagues, Barbara and Julian, they have the guests there. Like, they come with all this research. Other countries, they have kinda, like, really good numbers of researches that were made in wine, but we still lack them. But maybe, like, this wine venues, restaurants could just make a kind of track about their guests what they prefer That would be really nice. And then just combine that information together so we would know from which point we could start or which way to go better. Okay. Let's move to some of your future plans. What wines would you like to include in your wine lists this year? This season, I plan to place, more focus on Mitor de Chasico wines from, North Italy and Aetna outside of Champagne. This wines offer excellent quality and can complete with well known brands while bringing something fresh and, different to the table. And, also, I want to add more dry land brusco as, it's, incredibly food friendly and versatile. After summer, we will reanalyze sales to better understand which wine styles are truly resonating with guests. And of course, there is always the desire to showcase everything all at once, but that's not how it works. We need patience. Okay. And I hope that, again, the producers will listen to that and will knock on your door. I'm waiting. How often do you ring you the wine list One cart must be renewed for the season summer and winter. And now we focus, of course, on light sparkling wines on fresh white wines. We have the horse summer in Italy. Thirty five, forty degrees, but cold winter. And I will, reanalyzed and rebuild wine card in, winter with focus on bread sparkling wines. And more strong, more interesting mobility red wines like Supertaskana and South Aetna. Okay. Got it. Thank you a lot again for all of these insights and for answering my questions. In a very precise way. And before we wrap up the episode, maybe you have something else to tell to our listeners or any final thoughts. So I need to tell that Kazakhstan is, driving force behind the wine movement in central Asia, ABR is a rapidly growing company with projects launching across various cities in the country and reaching both of the restaurants and wine culture while attracting new professionals and, broader audience. Ahmed has become the central hub of this wide movement in the region, and that's both strength and a challenge. One thing is clear. The local market is hungry for more. It's eager to absorb new knowledge discover new wines and welcome new producers. And, that's exactly what we have here to bring. Mhmm. That is so well said. And I would be happy to continue this conversation but unfortunately, we have to wrap up the episode. And before we do that, we have to summarize our today's episode. And in order to do that, I'm going to ask you three rapid questions. So if you can answer them in a short sized manner, that would be grape. That would be grape. That would be great. Okay. First one, what's one key thing Italian wineries should keep in mind when entering our markets? It's important to enter the market with a long term strategy and a clear brand story. People in Kazakhstan love Italy as I said, but wine culture is still developing without proper contexts. And, storytelling, even high quality wines may go unnoticed. When you should train local sommelier and stuff participate in tastings and wideners and use localized content that speaks in an engaging and accessible way. It's also essential to understand the, local tastes preference, shaped by childhood flavors and traditional cuisine, which, tends to be heart is salty and not over acidic wines that, align with the profiles will always have, head start. Finally, keep in mind the market's price sensitivity. People are willing to pay more if they feel the wine bring value. Emotion and sense of discovery. We are not just selling a grape. We're offering a story and feeling then that connects with the guests' word. Probably the most important thing is not to overstimate the level of why knowledge among their general audience. People hear laugh Italy and respect its culture, but they often choose wine into Italy based on the label or feel not necessarily on technical understanding. That's why it's essential to communicate simply clearly and with the Italian style motion to explain what makes a wine special and, why it belongs in the exact moment and place. And most importantly, work with similar years. They are the key bridge between the winery and the guests. Yeah. That is true. And also find a way to collaborate maybe and to support local songs Even through the Kazakhstan Family Association as an example or through the wine schools that we have here, we already have, like, three wine schools. Yeah. We are building this Italian community with, our school, with our tasting, rooms with this podcast, with wine festivals, the producers can use these opportunities. Yeah. That was such a good answer. Thank you so much. It was not necessarily short. But at the same time, it was a very nice, like, full point stop to our today's episode, but I still have to ask you a couple of more questions. So if you could introduce one new grape variety to the market, what would it be and why? It's a very difficult question because of so much Italian grapes. I think for this season, for local taste, for local cuisine, it will be timorasta from Hemont. We all love risings in different styles. And I think Timarasa will be a very good part of our wine lists. Okay. Thank you. And another question is, well, this is really fun question to ask from you. If you weren't working in wine, what other profession or industry could you see yourself in? Can you imagine from surgeon to Sam then to something else? So what would it be and why? That's taught question, especially considering my background as a surgeon. I think I would still choose something connected to people, emotions, and maybe learning. Maybe I go study to become a chef. Why not? Because I'm really love cooking and enjoying good food. It's hard to say life has a way of unfolding in the most unexpected direction sometimes. Well, yeah. That's true. And your story, actually, I think it's a proof to that. Thank you again for joining our today's conversation, and thank you for giving such good and very practical answers. So we know the names, we know all the styles that have the potential that are growing. Thank you a lot. And how can our listeners connect with you? They may use my Instagram account or Facebook. Instagram is, preferably, and I'm always on link. And, I will wait you in a social media and, of course, in Kazakhstan in Almaty, Okay. Thank you a lot again for our today's conversation. As I said before, all of your answers, they were very practical. And I hope our listeners will take some notes from our today's conversation. Thank you a lot. And bye. Thank you. Bye. See you all. Thanks for listening to Asia wine market Almati special edition. Don't forget to subscribe and follow the Italian wine podcast wherever you get your parts. And if you are curious to discover more about the central Asian wine scene, join us at the Vineet Lake Calleksan roadshow on July seventh. See you in the next episode. And until then, cheers from Almaty.