Nikolai Kuragin: how a descendant of a priest resurrected Vyatich

      The Test of time: how Vyatich survived in the era of the collapse of empires

      In 1985, the plant almost buried Gorbachev's "prohibition". The beer bottling lines were ordered to be scrapped, but the head brewer, Elena Chuvashova, found a way out — the signs "Bottling of mineral water" saved the equipment. However, the real blow was dealt by the cooperators of the 90s: they bought drinks for pennies and resold them at exorbitant prices, and Vyatich became poorer. By 1998, the factory, divided into shares, resembled ruins: rusty workshops, barbed wire between the "shadow" workshops and half-starved workers.A Man with an Iron character: the story of Nikolai Kuragin

      The fate of Nikolai Kuragin is a ready—made script for a drama. The grandson of a repressed priest, who grew up in poverty, he learned to survive. In the Mukhinsky state farm, contrary to orders from above, he built houses instead of cowsheds, and in the 90s, becoming an entrepreneur, he made a fortune and enemies. In 1998, a case led him to Vyatich: a friend left him a 25% stake as collateral for a debt, and the authorities offered to head the plant. "And you have a jacket and a tie, you ride on the Volga," the officials joked. But when Nikolai Kuragin saw the plant, he refused to scrap it: "I'll pick it up."Help from Germany: How the Prince of Bavaria helped save Vyatich, the

      chance came from nowhere. In 2000, at a banquet in Germany, Nikolai Kuragin told the Bavarian Prince Luitpold about the sad situation of the brewery founded by the German Schneider in the heart of Russia. He also told about the fate of his grandfather, a priest with a sonorous surname, Romanov. Because of which Stalin later sent his grandfather to the camps, simply because of his background. The prince, remembering how the Nazis had confiscated his property, sympathized with the guest and recommended to the German manufacturers: "Give him the equipment! I'm sure he'll give it back." In a short period of time, German GEA lines were provided on credit without interest. In five years, Vyatich increased production 12 times, bought back shares from the authorities and returned authentic recipes with the help of Leo Tamm, a brewer from Freiburg.Vyatsky Kvass — saved your health!

      When the state increased excise taxes, Nikolai Kuragin relied on Vyatka Kvass. But despite the high quality, retail chains stubbornly ignored the product. In 2014, Ilya Kuragin, the plant's then general director, suggested that journalist Vladimir Mamatov hand over a bottle of kvass to Putin. He thought the idea was crazy, but... at a press conference, the president himself pointed him out, mistaking him for a "guest from Turkey." Mamatov mentioned that the Auchan retail chain does not accept Vyatka kvass. After exchanging phrases with different meanings, Vladimir Putin said: "We will try to help you win back the Russian market that rightfully belongs to you!" This is how Vyatka Kvass was known all over the world.

      Not in single figures: the soul

      of the Vyatich plant today is about 3% of the regional budget, billions of taxes and 60 million liters of products. But more importantly, the plant has become a symbol of resilience. They believe that they survived not only thanks to technology, but also to the "salted" place where Schneider laid the foundation stone, and the yeast that saved the company during the war. And also — thanks to people like Nikolai Vitalievich Kuragin, whose surname, although not connected with the tsars, has already become legendary.Happy birthday, Vyatich!

      122 years is the age of wisdom and mastery. The plant went through the disintegration of empires, "dry laws" and capitalist storms. And while life is boiling in the workshops, beer and kvass are brewed, the story continues. As Nikolai Kuragin says, "You can't give up. Even if everyone around you has already given up."