In 1970s Bulgarian Cabernet Sauvignon was synonymous with qualitybut then in the 1990s everything changed for the worse, due to the privatisations that followed the post blockade imposed by Gorbachev (1985). We can state that from the 1950s onwards, Bulgaria was a generous reservoir for the consumption of the Soviet Union. With the collapse of a fairly thriving local industry in fact many vineyards fell into disuse and some wine-growing areas were abandoned. State-owned wineries and bottling plants were privatised, also thanks to European funds and the growing interest of European investors.In 2009 the number of hectares under vine was just over 58000and to a large extent destined for the Rakia, the local brandy. The production areas are essentially 2, the Thracian Plain and the Danube Plainhere are concentrated the 21 DOCs and 23 DOCGs of the country. The Merlot is the most widely planted grape with over 10000 hectares, followed by Cabernet Sauvignon with about 9000, but Syrah, Malbec, Traminer, Sauvignon Blanc and Viognier also cover a large areaThe main indigenous grape variety is the Mavrud It produces full-bodied, spicy reds, also suitable for ageing. Its areas of adoption are Plovdiv and Assenovgrad. In the Struma Valley, on the other hand, we find the extremely rare Shiroka Melnishka Losawhich gives rise to robust and fragrant wines, sometimes sweet, probably due to the long stay in old barrels to which it is often subjected. Other interesting territories are those of Shumen, Sakar and Veliki Preslav, in the east, where Red Misket, Dimiat and Sauvignon Blanc are produced.