Castra Rubra

What Castra Rubra does

Castra Rubra is a Bulgarian wine producer and direct-to-consumer brand operated through Bulgarian Wine Industry AD (UIN 203606927), a privately held public limited company under Bulgarian law. The company cultivates 14 grape varieties—including Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Pinot Noir, Syrah, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, and others—on vineyards located in Kolarovo village, Harmanli municipality, Haskovo district. Wine production is guided by internationally renowned consultant Michelle Rolland, who personally selected the vineyard site approximately 15 years ago on land that had previously been a neglected almond grove. The company reports a headcount of 101–250 employees and produces four wine categories: red, white, rosé, and dessert.

The company's commercial operations are organized around a direct-to-consumer model. Revenue is generated primarily through an owned e-commerce storefront at castrarubra.bg, with a stated minimum order of three units, delivery handled exclusively by Speedy courier within Bulgaria, and payment processing through Postbank/Borika's vPOS terminal. A secondary revenue stream comes from on-site winery tastings, offered as two packages: 'Love of Wine' at 36 BGN per person (winery tour plus five-wine tasting) and 'Journey of Wine' at 48 BGN per person (vineyard and winery tour plus five-wine tasting). Distribution is restricted to the territory of the Republic of Bulgaria; no export operations, B2B/wholesale channels, or third-party retail distribution are documented.

Marketing is conducted through an educational wine blog ('Всичко за виното') and an email newsletter, supplemented by in-person tasting experiences that serve as bottom-of-funnel conversion. The company holds a registered trademark for "CASTRA RUBRA" covering wine products and e-commerce services, and is GDPR-compliant in its data-handling practices. No institutional investors, venture funding rounds, acquisitions, non-logistics partnerships, or AI/technology capabilities beyond a standard e-commerce platform are documented in the available data.

Name

Castra Rubra

Legal name

Bulgarian wine industry AD

Website

https://castrarubra.bg

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

Castra Rubra is a privately held Bulgarian wine producer selling red, white, rosé, and dessert wines made from 14 French grape varieties direct to Bulgarian consumers through its e-commerce platform and on-site winery tastings, with production guided by consultant Michelle Rolland.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Wine Production

NAICS

Wineries (312130), Wineries (31213)

SIC

Food And Kindred Products (2000)

akta.pro primary industry

Wine Production & Winemaking (AFAFAAAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Wine & Sparkling Wine Wineries & Brands (CRADAIAB), Wine Grape Vineyard Operations (Varietal/AVA Practices, Yield & Quality Targets) (AFAGAJAJ), Wineries & Vineyards (Tasting Rooms) (THAFALAE)

Keywords

• Red wine production
• White wine production
• Winery tasting experiences
• Wine e-commerce
• Bulgarian wine producer

Headquarters

HQ city

Sofia

HQ country

Bulgaria

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Direct Wine Sales: Online direct-to-consumer sales of wines (red, white, rosé, dessert) through the company's e-commerce platform. Products sold include individual bottles and cases. Minimum order quantity is 3 units. Prices include VAT and delivery costs within Bulgaria.
2. Winery Tastings and Experiences: On-site wine tasting experiences offered at the winery, including guided tours of the winery and/or vineyards combined with tasting of five selected wines. Two packages available: 'Love of Wine' (winery tour + 5 wines) and 'Journey of Wine' (vineyard + winery tour + 5 wines).

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Castra Rubra produces and sells red, white, rosé, and dessert wines made from French grape varieties cultivated in vineyards personally selected by international wine consultant Michelle Rolland. The company sells directly to Bulgarian consumers through its own e-commerce platform with home delivery and supplements this with on-site winery tasting experiences and an educational wine blog.

Product overview

Castra Rubra is a Bulgarian wine producer and online retailer operated by Bulgarian Wine Industry AD. The core product is an e-commerce platform selling wines produced from French grape varieties (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Pinot Noir, Syrah, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Viognier, and others) cultivated in vineyards selected by consultant Michelle Rolland. The product portfolio includes four wine categories (red, white, rosé, and dessert wines), supplemented by in-person winery tasting experiences and an educational wine blog. The online shop integrates with Postbank for payment processing and Speedy courier for delivery within Bulgaria.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Red Wines Red wine lineup produced from French and select international grape varieties grown in Castra Rubra's Kolarovo vineyards. Sold online and through the winery to adult consumers in Bulgaria.
• White Wines White wine lineup produced from French grape varieties grown in Castra Rubra's Kolarovo vineyards. Sold online and through the winery to adult consumers in Bulgaria.
• Rosé Wines Rosé wine produced from Castra Rubra's vineyard grape varieties. Sold online to adult consumers in Bulgaria.
• Dessert Wines Specialty dessert wines from Castra Rubra's vineyards, sold online to adult consumers in Bulgaria, often promoted with pairing recipes on the wine blog.
• Winery Tastings In-person guided wine tasting experiences at Castra Rubra's winery, offered as two packages: 'The Love of Wine' (winery tour plus tasting of 5 wines) and 'The Journey of Wine' (vineyard and winery tour plus tasting of 5 wines). Reservations handled by Mr. Hristo Vasilev.

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Postbank (Borika)coreTechnology or IntegrationPayment processing partner for online card transactions through virtual POS terminal. Postbank provides the vPOS infrastructure and Borika processes the transactions securely via SSL protocol for customer payments.
• SpeedycoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPrimary courier partner for delivery of wine orders within Bulgaria. Speedy PLC handles all standard deliveries. Customers can choose alternative couriers at their own expense.
• Michelle RolandcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerRenowned international wine consultant who selected the vineyard location and has served as advisor to the winery since its founding. Led the team of young oenologists to produce quality wines.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves3 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Bessa Valley: Boutique Bulgarian winery focused on terroir-driven wines from international varieties. Comparable in product mix, premium positioning, and reliance on international winemaking expertise.
• Edoardo Miroglio: Italian-investor-owned Bulgarian winery producing premium wines from international grape varieties. Comparable in foreign-consultant-led production model and export-oriented brand positioning.
• Villa Yustina: Bulgarian boutique winery producing red, white, and rosé wines from international varieties in a defined terroir. Comparable as a similarly sized domestic competitor with overlapping grape portfolio.
• Damianitza: Bulgarian boutique winery producing premium wines from international and local grape varieties, with both domestic and export distribution. Closely comparable to Castra Rubra in scale, terroir-driven positioning, and varietal mix.
• Katarzyna Estate: Premium Bulgarian wine estate with own vineyards, on-site tasting facilities, and direct-to-consumer channels. Comparable in its combination of estate-grown wines, hospitality experiences, and DTC focus.

Broad incumbents

• Treasury Wine Estates: Global multi-brand wine company owning premium labels such as Penfolds and Beringer. Comparable as a large-scale operator in the same CPG wine category, illustrating the scale and distribution scale Castra Rubra could aspire to.
• Duckhorn Vineyards: Premium US-based wine producer with strong DTC, hospitality, and tasting-room revenue. Comparable as a benchmark for a terroir-driven winery scaling DTC and wine-tourism revenue streams.
• Domain Boyar: One of the largest and most established Bulgarian wine producers with a broad portfolio across multiple price points. Comparable because it operates in the same domestic market with its own vineyards, brands, and direct distribution channels.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/castrarubra
• Facebookfacebook.com/CastraRubraWinery
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/castra-rubra-winery

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Castra Rubra