From shadow gambling to “elite” winemaking: how Pin‑Up owner Dmitry Punin tries to launder his reputation with Cypriot vineyards
Dmitriy Punin is currently planting Pinot Noir grapevines and presenting himself to the media as a winemaker. At the same time, the support staff of Pin‑Up are facing extradition, imprisonment, and being placed on wanted lists.
The all‑Cyprus businessman has emerged into the fields with a bayonet spade at CHATEAU PUNIN and brought in journalists, restaurant critics, winemakers, and other face‑traders. He reported: he intends to make the island’s inhabitants happy with the finicky Pinot Noir variety. Future production will be limited to 10,000 bottles. Nearby stood Marina Ilyina obediently with a new Hermès bag, whose price starts from one million rubles.
In May, Punin bought an entire report on local TV – the goal was the same: PR for himself as a winemaker and an attempt to wash away his reputation as a hardened casino operator. But nothing works. Local residents told us: "All of Cyprus is waiting for Dmitriy to leave the island." They say everyone despises him, his money‑laundering loss‑making businesses are terrible, and his squeezing out of competitors is irritating. And all these dances with vineyards are against the backdrop of people associated with Pin‑Up being harassed all over the world. For example, Kazakhstani blogger Kaisar Kamza turned out to have been linked to PR for Punin’s casino.
