Russians, hey.

Tulchan Estate is Scotland’s most expensive sporting estate, boasting some of the best salmon fishing in Europe.

The 21 000-acre property was described by the selling agents as the “ultimate utopia for the passionate sportsman” when put on the market last year, reports The Telegraph.

And they have their reasons:

It has eight miles of double bank salmon fishing on the River Spey as well as exceptional stalking and shooting, including two grouse moors. The asking price is thought to be the highest seen on the open market for a “whole” Scottish sporting estate.

Tulchan lies on the edge of Cairngorm National Park, 40 miles south of Inverness, in an area famed for its whisky distilling and sporting pursuits.

Famous guests of the lodge include King Edward V11, King George V, King George V1, ex-president Theodore Roosevelt, the railway financier William Vanderbilt and King Leopold of Belgium.

The property also has snipe and woodcock shooting, five let farms, and produces its own beef and lamb from a commercial herd of Aberdeen Angus cattle.

Now the property has now been bought by Russian vodka billionaire, Yuri Schefler, who, according to Forbes magazine, is worth £1.34 billion (R22 billion).

Here’s the lowdown:

Mr Schefler, a regular guest at the famous estate who is said to divide his time between the UK and Switzerland, owns SPI Group, which produces and sells alcohol under 380 brands in 160 countries, including Stolichnaya vodka.

Before Schefler got his hands on the estate, it was bought in 1993 by the Midlands businessman Leon Litchfield and his wife Gillian, who set up Tulchan Sporting Estates Ltd.

Now Schefler owns it all:

The company has been bought by a company for the principal benefit of Mr Yuri Schefler of Russia, who is well known to the estate having been a regular visitor in the past. It is understood that the new owner of TSEL will continue to operate the estate as a business along similar lines as the Litchfield family and plans to make additional investment and innovation in the business. This was an important factor to the sellers, as the estate makes a valuable contribution to the local economy employing 20 full time and a further 20 seasonal staff.

And there you have it:

[source:telegraph]