Georgia

კეთილი იყოს თქვენი მობრძანება საქართველოში

k’etili iq’os tkveni mobrdzaneba sakartveloshi; Welcome to Georgia

The Republic of Georgia has the world’s oldest tradition of winemaking, dating back some 8,000 years. With a history dating back to Neolithic times, the nation’s traditional techniques of winemaking were in 2003 included on UNESCO’s Intangible Cultural Heritage list.

We are proud to offer a group of Georgia’s finest producers, selected by Kosta Chernikov, a native Georgian and founder of Saperavi Brothers (formerly Georgian Toast) Importers. Kosta has a deep knowledge of and love for what makes Georgian wines so special, and we’re pleased to work with him to bring these wines to the Massachusetts market.

Our Producers

Georgian Legend (Kakheti)
Gozauri (Kakheti)
Shilda (Kakheti)

Situated on the eastern margin of the Black Sea, Georgian winemaking is centered on its coastal plain, a series of intermontane valleys and the broader valleys to the East. The capital, Tblisi, was founded in the 5th century AD on the banks of the Kura river by King Vakhtang I Gorgasali, and has remained the capital through centuries of independence, Mongol, Persian and Russian control, and since 1989, regained independence.

georgia: history

The roots of Georgian viticulture have been traced back by to when people of the South Caucasus discovered that wild grape juice turned into wine when it was left buried through the winter in a shallow pit. From 6000 BC inhabitants of the current Georgia were cultivating grapes and burying clay vessels, qvevris, very large earthenware vessels with an inside coat of beeswax.When filled with the fermented juice, the qvevris are topped with a wooden lid and then covered and sealed with earth. Some may remain entombed for up to 50 years.

Since the Christianization of the country in the 4th century AD, wine has gained even greater importance in Georgian culture. Under Mongol, Persian and Russian Imperial control, Georgian wine maintained its popularity and cultural significance, and during roughly a century of Soviet control, Georgian wine was the most popular wine in the Russian market.

Regrettably, the Soviet central planners were far more interested in quantity than quality, and centralized much winemaking into vast industrial cooperatives. That, followed by the aggressive temperance campaign of the last Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachov, did immense damage to the country’s millenia-old wine traditions.

georgian viticulture today

With the collapse of the Soviet Union, Georgian wine has experienced an amazing renaissance. Small family wineries have come back into production, and larger firms have gained access to Western technology and markets.

Georgia ranks second (in terms of volume) in grape production in the former Soviet Union behind Moldova, and currently, wine is produced by thousands of small farmers, as well as certain monasteries, and more recently by several modern wineries.

Georgia produced some 16 million bottles of wine in 2010, with the bulk of exports going to Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus and Poland. By 2017, exports alone had reached over 76 million bottles. Imports to the EU and United States are small but growing as the markets learn more about these fascinating wines. Today, Georgia is on the cusp of becoming one of the worlds most exciting wine regions.

Qvevri Winemaking

This technique, in use for thousands of years, involves crafting large clay vessels (Qvevris) with a pointed bottom, then burying them up to the neck in the floor of the winery. The shape is optimal for natural winemaking, and burial achieves almost perfect temperature control without modern technological maniuplation. The result is wines of stunning freshness and clarity, even with skin contact on the whites that can extend for months or even years. As Simon Woolf has written, “if Qvevri winemaking is good enough for God…”

Qvevri being installed. Image courtesy of By Levan Gokadze from Tbilisi, Georgia

Wine regions and growing conditions

Georgia's territorial and climate conditions are optimal for wine-making. Extremes of weather are unusual: summers tend to be sunny and warm, while winters on the coastal plain are and western valleys are mild and frost-free. Natural springs abound, and the Caucasian Mountain streams drain mineral-rich water into the valleys. Georgia's moderate climate and moist air, influenced by the Black Sea, provide the near-perfect conditions for viticulture. The soil in vineyards is so intensively cultivated that in some areas, the grapevines are trained to grow up the trunks of fruit trees, eventually hanging down alongside the orchard fruit.

There are 10 major viticulture and winemaking regions in Georgia, which are distinguished by local varieties, methods and oenological and gastronomic traditions. Georgia has up to 530 grape varieties. This allows each region its own, largely endemic varieties and their different wines, greater diversity for the size of the country than any other wine growing region in the world.

Kakheti in the eastern part of the country is undoubtedly the country's most important wine region, with the largest number of Protected Designations of Origin including Tsinandali, Mukuzani, Kindzmarauli, Akhasheni, Kvareli, Napareuli, Manavi, Gurjaani, Vazisubani, Teliani, Kardanakhi, Tibaani, Kakheti, and Kotekhi). Kakheti produces the most wine of any Georgian region. Rkatsiteli, Saperavi, Mtsvane Kakhuri, Kisi, Khikhvi, and Kakhuri Mtsvivani are all grown.

Imereti on the eastern edge of the coastal plain is primarily known for white wines, working with Tsitska, Tsolikouri and Krakhuna. Wine in Imereti is made in both classic way and in Qvevri. The Imeretian variety of Tsitska is considered to be the best Georgian variety for making sparkling wine. Kvishkhuri (Goruli Mtskvane) grown in Sachkhere, Imereti, deserves a special mention, too. Excellent red wines in Imereti are made from Otskhanuri Sapere, Dzelshavi and Aladasturi. Sviri is the only Protected Designation of Origin within Imereti.

Kartli along the central Kura River valley produces some of Georgia’s most famed white wines. Chinuri and Goruli Mtsvane are the classics of the region. The Kartli winemakers grow these two to make wine in both international styles and in Qvevri. Most importantly, these two varieties are best for making sparkling wines. The place (Shida Kartli and Kvemo Kartli) is also famous for its red varieties - Tavkveri and Shavkapito. Ateni is the sole Protected Designation of Origin within Kartli.

Racha, a narrow valley along the Rioni River in the eastern Caucasus Mountains is best known for wines produced from Alexandrouli and Mujuretuli. These two are used for making Khvanchkara, the Racha Protected Designation of Origin wine. Rachuli (Tsulukidze) Tetra and Tsolikouri top the white wine list.

Lechkhumi, another narrow valley just to the west of Racha, is famous for Tsolikouri and Usakhlelouri. Tsolikouri makes excellent Tvishi, the Lechkhumi Protected Designation of Origin wine, while Usakhelouri has long been grown in tiny quantities. Orbeluri Ojaleshi deserves a special mention, too, grown in the village of Orbeli.

Guria in the center of the coastal plain is inseparable from the local Chkhaveri grape. This variety symbolizes the region. The amber and rosé wines made from it can bring Georgian viticulture and winemaking to a whole new level.

Samegrelo, just north of Guria is home to Ojaleshi. Here, just as in neighboring Guria, wine growers practice the technique of allowing the vines to grow up the orchard trees in place of trellising.

Meskhet-Javakheti along the Mtkvari River in the south-center of the country’s Lesser Caucasus Mountains, is one of the oldest hearths of viticulture and winemaking in Georgia. Many of the Kakhetian or Kartli varieties presumably originate from Meskheti. Meskhetian viticulture is notable for its terrace vine growing, unique in Georgia. The Meskhet-Javakheti original varieties of Samariobo, Tskhenisdzudzu (white and black), Shavi Aspindzura, Akhaltsikhe Tetri are very promising.

Adjara, along Georgia’s southern Black Sea coast, is the subtropical zone with cooler climates in its west-opening mountain valleys. Chkhaveri along with the the ancient Adjarian varieties - Chodi, Satsuravi, Brola, Khopaturi are all grown.

Abkhazia, along the northern Black Sea coast has unique varieties (Avasirkhva, Amlakhu, Kachichi, Agbishi) and some other West Georgian varieties, too, such as Tsolikouri, Chkhaveri and others.

Georgian grape varieties

Traditional Georgian grape varieties are little known in the outside Georgia. Although there are over 500 to choose from, only 38 varieties are officially grown for commercial viticulture in Georgia. Two if the most important are Rkatsiteli and Saperavi.

Rkatsiteli is the most important grape variety used to make Georgian white wines. It is also grown outside Georgia in Eastern and former USSR countries, and prior to Gorbachev’s temperance (and thus vine-pulling) project, was possibly the world’d most widely planted white variety. Rkatsiteli produces bright, floral wines with bracing acidity that resist oxidation and work well with extended skin contact.

Saperavi produces substantial deep red wines that are suitable for extended aging, up to fifty years. Saperavi has the potential to produce high alcohol levels and is used extensively for blending with other lesser varieties. It is the most important grape variety used to make Georgian red wines. It is used to make both semi-sweet, and dry wines (as well as fully sweet wines), and has a good balance of prrimary fruit flavors and tannin/acid structure.