What’s the Buzz with Clay-Fermented Wines?

Once, one of our readers asked: What is so special about qvevri wines that we literally create a category for them? Nobody promotes oak-fermented wines or steel-fermented wines separately, so what’s the buzz with clay?

Nothing beats the genuine curiosity of wine lovers! Here are our reasons behind promoting qvevri-fermented wines and supporting the London-based Clay Wine Contest. 

First of all, it’s really the most ancient way of making wine.

Clay was around millennia before the Celts ever came up with barrels (which, to be honest, are definitely easier to roll. Not something you can say about a qvevri!).

While dolia, tinaja, karas, and other earthenware vessels have recently reappeared in cellars as a curiosity or a tribute to ancestral methods, in Georgia, the ancestral way never died. 

Qvevri-making and qvevri winemaking have survived countless wars, invasions, and occupations. For some people here, it’s simply how wine is made. Using a qvevri is as natural as using a cup to serve tea.

Bringing clay-fermented wines into the limelight also means recognising and supporting the artisans who craft the vessels. It’s a painstaking and highly specialised tradition and one that resists mechanisation. While many large-scale producers now include qvevri wines in their portfolios, the vessels themselves continue to be made entirely by hand, because there is simply no other way.

To give you a sense of how rare this craft is: there are fewer than a dozen families in Georgia making qvevri today.

Second: most qvevri-using wineries are truly artisanal.

Especially the low-intervention and organic ones. For many of these winemakers, wine isn’t just a product. It’s a philosophy, a way of life, and, in many cases, the only source of income (or at least a little butter on their daily bread).

Just like many of us prefer buying apples, bread, or cheese from a local farmer instead of a supermarket chain, why not support small winegrowers too?

Third: the styles of qvevri wine are pretty interesting!

Qvevri is a neutral vessel: it doesn’t add extra flavours like oak, but it’s not inert like stainless steel either.

Thanks to the tiny pores in the clay, it allows gentle micro-oxidation, softening the wine and rounding it out, but much more subtly than oak.

So in red wines, qvevri often creates a beautiful balance, preserving grape character without overwhelming it, while allowing tannins to soften (especially if the wine is aged, not just fermented, in qvevri).

Skin-fermented whites (we call them amber wines) are a style that can really shock the fans of Italian Pinot Grigio or New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. But for those who love food, texture, and flavour, amber wines are deeply exciting.

Some pair beautifully with meat, others with sushi or curry, and many are fantastic with cheese.
And if you're into deliberately oxidative styles — there’s something for you too.

What else would we like to say? If you are a foodie, a curious wine lover, if you stand for sustainability and preservation of old crafts, Georgian qvevri wine ticks all the boxes. Give it a try!

Want to explore more? Keep an eye on the Clay Wine Contest winners - they hail from Georgia and beyond!