Chilled glasses of rosé are true symbols of the summertime! How about tasting something new this season? Georgia, renowned as the cradle of wine, offers a unique array of rosé wines available in the UK.

Don’t let the names of the grapes confuse you - yes, they are unknown, they are indigenous, and they also deserve a place on your table after fighting for their place under the sun for millennia.

The UK continues to grow as one of Georgian wine’s most vibrant export markets. In 2024, Georgian wine exports to the UK jumped by 72%, reaching nearly 426,000 liters. That growing interest was on full display this spring, with a lineup of tastings, dinners, and trade events that brought the soul of Georgian wine to both professionals and the public. 

Let us share some highlights with you!

Sparkling wines from Georgia have quite a long story, but the wine lovers from the UK started exploring them very recently. While it’s hard to beat Champagne and English sparkling on such a traditional market, Georgian bubbly is trying to establish itself in the niche of a quality wine with a touch of the exotic. Let’s explore it together!

Nowadays, Saperavi wines from Georgia are available for purchase and taste in the different corners of the United Kingdom. To help you pick a truly good bottle to taste, we at Georgian Wine UK want to share a short but sweet shopping list and Saperavi essentials with you curious wine drinkers!

Saperavi is Georgia’s flagship red grape variety, renowned for its deep color and robust character. It is a teinturier grape: its skin and flesh are pigmented, resulting in intensely colored wines. Originating from the Kakheti region in eastern Georgia, Saperavi thrives in the country's diverse climates and soils.​Wines produced from Saperavi are typically full-bodied with high acidity and tannins, making them suitable for aging. Their flavour profile is characterised by dark fruits like blackberry and plum, complemented by spice notes.

If Sarah Abbott MW has her way, Saperavi will soon be as familiar a grape as Shiraz. “It makes soulful tasting wines”, she says.  Saperavi is Georgia’s hero grape variety. One of only a handful of grapes world-wide with highly-pigmented red flesh as well as skins, the name translates as ‘to dye’. Saperavi is the perfect flagship grape for a country which has 525 indigenous varieties catalogued.

Jani was very nearly lost to the phylloxera outbreak of the late 19th century. How appropriate that the name ‘Jani’ means ‘powerful’ – because it took great power and determination to bring this grape back from the brink of extinction.

If Rkatsiteli is the white grape of eastern Georgia, then Tsolikouri is the white grape of western Georgia. Pronounced sol-li-kori, Tsolikouri is planted throughout Imereti. The region is packed with small producers producing traditional-Georgian-style wines, with the result that some of the country’s most exciting grape varieties are found in this area – including Tsolikouri.

Chkhaveri is a rare but fascinating grape. It was originally a “maghlari” vine, trained to grow up trees, and was described in Ampelography of Georgia as ‘light and pleasant’. Published in 1960, this book is considered one of the most influential books in Georgian winemaking – though nowadays winemakers think such an interpretation of Chkhaveri is not sufficient.

With short bursts of sunlight in London, thoughts turn to spring/summer- the delicious lighter foods and drinks we can enjoy in the sunshine. Dzelshavi is fondly referred to by many Georgian Wine aficionados as a ‘summer wine’. That’s because the wines produced by this thin-skinned grape are light, fresh and lively.