Georgia, Behind the Label
It is far from easy to stand out among the thousands of stands spread across the 10 halls covering 71,000 square metres at the annual ProWein fair in Dusseldorf,…
Georgia Chosen to be First Guest Wine Region by Bordeaux’s Cité du Vin
Cité du Vin – a celebration of wine in France The Cité du Vin, which opened in the heart of Bordeaux earlier this year, is much more than a museum;…
Saperavi Joins the Ranks of the World’s Fine Wines
Fine minds and fine wines…. What makes a wine ‘fine’? Along with 60 or so wine enthusiasts, professionals and consumers I was lucky to be invited by Nicole Sierra-Rolet co-founder of…
Saperavi
Saperavi means “something to colour with,” or “to dye”. A very old variety, Saperavi is Georgia’s most widely planted red grape, with 10% of all plantings throughout the country (over…
Tavkveri
This red grape, evocatively named “hammerhead,” for the flat top of the bunch itself, is indigenous to Kartli but also grown in Kakheti. Tavkveri grows well in deep clay and…
Shavkapito
Meaning “vine with a black cane,” Shavkapito originated in Kartli, in eastern Georgia. Its medium-sized, conical bunches typically have wings and moderate density. The round, medium-sized berries are round and…
Chkhaveri
A western Georgian variety, Chkhaveri is mostly planted near the Black Sea coast in Adjara and especially in Guria, but also in Imereti. Chkhaveri originally was a “maghlari” wine, a…
Aleksandrouli
The indigenous “vine of Alexander,” Aleksandrouli has been nurtured for a long time in the mountainous hillsides of Racha-Lechkhumi in western Georgia. Long thought to be a completely distinct variety…
Mujuretuli
Mujuretuli is, with Aleksandrouli, best known as forming the other half of the cult partnership that is Khvanchkara. Like its relative, it is largely cultivated along the Rioni River in…
Usakhelouri
Literally, the “grape with no name,” Usakhelouri is indigenous to western Georgia. Early 20th century historian Javakhishvili noted it was name for a village of the same name that was…