Contemporary Georgia

An overview of contemporary Georgia, with tasting notes for 13 wines

They could out-eat us, out-drink us, out-dance us. They had the fierce gaiety of the Italians, and the physical energy of the Burgundians. Everything they did was done with flair…nothing can break the individuality of their spirit.

- John Steinbeck, on Georgia and Georgians, in ‘A Russian Journal’, 1948.

Georgian wine links

Georgia Wine Region Trade Guide

Georgian Wine Connect | Swirl Wine Group Ltd (eventscase.com)

Georgian Wine UK – The official website of the National Wine Agency of Georgia in the UK

Overview

This small country, of high mountains and huge hearts, has an unbroken wine making heritage of 8,000 years.

‘Mother Georgia’ – the symbolic statue of the nation that overlooks the capital city – is pictured holding a wine cup for guests and a sword against invaders.

Georgia is a country of wine, of poetry, of fierce spirit, of plucky scrum halves, and of sublime food. Wine is in the blood. But Georgia’s strategic location – on the silk route, bounded by powerful and sometimes covetous neighbours – has interrupted her undoubted potential for making world-class wine. 

With hundreds of native varieties – including the thrilling red wine grape Saperavi – and a flourishing wine culture, Georgian wine was famous even in the 18th century.

Soviet rule homogenised the exuberant, individualistic native wine culture. The wine focus moved – with a few honorable exceptions – to quantity and homogeneity.

Since 1991 – and Georgia’s full independence – the country’s wine scene has mirrored the progress and confidence of this creative, poetic, dynamic and exuberant nation.

Georgian wine exports to the UK increased by 200% in 2020. Many producers and wines are already imported into the UK. Many more are looking for new partners. 

Regions and statistics

167 wines, 107 wineries 

46% red

26% white

22% orange

7% rosé

Georgia is dominated by mountains and wine. Vines are grown across the country. 

The south-eastern region of Kakheti produces three-quarters of all Georgian wine. Kakheti’s climate is transitional continental with subtropical influences. Kakheti makes Georgia’s ripest wines. But craggy faults and valleys make for scores of sub-zones, some of them expressed through official PDOs. 

Grape Varieties 

Major grape varieties grown in Kakheti are the white Rkatsiteli and the red Saperavi.

Wines 

Common wines styles include contemporary dry whites and reds, the iconic amber wines made in traditional clay qvevri, and off-dry reds. Large producers and former state-owned wineries are well established in Kakheti. 

Appellations 

Moving westward, regions are Kartli, Meskheti, Imereti, Racha-Lechkumi, Samegrelo, Guria, Adjara and Abkhazia (occupied by Russia). 

Kartli, like Kakheti, is influenced by weather systems from the east. In the west, the Black Sea and higher altitudes moderate the climate.

Every region has its own distinctive vine varieties, as well as cultural, gastronomic and wine making traditions.

Food matching

Think of Georgian wines as similar to sherry - versatile, complex and food-friendly, they match well with salty cheese and dried hams.

The Wines

From lighter to richer, starting in western Georgia with its cooler climate due to higher altitude

The Whites

Solomone - Tsitska, Tsolikouri, Krakhuna 2020  Tsitska, Tsolikouri, Krakhuna 12.3% (Seeking importer)

qvevri-made wine, using indigenous Imeretian varieties; winery founded in 2010, 2019 was the first vintage released; Imeretian qvevri, called churi, are smaller leading to a lower fermenting temperature and only about 20% - 30% of grape skins are included with skins for a lighter wine

naturally clear, it is unfined and unfiltered

vibrant fruit; fresh and saline with lovely grapefruit acidity and green banana flavours; delicate, textured and intense 

Churi Chinebuli - Churi Chinebuli 2018 Krakhuna 13% (£15 approx, Imported by Degustate.co.uk)

varietal Krakhuna from a young winery, founded by Dr Giga Gotsadze; churi-made wine with two months on the lees in stainless steel, indigenous Imeretian variety

floral and textured with yellow stone fruit, apricot-skin flavours and a rich savouriness; graceful 

Koncho & Company - Mtsvivani Kakhuri 2017 Mtsvivani 14% (Seeking Importer)

from a large producer; non-qvevri wine, fermented in stainless steel and aged on lees on oak for 12m

bruised apple flesh, cidery with savoury creamy leesiness and exotic tropical fruit; warming and rich

Matrobela Wines - Kisi Qvevri 2019 Kisi 13% (£20, Imported by www.tasteofgeorgia.co.uk)

family winery, founded in 2015 by a professor of languages, using one of Georgia's most talent young winemaker; native Kisi grape variety native to Kakheti with 100% of skins in qvevri with 6m aging on skins

bright amber, fragrant with crunchy green apple and bruised fruit flavours; grippy, well-integrated white-tea tannins, fuller and more substantial

Amber wines

Satsnakheli/Tchotiashvili Vineyards - Khikhvi 2016 Khikhvi 13% (£20, Imported by www.degustate.co.uk)

vines planted in 2002 at 450m altitude, qvevri-fermented with 8m skin contact; unfined, unfiltered, low sulphite; quasi-natural wine with high attention to detail

golden amber; aromatic, complex and evolved with dried apricots and green herbs; fresh, textured and mineral with dried yellow stone fruits and a dense, muscular core

Bolero & Company - Sabado Mtsvane Qvevri 2018 Mtsvane 13% (Seeking importer)

larger producer dating back to 1929; fermented in qvevri and aged for 6m on skins, slightly lighter Kakhetian style with a touch of RS to offset the tannins

aromatic and floral; dried yellow stone fruits, orchard fruits, white pepper and wild herbs; complex with gentle, well-integrated tannins

The Reds

Solomone -Dzelshavi 2020 Dzelshavi 11.5% (Seeking importer)

dzelshavi grape; ancient, rare and revived variety; thin skinned, fragrant and scented

floral with cherry fruit and grassy meadow flowers; fresh, juicy red and black berries with vibrant acidity and gentle, well-integrated tannins; light, fresh and fragrant

Papari Valley - 3 Qvevri Terraces Saperavi 2019  Saperavi 16% (£24.99, Imported by Georgian Wine Society)

organic, natural yeasts only, father-and-son winery, fermentation in qvevri terraces using gravity to rack from higher levels (fermentation) to lower levels (elevage and aging)

inky and viscous in the glass; lifted, floral dark pastille fruits; ripe cassis, baked blueberries and black fruits with tobacco leaf, clove, nutmeg and cinnamon spice; a sweet wine fermented to dryness, quirky and characterful

Gurian Wines of Amiran Dolidze - Ckhaveri, Qvevri 2018 Ckhaveri 13.3% (Seeking importer)

native (and resurgent) thick-skinned late-ripening Ckhaveri grape grown in western Georgia near the Black Sea; thrives in high humidity areas, producing aromatic candy-pink wines even when fermented on the skins; qvevri-fermented

bright, floral, aromatic; fresh and floral with delicate, pretty soft red-berry fruits with sumac spices

Tsulukidze Wine Yards – Aleksandrouli 2019 Aleksandrouli/ Mujuretuli 13.5% (Seeking importer)

young, small winery in the high north west, altitude 550m; qvevri-fermented, unfined, unfiltered; native Aleksandrouli grape, picked late with natural RS and high acidity

floral, perfumed parma violets and spice; fresh, juicy dark berries with wild green herbs; long and savoury with very fine tannins

Itsis Marani - Bimbili 2019 Mudjuretuli 14% (Seeking importer)

Mudjuretuli grape, grown at 400m - 500m, late harvested in October, fermented in stainless steel

aromatic red and black berry fruits; sweet, ripe, juicy jammy berry fruits with spice and florality; fresh, savoury and long with fine tannins

Odjaleshe - Odjaleche Salkhino 2018 Ojaleshi 13% (Seeking importer)

Ojaleshi grape from a young producer; qvevri wine

vibrant wild strawberry and bramble fruits and menthol; summer berry compote with spice and mint; intense with gentle tannins

Lipartiani Wine House - Chateau Lipartiani 2012 Saperavi 14.5% (Imported by Geo Naturals)

lifted cassis and baked blueberries with some volatile acidity; sweet, ripe dark berries and black fruits with minty eucalyptus; porty, concentrated and substantial in a Soviet old-school sort of way; long, complex and yet still primary for its age

Georgia - Masterclass with Sarah Abbott

A masterclass in Georgian wines with Sarah Abbott MW for Georgian Wine UK

Georgia has a long history and is full of culture but has had to re-invent its wine culture since independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, making it both dynamic and diverse with a rich heritage.

A small country of just 4 million people, physically it is the same size as Scotland, surrounded by much larger neighbours and forms a land bridge between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea.

On a southerly, sub-tropical latitude, temperatures are moderated by the effects of the Black Sea to the East and shielded from cold air by the Caucasus Mountains to the North.

Georgia's continued existence in the midst of larger, sometimes aggressive empires is a testament to the sheer resilience of its people and their strong sense of identity; it is one the cradles of civilisation and one of the earliest Christian nations.

Climatically, the East is warmed by air from Iran whereas the West Coast is sub-tropical with a warm, benign, year-round climate with high humidity and high average annual temperatures of around 20C. Inland, the altitude of the mountains brings a more varied climate and this diversity is what has attracted potential conquerors over the centuries.

The vineyards can be at elevations of 400m to 700m+; historically, many of the (better) higher-altitude vineyards were abandoned under the Soviet regime, with its focus on low-cost quantity over quality.

Regions:

Kakheti in the South East corner, one of the warmest, sunniest, driest areas and accounts for almost 3/4 of all wines, which tend to be bigger, riper and more full-bodied

Kartli a breezy region in the middle of the country, an increasingly important region, the wines here are more aromatic

Imereti home to the former capital of Georgia and a major tourist destination, it has a long history and culture; more cut-off than Kakheti, it was less influenced by Soviet collective practices and now has a large number of small boutique wineries in a patchwork of highly-fragmented smallholdings that survived through the Soviet period due to its remoteness; parcels of rarer varieties and old vines

Racha and Lechkuni two beautiful emerging areas, high up in the foothills of the Caucasus, they specialise in bright mountain reds with a unique nervy, scented style; Racha is a national park

Meskheti on the Turkish border and historically occupied by the Ottomans, it has an interrupted history of winemaking

Guria sub-tropical and hazy-humid with mountains rising from the sea, the vineyards are at altitude and grapes picked as late as November but still maintain acidity; wine here is a monastic tradition

Grapes

Rkatsiteli (white) a useful workhorse, 60% of total harvest; noble if well-treated; indigenous to Georgia with thick skins producing plentiful tannins; tangy and vigorous with aging potential - can be made into crisp dry, oaked and amber wines

Saperavi (red) 30% of harvest, indigenous, drought tolerant vines; produces wines with full body, rich tannins, high acidity and an intense ruby colour due to flesh being red as well as the skins; genetically unstable and responds to terroir like Pinot Noir or Nebbiolo; can be made in bolder or more elegant styles; can be fermented in classical European stainless steel or traditional Georgian qvevri

The remaining 10% consists of over 500 endemic grape varieties of which over 400 are kept in collections and around 30 are in use commercially.

The level of indigenous grape diversity is on a par with countries such as Portugal. Italy and Greece; however, Georgian vines do not yet appear to have any relation to other families of vines in Asia or Western Europe.

Georgian Wines With Swirl Group

Georgian wine tasting with Sarah Abbott MW of Swirl Wine Group

Not fully European, not quite Asian, Georgia is all things and nothing, a true borderland with a rich history where everything is quite new.

It is a tiny, ancient country sandwiched on a land bridge between Europe and Asia; a mountainous region, it has huge potential for oenological diversity with wine is made all over the country. The main regions to know are Kakheti and Karthi.

The country is surrounded by water with the Black Sea on one side and the Caspian on the other; to the South is Turkey, to the north Russia.

It is protected from the cold by the Caucasus Mountains; on its eastern side it is warmer and sub-topical, the western side is cooler due to the altitude and the moderating effects of the Black Sea.

Georgia has layers of history and feels like Vienna transported to Asia, in part due to being historically on the Silk Road.

Its wine culture is more reminiscent of France or Italy, a combination of gastronomy, oenology and lifestyle. Orange wines, often made in qvevri, are a big part of this, not least due to their food friendliness.

Georgia's wine culture is at once 8,000 and almost brand new; an independent country since 1991, it has moved away from the heavy-handed, old school styles popular in the former Soviet Union to something more sophisticated, international and European.

Qvevri are to Georgia what coopers are to France; artisan crafted vessels for the making of wine, qvevri are an ancient invention yet offer a solution to numerous challenges that has yet to be bettered.

Hand made from clay, qvevri are lined with beeswax to reduce porosity and provide a reductive environment for wine-making; qvevri are stored in the ground to regulate temperature.

Wines are fermented whole-bunch with natural yeasts; the qvevri is left uncovered with periodic punchdowns.

The size of the quevri also affects the temperature of the fermentation - larger qvevri ferment at a higher temperature due to the higher volume / surface area ratio.

Producing wines in qvevri is very labour-intensive and accounts for only about 10% of Georgian wine output.

The whites

Churi Chinebuli, Churi Chinebuli 2019, white - 12.5% Seeking importer

delicate florality, orchard fruits and white peach; pure and precise; very elegant and long - think Burgundian or Swiss in style

Baia’s Wine Baia's Krakhuna 2020, qvevri white - 13% Imported by: GvinoUK, Taste of Georgia

some skin contact: fresh, delicate and creamy almondy, orchard fruits, white peach and citrus; some delicate white flowers with honey and apricot

The amber wines

Ori Marani, Mariam 2020, qvevri amber - 12% Importer: 266 Wines

from a French winemaker using a blend of grapes: fragrant and floral, tangy and nutty, slightly cidery; long and delicate

Anapea Village, Mtsvivani (Kvareli Side) 2019, qvevri amber - 12.3% Importer: Okros Drinks

classic golden amber colour; fragrant with bruised apple fruit, rose petals and savouriness

Dakishvili Famiy Vineyards Kisi 2019, qvevri amber - 13% Importer: Clarke Foyster

tangy and aromatic, sherry-esque, quince freshness roasted nuts and spices; rich with dried fruits and green herbs

Tchotiashvili Vineyards Khikhvi 2016, qvevri amber - 13% Seeking importer

tangy, savoury and mellow; with marigold and saffron, leesy and nutty with a full mid-palate; complex and grippy; very fresh

Binekhi Tsolikauri Qvevri 2018, qvevri amber - 13.4% Seeking importer

aromatic and floral with roasted savoury flavours of dried fruits; fresh, long and broad with soft, supple tannins

The reds

Teleda Orgo, Saperavi 2019, qvevri red - 13.5% Importer: Clarke Foyster

floral and creamy with lifted baked blueberries, violets and cherry fruit; fresh and sleek with fine tannins

Sanavardo Estate Saperavi Qvevri 2019, qvevri red - 13% Seeking importer

very fresh, cherry-fruited and elegant; long and savoury

Papari Valley, 3 Qvevri Terraces Saperavi 2019, qvevri red - 16% Importer: Georgian Wine Society

something of a happy accident, a fully dry red originally intended as a dessert wines with 16% alcohol as a result; rich amarone-style; deep, bold, viscous and saturated

Itsis Marani Bimbili 2019, red - 14% Seeking importer

fresh, cherry-fruited, delicate pale and floral; Pinot-esque or think Cab Franc / Gamay

Lukasi Saperavi 2017, red - 14% Importer: Taste of Georgia

bloody with iodine and beetroot, dark berries ; concentrated fresh and supple