This ancient winemaking country is also one of the world’s most exciting, crafting a wide array of wines, including Georgia’s signature, qvevri-aged amber wines. Here’s what you should know.
This article is adapted from a regional guide originally published on SevenFifty Daily.
The country of Georgia may not be considered a “classic” winemaking region, but it is, in fact, home to the world’s oldest unbroken winemaking tradition. Interestingly, it’s Georgia’s commitment to these traditions that is leading a revival of the country’s wine industry—and making these wines some of the most intriguing ones on the market today.
From indigenous grape varieties like Saperavi and Rkatsiteli, to qvevri, the clay winemaking vessel that most Georgian producers use to make their wines, there is no other country quite like Georgia. Today, the country’s wine industry is bursting with energy, with winemakers of all ages blending tradition and experimentation to develop unique blends and newly reclaim “old” styles like pét-nat. While Georgian wine production is still dominated by a few large producers, it is the 1,250 tiny, family producers that have captivated the world’s attention, producing a diverse array of wines.
Learn more about this exciting wine country with our guide to Georgian wine.
Geography
Georgia sits at the intersection of Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, nestled between two ranges of the Caucasus Mountains. Its climate is influenced both by altitude, with elevations climbing from the sea to mountain peaks, and by its proximity to the Black Sea. To the north, the Greater Caucasus Mountains block cold air from Russia.
The Likhi Range divides the country in half, with the western area seeing fewer temperature extremes and higher humidity, thanks to the Black Sea. Here the climate is almost tropical at lower altitudes. The eastern part of the country, where 70 percent of grapes are planted, is quasi-tropical—hot and dry in the summer, but benefitting from Caucasus breezes.
Georgia is home to a wide diversity of soils and subsoils, and local vintners are still working to understand its terroir. Most vineyard soils are alluvial, calcareous marl and volcanic tufa. About 15 percent of Georgia is limestone, sometimes with marine fossils.
History of Georgian Wine
The 2017 discovery of clay pot sherds infused with acids unique to grape wine confirmed the presence of winemaking in Georgia at least 8,000 years ago. Over the centuries Georgians always made wine in these terracotta pots, developing a thriving wine culture. The rituals associated with enjoying wine are a central part of being Georgian—almost every family had a qvevri and made wine—and continued even after the arrival of European winemaking techniques in Georgia in the 1800s.
Over time, production came to include steel tanks and oak barrels, sometimes in combination with qvevri fermentation. But phylloxera, and soon after, the Soviet Union, did great damage to the Georgian wine industry through the 20th century. With the collapse of the USSR in 1991, Georgian reestablished its independence, but a resulting civil war decimated the country’s economy—including the wine industry. Not until the end of the 1990s did the country become sufficiently stable to justify investment and reconstruction, setting the stage in the 21st century for a new generation harnessing ancient traditions to showcase their ancient varieties.
Today’s Georgian wines are a remarkably diverse and intriguing lot, ranging from fresh, clean, vibrant whites, reds, and rosés, to rich, layered wines filled with character.
Key Appellations in Georgia
Georgia started to develop its Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) appellation system in 1997, designating PDOs based on historical records, climate patterns, soil types, and other distinctive elements of terroir. Georgia currently has a total of 24 different PDOs, most of them in Kakheti, which sits in the eastern part of the country. Two of the best-known and most-exported include Tsinandali, a light white wine based on the Rkatsiteli variety, and Mukuzani, a powerful Saperavi.
Using the Qvevri to Craft Key Wine Styles
The spectrum of Georgian wine is extremely broad; you can find white, red, rosé, sparkling, and amber (which much of the rest of the world refers to as “orange wine”) produced here, along with many levels of sweetness. Much of the country’s wine production—about 70 percent—is sweet or semi-sweet. However, most of what is available in the U.S. is dry.
While much of the country’s wines are made in stainless steel, it’s the tradition of qvevri that makes Georgian wines particularly distinctive. Multiple styles of wine can be made in these clay vessels, but they are most associated with the country’s skin-contact amber wines—after all, this is how Georgia has been making wine for 8,000 years.
Traditional Kakhetian amber wines made in qvevri are fermented and aged in contact with their skins from harvest in the fall until the springtime, giving the wines their amber color. High-quality qvevri-produced amber wines have a firm, tannic texture, developing aromas of dried apricots, orange peel, nuts, and an exotic array of spices.
Two Georgian Grape Varieties to Know
Georgia is home to more than 500 indigenous grape varieties, many of which are thought to be ancient, and about 45 are used in commercial production. Two-thirds of the country’s 55,000 hectares are planted to white varieties.
The two most important grape varieties in Georgia are Rkatsiteli and Saperavi; respectively, they are the most-planted white and red grapes in the country.
- Rkatsiteli: This white grape is Georgia’s dominant variety, accounting for over 60 percent of total wine production. It grows throughout much of the country but is most expressive when grown on calcareous soils and fermented in qvevri. It is a hardy variety with good acidity that creates some of Georgia’s deepest, most complex, and longest-lived wines. Rkatsiteli’s flavors depend on its method of production, but it frequently has stone fruit and apple flavors, with minerality.
- Saperavi: Georgia’s most important red variety, Saperavi accounts for about a third of the country’s production. It is known for its inky color, as it is a teinturier grape (meaning that its pulp and juice are red, as well as its skin). Saperavi often carries notes of dark berries, black chocolate, tobacco, black tea and licorice, and its dry versions can be complex, concentrated, and built for aging. Semi-sweet versions are made as well.
That one of the world’s most ancient winemaking countries is also one of the most energetic and exciting is the dichotomy of Georgia and its wines. To learn more about Georgian wine, including what’s happening in the country today, visit SevenFifty Daily’s full regional guide here.
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