Welcome to As Drunk By Exotic Wine Travel, a new weekly column where we feature wines that are worth noting. The wines featured in this series may be written by either one or the both of us. The featured wines can be from obscure or more well-known wine regions. Sit back, grab a glass, and discover new and exciting wines with us!

Pheasant’s Tears Chitistvala 2015

Pheasant’s Tears will always hold a special place in our hearts. They were the first qvevri wines that we tasted and really enjoyed. They were the only Georgian wines that we knew about when we first went to the country in 2015.

In late 2016, we returned to Georgia to launch our first wine book. During that time we spent a lot of time with John Wurdeman, Co-Founder of Pheasant’s Tears. He is an American artist that moved to Georgia and fell in love with the culture. By sheer chance, he met a local winemaker and his life changed from that point. There’s plenty about him on the internet, just Google his name.

The winery is near the hilltop town of Sighnaghi. The town towers over the Kakheti valley and feels lifted out of a fairytale with its restored medieval architecture. John also has a restaurant in the center of Sighnaghi.

We took a tour of the vineyards and had a humble lunch on top of the winery. Several excellent salad and vegetable dishes were accompanied by several pastes consisting of walnuts, seeds, and unique Georgian spices. The juicy barbecued meat followed. It added up to be a perfect meal with good company under the warmth of the Kakhetian sun. A perfect late-Autumn day in the vineyards.

The lunch was paired with several Pheasant’s Tears wines. We’ve tasted the entire portfolio previously but were impressed with how well the wines made of Shavkapito, Tavkveri, and Rkatsiteli showed on that day. All of the wines paired wonderfully with the fresh food.

Later that evening, an intense wind storm rolled into Sighnaghi. So intense that pieces of roofs were flying all over and the power in the entire town went out. We ate dinner at the Pheasant’s Tears restaurant under candle light. Even though there was no electricity, the show went on for John. He entertained both our group and a separate press group from Asia throughout the evening.

Some special bottles were opened that day and this Chitistvala really made me stop and think. It is made from the fruit of an old, tree-climbing vine that is allegedly 200 years old. Like all of John’s wine, it is fermented and matured in buried terracotta vessels, also known as the traditional Georgian qvevri. This wine doesn’t have a label and is made in small quantities. It is only available at the winery.

Rich and dense, this needs a lot of time to air. Beautiful aromas and depth of fruit emerge after the wine breathes. The nose has rose, sour plum, and green herbs. The palate is earthy at first but draws you in with wonderful raspberries and dark fruit mixed with balanced acidity and a little tension in the mouth. This is a fantastic effort that fans of both conventional and qvevri-style wines will approve. 

4.0/5   (You can find out more about our scoring system on the START HERE page.)

You May Also Enjoy:
The Unstoppable Progress in the Georgian Wine Scene 
Saperavi: Georgia’s Flagship Red Wine Grape
An Introduction to Georgian Qvevri Wine in Zagreb
A Night of Natural Wines in Tbilisi, Georgia

Disclaimer: The ideas expressed in this article are personal opinions and are not associated with any sponsors or business promotions

Thanks to the team at Living Roots for putting together a wonderful schedule.

The post Pheasant’s Tears Chitistvala 2015 appeared first on Wine Travel.

Georgian wine is back on our minds.

It took 18 months of non-stop travel through known and lesser-known wine regions to produce our first wine book. The same time that we were planning to release Uncorking the Caucasus, the United Nations World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) was hosting their inaugural Wine Tourism conference in Tbilisi, Georgia. With all these aligned, it was an easy choice to make: attend the conference, bring the book to its genesis, and return to the birthplace of our wine career (and arguably wine itself).

Georgia, the Host Country for UNWTO’s First Wine Tourism Conference

The Wine Economist, Mike Veseth, speaking at the 1st UNWTO Global Conference on Wine Tourism.

The UNWTO’s conference on wine tourism was attended by over 200 participants—predominantly journalists, winemakers, winery staff, tour guides, tour company owners, wine tourism promoters, and civil executives—from both the public and private sectors of around 40 countries. It was the organization’s first effort at executing a conference of such scale and theme so understandably there were some kinks to be worked out. For us, the networking element outperformed the learning.

One of the biggest highlights for us was meeting wine author and The Wine Economist, Mike Veseth. Anyone who is interested in the business of wine and what makes the wine world tick should check out Mike’s books.

The content-rich conference was unfortunately affected by the poor choice of venue and setup, which were not conducive to large-group discussions. Most of the takeaways for us were more anecdotal than actual scalable, executable insights. The Georgian wines and dishes presented to the participants were one-dimensional and we felt a personal, visceral indignation about that.

Overall, it was still a good effort and we were thankful for this new initiative by UNWTO to cultivate learning and sharing in wine tourism. We will continue to participate in as many of this wine conference by UNWTO as possible.

Now back to the subject of Georgia…

A visit to Georgia is never complete without a touch and taste of Khinkali, the Georgian dumpling. Thank you UNWTO for organizing these activities for us.

The Other Dimensions of Georgian Wine

During the three-day event, participants got to visit and taste wines from two big-production wineries and a monastery. While the quality of the wines from those producers can be good, there are other facets of this exciting wine country that need to be shared in order for a visitor to truly comprehend the identity of Georgian wine.

Following the conference, we spent another month in the country and tasted over 150 Georgian wines that either we had missed on our first foray into the country or were new vintages of the wines that we already tried. Here are a few observations of the Georgian wine scene, exactly one year after our first trip.

Improving the Quality of Georgian Wine

In Georgia, the small band of natural, qvevri wine producers continues to raise the bar for quality. Tasting through the newest vintages left us astonished. Many of the wines blasted through the preconceptions people may have of natural wines. They are not raw, rustic products. The wines are not funky and mousy, but alive and quirky.

Natural wine producers who make wine in qvevri account for a minute portion of Georgia’s total wine output—around  10%.  Many of these producers are making very small amounts of wine, sometimes less than 3,000 bottles per year. These wines are already culturally significant; UNESCO named the practice of winemaking in qvevri as an Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2013. Despite this, a faction of the local industry believes that Georgia should focus on conventionally made wines—often times in bulk—in order to increase efficiency, gain market power, and attain a certain economic potential. To us, the qvevri-style wines are what truly speaks Georgia. But with a tiny outreach, small production, limited economies of scale, and aging winemakers who care about making wine in an unapologetically traditional way, who knows what the future holds. Perhaps this is part of the perennial charm of Georgia too: that its magic can only be understood by those who care enough to make the journey.

Unique Varieties Continue to Emerge in Georgia

During the time when Georgia was part of the USSR, the Soviets favored two varieties: Rkatsiteli for white wine and Saperavi for red wine. Both grapes are able to deal with harsh conditions and can maintain high levels of sugar and acidity without correction. The Soviets were concerned with quantity not quality, so they pulled the other varieties and focus on these two. Thankfully, many families were able to maintain small plots of the other Georgian varieties. Because of these families and their modest oenologic time capsules, the country has so many unique grapes to offer the world today; and from these time capsules, the renaissance of indigenous varieties continues.

The variety that we completed missed on our first trip is the scarce Usakhelouri from a small pocket of the Lechkumi region. The total harvest for one season can be as low as two tonnes! Wines made from Usakhelouri are among the most expensive and legendary Georgian wines. Rumor has it that Stalin tried to keep this variety a secret and always shipped the grapes to Moscow. Usakhelouri makes naturally semi-sweet wines that have alluring notes of red fruit, forest floor, and earth. Even if you’re not a sweet wine lover, they’ll still be a special treat to taste.

A naturally-semi sweet dessert wine made from Usakhelouri. There’s no other information about this wine besides what is indicated on this metal tag. We know nothing about it except it is made by a small family and it is delicious.

During our first visit to Georgia in the Fall of 2015, we had the impression that the variety Tavkveri was made mostly into rosé wine. This year, we got to discover many excellent Tavkveri varietal red wines, plus other reds made from fascinating local varieties with tuneful names like Ojaleshi, Shavkapito, and Chitisvala. The grapes from western Georgia continue to impress us: Aladasturi makes light and refreshing reds that can sometimes taste like Beaujolais Cru; Otskanuri Sapere is another variety hailing from the west and makes wines with mouth-puckering tartness.

Tasting Pheasant’s Tears Chitisvala, made with grapes harvested from 200-year-old vines.

As for white grapes, wines made from Chinuri remain one of our favorites. Chinuri made in qvevri maintains a high level of juiciness, texture, and fresh fruit flavors as opposed to being nutty and dried-fruit tasting like most oxidative-style wines. Wines made from Khikhvi, Tetra, and Kisi, be they fermented in steel tanks or in qvevri, are also worth checking out.

For us, the boundary-pushing protagonists are Rkatsiteli and Goruli Mtsvane. The qvevri-style wines made of Rkatsiteli are structured and nutty with startling red fruit flavors. We were floored by some qvevri-style Rkatsiteli wines and believe they can be some of the greatest wines of all time. To fully comprehend Rkatsiteli as a variety, look out for the fresh and fruity ones made in steel tanks as well. Goruli Mtsvane is a showstopper; a late-ripening grape that oxidizes easily, only a few winemakers make wine from this rare variety. The examples that we had from Lagvinari and Soliko delivered high-toned aromas and weighty body reminiscent of a light red wine. Both are exemplars of wine that gives you energy as opposed to just another alcholic beverage that takes away energy.

Georgian Bubbles!

If a picture is worth a thousand words, what about a video?

Getting a taste of Gotsa’s first batch of Pét-Nat and it’s all quite excellent! Our fave is the Pét-Nat made from the indigenous Georgian variety Tsitska. Pét-Nat is an unfiltered sparkling wine made in method ancestrale where the wine is made without additional sugar and bottled before primary fermentation is finished. #UncorkingTheCaucasus

 

A video posted by Exotic Wine Travel (@exoticwinetravel) on Sep 13, 2016 at 12:38pm PDT

Charine loves bubbles and so we were thrilled to see a new movement amongst the natural Georgian wine producers. The sparklers that these producers are making are not méthode traditionelle (think Champagne) or charmant method (think Prosecco). These sparklers are known as pétillant-naturel, colloquially shortened to pét-nat, which translates to naturally sparkling.

Pét-nats are made via méthode ancestrale, the precursor to the modern Champagne method. Méthode ancestrale made a resurgence in the ’90s in Loire Valley, France when the late Christian Chaussard discovered this sparkler-making method by chance and coined the new term pétillant-naturel for this style. Today, Christian’s good friend and Georgia’s frequent visitor Thierry Puzelat continues to make pét-nats that cheer the world.

Pét-nats are made with spontaneous fermentation and then bottled before the primary fermentation is finished, without adding more yeast or sugar. With the natural yeast and sugar left in the bottle from the first unfinished fermentation, natural carbonation starts to build up in the bottle.

This technique of making sparkling wine can be volatile and variable, requiring a high level of expertise and experience in the cellar. We’ve heard many stories about the hysterical beginning of Georgian pét-nats, which include dealing with flying corks and shattered glasses in front of the media and guests. [Don’t worry about drinking pét-nats now, they are past the experimental stage.] One winemaker recalled an accident where several bottles exploded in his cellar and his bleeding staff exclaimed, “We don’t like this French way of making wine!”

Pét-Nat Rosé made from Tavkveri by Vincente, a Frenchman living in Georgia.

So how do Georgian pét-nats taste like? Crisp and delicious with vibrant fruit flavors. They are not as yeasty as Champagne but well-made examples can have a fine, persistent bead of bubbles that rivals sparklers made in méthode traditionelle. Georgian pét-nats, as are most pét-nats from other parts of the world, are sealed with a crown cap instead of a cork. They are low in alcohol and make candid and lively crowd-pleasers. Pét-nats are meant to be consumed young as further aging in the bottle is not expected to contribute to the wine’s complexity. The wines are often cloudy as most are not filtered though there are also winemakers who choose to do disgorging. These wines are something to keep your eye out for as Georgian wine gains popularity worldwide. The Georgian pét-nats from Gotsa, Okro’s Wines, Pheasant’s Tears, and Kidev erti are excellent.

New Places to Enjoy Wine in the Capital City, Tbilisi

It is laborious to find places in Georgia that are non-smoking. Because of this, our default hangouts in Tbilisi are the alternative themed Vino Underground and the swanky g.Vino wine bars. If you’re a non-smoker like us, wine bars are always a safe bet, though you do lose the bet once in awhile. For restaurants, Azarphesha is a great place to taste Georgian cuisine and drink wine without the distraction of smoke. All these three places are must-visits for gastronomy lovers touring the country. An impressive selection of international natural wines—including those of Chateau Musar, Marcel Lapierre, and Matassa—are also available at Vino Underground and Azarphesha. During this trip, we discovered two new establishments that are shaking up the wine scene.

Outside of the old town and near the upscale neighborhood of Vake is a new wine bar and shop named 8000 Vintages. The shop carries wine from over 100 Georgian producers and always has a large selection of Georgian wines available for tasting. The place is managed by WSET-certified Zaza Grigalashvili who is eager and patient in helping patrons navigate the massive selection of Georgian wines. If you’re interested in learning more about Georgian wine, Zaza leads a weekly tasting class at 8000 Vintages in the Georgian language, though he does speak English.

Visit 8000 Vintages in Tbilisi on any day and you’ll be welcomed with a wide selection of Georgian wines that you can sample.

Thanks to Zaza and his team, we had a tasting and book signing event at 8000 Vintages. The event was a success as we led a packed house through four wines and signed books afterward. The crowd consisted of wine lovers from all over the world, local winemakers, diplomats, and members of the expat social media platform internations.org.

Fond memories from our book launch at 8000 Vintages.

There is a new and innovative restaurant in Tbilisi as well called Culinarium. It was featured on Anthony Bourdain’s show Parts Unknown. Chef Tekuna Gachechiladze has experience in the restaurant business carried over from places like New York and Hong Kong. Culinarium features Georgian cuisine with a modern twist in a hip yet unpretentious atmosphere. A small but satisfying selection of Georgian wines is also available.  On Sundays, the restaurant does an Asian brunch with international takes on dishes such as hot and sour soup, dumpling, and Pad Thai. If you love Asian food or if you love amber wine, don’t miss the chance of tasting the pairing of both at Culinarium. Like champagne, we believe amber wine is the most food-friendly style of wine that can go well with just about any kind of cuisine, including spicy Asian food.

Georgia is a mecca for pure flavors, natural wine, and organic food. In a year, we’ve witnessed how the country evolved into an iconoclast in gastronomy. Georgia has so much freshness and purity to its credit that the lives conducted by the rest of us from modern cities seem tainted.

More Government Support, More Specialized Wine Tourism Operators

The wine industry is one of the most important sectors of Georgia’s economy. In 2014, the National Wine Agency of Georgia was established as an entity under the Ministry of Agriculture of Georgia with a mandate to aid in the development of the wine and wine tourism industries.  This has led to a higher level of collaboration between the government and private sectors.

During our recent trip to Georgia, in the span of two months, there were two wine-centric events organized by the National Wine Agency. The construction of a wine museum is also underway.

At one of the events organized by National Wine Agency. Charine met with Archil Natsvlishvili, from Kerovani Winery, and Givi Chagelishvili, Stalin’s last living winemaker.

Besides the local support, international government agencies such as USAID are also having their presence felt through their support in economic development. While they do not work directly with the wine sector, wine tourism is an indispensable product of the tourism and agricultural sectors, both of which are key generators in the sustainable economic development of Georgia.

“We are working on a regional tourism development initiative in Samtskhe-Javakheti, wherein we are facilitating public and private sector stakeholder mobilization and coordination, new product development, and regional marketing and promotion support. The expected result of this work will be the creation of a sustainable public-private destination management organization for the region that can coordinate and implement regional strategies for tourism development and regional promotion moving forward. More broadly, we are working to improve operational and marketing capacity of rural guesthouses in Samegrelo, Shida Kartli, Samegrelo, and the Pankisi Valley,” said Brian King, Chief of Party for the USAID Zrda Activity in Georgia, implemented by Chemonics International, Inc.

Further, there is also an uptick in specialized wine tour operators like Taste Georgia and Living Roots.

All these mean wine travel in Georgia is more accessible and more comfortable than ever before.

Disclaimer: The ideas expressed in this article are personal opinions and are not associated with any sponsors or business promotions. 

Related:

1. Our Stint on Georgian National Television

John Wurdeman, the co-founder of Pheasant’s Tears winery is an advocate for traditional Georgian winemaking. He’s also a co-host of the mid-day talk show at Georgia Dream Studios. During our stay in Tbilisi, he invited us to be his guests and gave us the opportunity to talk about our book on the show. This was the first time that we had to work with translation in an interview and was thankful for John being a great steward of the conversations. You can see the 21-minute clip of our cameo below.

2. For a listing of Exotic Wine Travel’s articles and videos on Georgian wines and wine travel in Georgia, check out our page Uncorking the Caucasus. To purchase the Kindle or paperback copy of the book Uncorking the Caucasus: Wines from Turkey, Armenia, and Georgia, please head to this Amazon product page.

3. Humble Magic in Georgian Capital’s Restaurant Renaissance

The post The Unstoppable Progress in the Georgian Wine Scene appeared first on Wine Travel.

In sharing our interviews, we hope to show you a more intimate side of us, our struggles as wine travelers and entrepreneurs, and our passion for the same magic-in-a-bottle that you love. A reminder for ourselves and perhaps relevant to you too: as we tackle the new year, don’t forget how important it is to celebrate the small victories in your life, and also be open about your shortcoming and weaknesses. In this new year, let’s all learn to be more relatable, more human, and invite each other to be a part of our own stories.

 Wine Two Five Podcast

The Wine Two Five podcast first caught our ear in May 2016.  The first episode we listened featured the famous wine educator Karen MacNeil. Several months later, we were asked to be guests on the podcast. With a slogan like “Everyday drinking for everyday people”, Wine Two Five fully delivers on its mission of highlighting personalities from the wine industry and making wine simple and fun. The podcast is run by two enthusiastic hosts, Stephanie Davis and Valerie Caruso.

Thanks to technology! We were in Armenia, Stephanie was in Italy, and Valerie was in Colorado, USA at the time of recording. In fact, we were in the middle of a wine-fuelled party at the ArmAs winery (it was the owner’s birthday party) when the call happened. Big thanks to the team at ArmAs that helped us to look for a private room without ambient noise to do the call and for being accommodating to our needs! We had a wonderful time chatting with Valerie and Stephanie and could have gone on for hours.

GDS TV, Georgia

In 2016, we spent five weeks in Georgia to get updated on the changes in the wine industry, acquaint ourselves with the wineries that we missed out during our one-month research trip in 2015, and also to promote our book, Uncorking the Caucasus: Wines from Turkey, Armenia, and Georgia. On the last few days of our stay, our dear friend John Wurdeman had just come back from Ukraine to Tbilisi, Georgia. It was very thoughtful of him to invite us to a national TV daily show that he was hosting.

https://www.facebook.com/GDSofficial/videos/1208306375924662/

During this live talk show, we share our experience traveling through Georgia, why the Georgian wines are quite different from wines from the rest of the world, our favorite winery in Georgia, our favorite Georgian dish, the mission of Exotic Wine Travel, what keeps us going and what tears us apart as a couple traveling and doing business together.

CivilNet TV, Armenia

As in every wine country that we traveled through, there’s always a generous friend who believes in our work and goes above and beyond to help us with forwarding our project. In the case of Armenia, it was Vahe Keushguerian, winemaker at Keush winery and project manager at Karas winery. Vahe introduced us to Roubina, the presenter at CivilNet and from there, an interview segment was arranged. When we enquire about the positioning of CivilNet, a staff said,”Like CNN, but more credible.” CivilNet.TV is platform that champions a new movement of journalism—with livestreaming and on-demand coverage about Armenia and the Caucasus. The presentation is done in both Armenian and English. We’ve enjoyed many of the videos on their website and are humbled to be featured on the channel.

In this interview, we talk about how we ended up traveling through the Caucasus, our travel experiences in Armenia, thoughts on Armenian wine, the definition of “the birthplace of wine”, and the anecdotal stories we gathered from our wine exploration.

#UncorkingTheCaucasus: Most Shared Articles of 2016

After seven months of traveling through the wine regions in Western Europe and the Caucasus, Exotic Wine Travel was established in December 2015 with the objective to promote wines from the lesser-known wine regions. You can read more about the genesis of Exotic Wine Travel and our transition from our past life to present here.

Uncorking the Caucasus is the first of a series of wine travel books that we will be releasing. This book is designed to serve as a foundational introduction to the wines of Armenia, Georgia, and Turkey. The book was released on 1 October 2016. In the two months prior to the title hitting the shelf, we started writing articles about the wines from Armenia, Georgia, and Turkey. Many more articles were released after the book was published.

Here are the top three most popular articles based on the number of shares on social media.

Trendsetter: Vahe Keushguerian from Armenia

Trendsetter: Oliver Gareis from Amadeus Winery, Turkey

A Brief History of Wine from the Caucasus

The post Making #UncorkingTheCaucasus appeared first on Wine Travel.

In November, as part of our Uncorking the Caucasus book launch and promotion, we had a signing session along with a wine tasting class at 8000 Vintages in Tbilisi, Georgia.

8000 Vintages is located just about a 10-minute ride from the popular tourist zone in the Old Town. The name represents the age of Georgia’s winemaking history. There are over 150 Georgian wine producers represented in this wine shop and bar. Patrons can enjoy wine degustation, wine by the bottle, and wine-pairing dishes (mostly cheese and cold cut) in an Instagram-worthy setting here. If you are new to Georgian wine, don’t fret. This place boasts an in-house sommelier, Zaza Grigalashvili, who is knowledgeable about Georgian wines and is able to guide you through the wide selection. Take a peek at this stunning-looking wine outlet in this YouTube video appended:

For the book event, we had a perfect turnout of 40 people—a size large enough to create a festive mood and small enough for an intimate tasting session. The crowd consisted of locals, expats, enthusiasts, casual drinkers, diplomats, and winemakers. Four Georgia wines were presented and tasted at the session. These four wines were thoughtfully selected to:

• Show the participants that amber wines can be elegant and accessible. Contrary to popular belief, they aren’t always mousey, tannic, and challenging to unfamiliar palates.
• Present the work by a mix of big producer (Teliani Valley), artisanal qvevri wine producer (Tchotiashvili and Pheasant’s Tears), and new-generation young gun (Artizani).
• Let the participants experience the different expressions of a grape variety (Saperavi).

The tasting notes below are simpler than our usual style, with limited technical notes. The reason for this is during the session, we wanted to drop most of the detailed descriptors and help participants to “feel” the wines and articulate why they like or dislike each wine.

Exploring Georgian Wine at 8000 Vintages

1. Pheasant’s Tears Winery Mtsvane 2015
An aromatic nose dominated by orange peel and ripe stone fruit. On the palate, it is juicy, harmonious, and soft. A crowd pleaser and an easy introduction to amber wine as it is light and crisp. Pheasant’s Tears is mentioned in our book Uncorking the Caucasus as one of our favorite wineries in Georgia.

2. Kakha Tchotiashvili Rcheuli Qvevri Rkatsiteli 2013
This wine has a deep tangerine hue even though the label states it’s a white wine. The nose is more muted than the Pheasant’s Tears Mtsvane, but don’t be fooled because the protagonist is in the mouth. This wine is structured, expressive, with tannins that kick in on the mid-palate, and the end palate is precise and long. Flavors of apricot, peach, forest leaves, and a touch of earth. Rkatsiteli wines that have gone through extended periods of skin contact can be unique and delicious. They can be grippy but are incredibly food-friendly wines. Specifically for this wine, it can be paired well with many robust meat dishes.

3. Artizani Saperavi 2015 
Fermented with wild yeast in stainless steel tank and temperature control; no sulfite or additive was added;  unfiltered wine. The aroma takes awhile to open up. After some aeration, this wine expresses an honest interpretation of Saperavi—fresh burst of berries, forest floor and licorice in its aroma, with a surprising twist of floral characteristics on the palate. Great structure and balance; a well-made wine that can see many years of aging in the bottle and continue to blossom. This is the first vintage of Artizani and comes in a small production of 1,100 bottles.

4. Teliani Valley Georgian Winery Kindzmarauli 2013
This wine is mentioned in our book. Kindzmarauli is an appellation found in the Kvarli, Kakheti part of Georgia. Wines that bear the name of this appellation are always semi-sweet red made from the indigenous variety Saperavi. This wine is well-received by almost everyone, even the non-sweet wine lovers, at the event. On the nose, it’s full of toffee and tart plum; and in the mouth, it is reminiscent of a dark berry pie. With 35g/l of residual sugar, it surprisingly leaves no heaviness or coating sensation in the mouth. A perfect match for Churchkhela (traditional Georgian but candy) or a gamey stew.

Click here to view more photos from our book launch events.

Learn More About the Indigenous & Ancient Grape Varieties from Georgia

Mtsvane

“mits-vah-neh”
Short for Mtsvane Kakhuri, an ancient variety indigenous to the Kakheti region of southeast Georgia. Mtsvane means “green” in Georgian. This white variety is diverse and ramified, with many derivatives growing throughout Georgia. Mtsvane maintains a relatively high level of acidity even as the sugar level goes up. It is a hardy variety that can survive the cold winters in Georgia. The varietal wine made from Mtsvane is slightly greenish in color, with characteristics of peach, apricot, pineapple, citrus, and flowers, supported by delightful crispness. When produced in the qvevri, it produces a dark amber, sometimes reddish, wine. The body and flavors vacillate back and forth in the mouth between the semblances of red, rosé, and white wines. As a relatively aromatic variety, Mtsvane often plays a part in white blends. In some of the most famous appellations for Georgian white wines such as Manavi and Tsinandali, Mtsvane is blended with Rkatsiteli.

Rkatsiteli

“rah-kats-ee-teh-lee”
Rkatsiteli, whose name means “red stem”, is a ubiquitous white wine variety that comprises nearly half of Georgia’s vineyard plantings. It is a hardy and easy-to-grow grape as it is resistant to cold and maintains a high level of acidity and sugar as it ripens. It can be made into dry, semi-sweet, and fortified wines, and also brandy. This variety is treated in both the traditional Georgian qvevri style with extended skin contact and the conventional-style white wine technique. In the conventional style, it becomes a well-balanced, medium-bodied white wine with a touch of spice. When made in the qvevri style, it takes on an amber tone, a forceful structure, and beautiful creaminess on the palate. Rkatsiteli is to Georgia as Chardonnay is to California.

Saperavi

“sah-per-ra-vee “
Saperavi means “color/dye.” This is the most widely planted red wine variety in Georgia. Like Alicante Bouschet, it is teinturier with red flesh and red juice. This dark-skinned and dark-fleshed grape makes deep red, inky, and often opaque wine with heavy body and profound texture. Some wineries in the country label it as black wine instead of red. Due to the grape’s marked acidity and myriad characteristics of black fruit, licorice, chocolate, earth, smoked meat, tobacco, savory spice, and pepper, it is extremely versatile and can be made into rosé, dry, semi-sweet, sweet, and fortified wines. A dry red Saperavi wine resembles a mix between Blaufrankisch and Syrah.

Uncorking the Caucasus: Wines from Turkey, Armenia, and Georgia
is available on Amazon.

Thank you 8000 Vintages for hosting the event and providing tasting samples of the wines. 

You May Also Enjoy
Simon Woolf: Amber Revolution
The Unstoppable Progress in the Georgian Wine Scene
Exotic Wine Travel’s 16 Wines of 2016 (Georgian wine scored two spots out of 16!)
Tsitska-Tsolikouri Amber Wine from Imereti, Georgia
A Brief History of Wine from the Caucasus

The post Exploring the Different Expressions of Georgian Wine appeared first on Wine Travel.

For a listing of articles and videos on Georgian wines and wine travel in Georgia, check out our page Uncorking the Caucasus. To purchase the Kindle or paperback copy of the book Uncorking the Caucasus: Wines from Turkey, Armenia, and Georgia, please head to this Amazon product page.

We were strolling in the cool, rainy fall night in downtown Tbilisi. After exiting the metro and walking past Liberty Square, we turned the corner down an old street. In the middle of the unlit street, there was a door and a standing blackboard. Those two items didn’t fit in with the environment but signaled the entrance to a non-smoking (rare in Georgia) basement restaurant.

We had an appointment with John Wurdeman, owner of the restaurant Azarphesha and the winery Pheasant’s Tears. It started out as one of those nights we have seen so often in the last year–the winemakers sit down and share their stories; we drink some of their wines; and new relationships between people, places, and wines are formed. This night was orchestrated slightly differently–perhaps with a poetic and philosophical slant–by dint of John’s innate qualities; he’s a charming storyteller and a prolific artist of many forms.

The night commenced with just John and us. Over the course of the evening, John’s business partner came, then the wife of the business partner, and then one of John’s friends. The restaurant started to fill up and John and his gang began to perform the famed Georgian polyphonic singing. Next, the guitar came out, then more wine, and then the drinking horns.

Called “Kantsi” in Georgian,  the drinking horn is a vessel typically made from an animal horn. Once it is filled, one cannot put it down until the content is emptied–preferably done in one continuous series of gulps. When done drinking, the holder turns the horn upside down and proves to everyone that the content has been emptied out. 

By the end of the night, eight hours of delicious natural wines and memorable Georgian dishes were in the books. What was fascinating was that we didn’t drink solely wines by Pheasant’s Tears; John chose to showcase natural wines by several different producers whom he believed are doing great things in Georgia. We even ended the night with a wonderful bottle from an Italian wine producer.

Natural wines generally have no middle ground; people usually love or hate them.

While we may be partial to amber and natural wines, we believe that several of these wines do have the ability to win conventional wine drinkers over to the natural camp. In this context, when we use the term “natural wines”, we are referring to wines that are chemical-free and unfiltered, with little to no sulfites added. Here’s a recap of the wines from that night, along with tasting notes (of course).

• Kidev erti Tavkveri Pét Nat NV

Tavkveri is a red wine variety from eastern Georgia, native to Kartli but also grown in Kakheti. It is a high-yielding variety and can be made into dry red, dry Rosé, sparkling, and sweet wines. Currently, it isn’t a widely used variety for wine production, even though it shows a lot of potential to deliver many types of crowd-pleasing wine.

This is a pétillant naturel which means that the wine is bottled before the first fermentation of the wine is finished. The fermentation finishes in the bottle which gives off the bubbles. This is a technique embraced by many natural wine producers. This wine is made by a Frenchman living in Georgia. It is light and has persistent bubbles that create a frizzante sensation in the mouth. It is clear and pink in color. There are subtle strawberry and cream soda flavors, which have us craving for more intensity from this wine.

• Makaridze Winery Tsitska 2015

Tsitska is a grape variety grown in west Georgia and a variety that we have become very fond of. This traditional qvevri wine is incredibly light, crisp, and delicious. The flavors are dominated by characteristics of peach, pear, melon, and lemon. This wine has obviously received skin contact because of the nice, soft tannins but people might not think it is a qvevri wine because of the lack of nuttiness. A refreshing wine that kickstarts a celebratory evening on the perfect note.

• Archil Natsvlishvili Rkatsiteli 2015 

Rkatsiteli is the most ubiquitous white wine variety in Georgia; almost half of the white wine grapes grown in Georgia are Rkatsiteli. It is a hardy variety that is resistant to cold weathers and maintains high acidity and high sugar as it ripens. This variety can be made into dry, semi-sweet, and fortified wines and brandy. Rkatsiteli is relatively quiet in aroma and as such, is often blended with Mtsvane Kakhuri to create a more expressive nose. Such blends of Rkatsiteli-Mtsvane Kakhuri are found in PDOs like Gurjaani, Tsinandali, and Vazisubani.

John is usually a strong proponent of this wine but is disappointed with how it’s showing this particular evening. The first aroma that pops out of this amber wine is peeled banana. Flavors of pineapple, peach, and apricot show up afterward and the grippy tannins make this a perfect companion to food. Wonderful and well-made, with not even a trace of muskiness–a common characteristic found in many natural wines–but not the most striking bottle.

• Tsikhelishvili Wines Rkatsiteli 2013

Made by a winemaker who owns two-hectare of vineyards and uses the grapes to produce only this wine and a Mtsvane. This is the star of the night for both of us, Charine and Matthew. It is an amber wine made in Kakhetian qvevri method–a method that is touted to create the fullest, most powerful and most expressive wine in Georgia. Golden in color; on the nose, it has aromas of cherry, strawberry, cilantro, and a touch of straw. On the palate, it shows up immediately with a pronounced yet gentle weight, held together by a directive structure. A wine that shows the typical flavors of a well-made amber wine with characteristics of honey and green tea, yet it drinks like a fresh red wine with its red fruit and dark floral notes and astringent tannins.

• Pheasant’s Tears Rkatsiteli 2015

A bright color, clean, and fresh qvevri wine. The explosive flavors are reminiscent of pineapple, lemon, and apricot, executed with a gentle weight on the palate. Despite the skin contact, there is no nuttiness present but the tannins may be considered strong by a lot of people. A bodacious wine that does very well with food.

• Pheasant’s Tears Rosé Rkatsiteli 2015

Made with a rare clone of Rkatsiteli in traditional qvevri style; Rkatsiteli is typically used to make white or amber wine, but this clone departs an alluring bright ruby red pigmentation to this rosé wine. The wine is light on the palate and shows flavors of  strawberry, apricot, and nuts, powered by a subtle but distinct grip. This is the first vintage of a Rosé Rkatsiteli made by Pheasant’s Tears and is a very solid offering. 

• Dario Prinčič Pinot Grigio 2011

We end the night with this wine and it takes about 20 minutes to open up and fully expresses itself. It starts off shy with a pronounced musky aroma. The extended skin contact shows in the color–a light pink hue that can fool people into thinking that it might be a rosé wine. This wine has wonderful flavors of strawberry, pineapple, apricot, nuts, with a hint of rubber and petrol, held together by a tannic spine. Charine doesn’t appreciate this wine while Matt finds it tremendous and ties it with the Tsikhelishvili Rkatsiteli as the wine of the evening.

You May Also Enjoy
The Unstoppable Progress in the Georgian Wine Scene
An Introduction to Georgian Qvevri Wine in Zagreb
Trendsetter: Dr Eko Glonti from Lagvinari Winery, Georgia
A Brief History of Wines from the Caucasus

Note: The ideas expressed in this article are personal opinions and are not associated with any sponsors or business promotions.

The post A Night of Natural Wines in Tbilisi, Georgia appeared first on Wine Travel.

For a listing of articles and videos on Georgian wines and wine travel in Georgia, check out our page Uncorking the Caucasus. To purchase the Kindle or paperback copy of Uncorking the Caucasus: Wines from Turkey, Armenia, and Georgia, please head to this Amazon product page.

In traditional Georgian winemaking, fermentation and aging happen in the qvevri (pronounce “kway-vree”)–an egg-shaped, beeswax-lined clay vessel that is buried underground up to the neck. The qvevri is filled with grapes, their skins and pips, and sometimes the stems too. Fermentation in the open qvevri relies on wild yeast instead of inoculated yeast. Geothermal regulation keeps the fermentation and wine at a constant, cool temperature. As the wine ferments, the qvevri’s conical shape promotes circulation and clarifies the wine naturally. After fermentation, the qvevri is sealed with a wooden lid and beeswax or clay. It is opened anywhere between a few months and a few years later for the wine to be bottled or consumed immediately.

Currently, there are over 200 commercial producers in Georgia, ranging from large wineries and export giants like Badagoni and Teliani Valley, to extremely small, artisanal producers. Depending on the source, commercial qvevri wine is said to be around 10 percent of the total Georgian wine production. Most commercial qvevri wines are “natural wines”, made with little to no intervention and no modern contraptions; this means the wine is made with organic grapes and vinified without heavy machinery, selected yeast, blocked malolactic fermentation, additives, and fining agents.

Grapes in a qvevri.

When we first arrived in Georgia, we had no idea what to expect from its wines and ancient winemaking method.  A qvevri wine producer that kept coming up in conversations and social media was Pheasant’s Tears. The winery was started by American artist, John Wurdeman, who moved to Georgia in 1996.

Check out our video interview with John Wurdeman here.

When John started making wine alongside eighth-generation Georgian winemaker Gela Patalishvili, he had no idea what to name it. After sampling the wine, a local told John that it reminded him of a Georgian legend. The legend speaks of a wine so fine that it makes pheasants cry. With that, John found the name for his winery.

Pheasant’s Tears is making boundary-pushing wines that constantly raise the bar for what is possible in Georgia. Their first harvest in 2009 included a few autochthonous grapes that had not been commercially bottled for hundreds of years. All of Pheasant’s Tears wines are fermented and matured in the qvevri. The winery is near the medieval hilltop town of Sighnaghi, in the Kakheti wine region. We highly recommend trying everything in Pheasant’s Tears portfolio to get an understanding of Georgian qvevri wines. All the wines can be tasted at the Pheasant’s Tears restaurant in Sighnaghi and Vino Underground in Tbilisi—both places also carry a collection of minimal-intervention wines from all over the world.

Exotic Wine Travel’s Choice:
Pheasant’s Tears, Chinuri, Dry Unfiltered White Wine, 2014

The Pheasant’s Tears Chinuri 2014 was the first wine in Georgia to completely knock our socks off. We first drank this wine at the Pheasant’s Tears restaurant where we enjoyed a seemingly endless flow of excellent Georgian dishes and wines made of indigenous varieties such as Tsolikouri, Mtsvane, Rkatsiteli, Tavkveri, Saperavi, and—of course—Chinuri.

Even though it is labeled as “White Wine”, this Pheasant’s Tears Chinuri should be considered an amber wine/orange wine because it was macerated. It also has a golden hue. The flavor profile is made up of ripe tropical fruits (almost like Hawaiian Punch), peach, melon, yellow flowers, and a surprising touch of red fruit characteristics. In the mouth, it is delicate with a slightly frizzante sensation on the tongue that guides the flavors over the palate into a tangy, citrus finish. The acidity and smorgasbord of fruit flavors make it a refreshing and expressive wine. This is THE wine we would recommend to people who wish to try qvevri wine for the first time.

Find or buy Pheasant’s Tears wines at Wine Searcher.

About Chinuri

Chinuri is a wine grape from the Kartli wine region in east Georgia, but it is also planted in Kakheti. The name “Chinuri” is derived from the Georgian word “Chinebuli”, which means “excellent”. It is not a widely planted variety, and you will have to do some serious searching to find a varietal wine made from it. Because of its relatively high acidity, Chinuri is also used to make sparkling wine.

You May Also Enjoy

• Pheasant’s Tears Chitistvala 2015
• The Unstoppable Progress in the Georgian Wine Scene
• An Introduction to Georgian Qvevri Wine in Zagreb
• A Brief History of Wines from the Caucasus

Please note that the opinions expressed in this article are unsolicited and have not been paid for in any way by governmental bodies, enterprises, or individuals. We do not sell editorial content as that would destroy the legitimacy of our reviews and the trust between Exotic Wine Travel and its readers. On occasion, we extend the option of purchasing the wines we review or/and the products we spotlight. Some of these product links are set up through affiliate programs, which means Exotic Wine Travel gets referral credits if you choose to purchase these items via the links we provide.

The post Pheasant’s Tears: Chinuri Wine from Georgia appeared first on Wine Travel.