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GEORGIA IS HONOURED23 / 05 / 2016
Abandoned under the influence of the USSR, Georgian traditional winemaking techniques are again used.
The Congress of Oenologists of France, which started on Wednesday 18 May in Tours (Indre-et-Loire, France), honours Georgia, invited to this 56th edition. This Caucasus country, located on the border between Europe and Asia, is considered by many experts as the historical cradle of viticulture. Recent archaeological excavations in Kakheti, southeast of the country, have discovered fragments of vineyards and traces of utensils used for wine making dating back to the eighth century B.C.
Georgia is known for its extremely favourable climate for vine growing. It abounds in fertile regions in the eastear and westear parts of the country, such as Kakheti, Imereti, Kartli and Racha-Lechkhumi, offering it a substantial aromatic range. Georgian producers have been able to adapt their supply to global demand for quality, but some of them have nevertheless retained their ancestral production method. The custom is to use qvevris, large jars clay similar to the Greek amphora. They are covered with lime and buried, so as to solely leave the neck over the ground, by which the grape is poured. They are then hermetically sealed with a cork stopper, to maintain a constant temperature generally between 14 and 15 °C. This process triggers a natural fermentation and allows to obtain a unique result, totally different from grape vinified in oak barrels. The oldest Georgian qvevris have nearly 7,000 years, attesting the transmission of this antique knowledge from generation to generation. This traditional method has even been included in the list of Intangible Heritage of the UNESCO in December 2013.
However, in 2006, on the pretext of insufficient quality wines, Russia defended their importation, causing the ruin of Georgian wine producers who exported until then 91% of their production to the Russian market. But in June 2013, following the lifting of the embargo, viticulture has become again one the most flourishing sectors of the country's agricultural economy. Since then, Georgia tries to fight against poor quality varieties by introducing specific legislation at every stage of wine production. The Sakpatenti, the National Center of Intellectual Property of Georgia's, is charged to enforce these procedures and monitor the marketing of Georgian wines on foreign markets. Economic problems during the Russian embargo have raised awareness in Georgia on the importance of developing on new markets, in order not to be dependent on a single actor. So, even if most of the wine production is exported to the Baltic region, the country has been able to create new interactions and now sells 20% of its wines in the European Union and 10% in the US. It imposes itself each day more and more on the international stage and is now a country with one of the strongest potentials of wine development. By combining its historic know-how to an international development strategy, Georgia has now a competitive advantage in many countries. The growing interest that arouse these wines guarantees a very promising future for Georgian producers on the world wine market.
Georgia is known for its extremely favourable climate for vine growing. It abounds in fertile regions in the eastear and westear parts of the country, such as Kakheti, Imereti, Kartli and Racha-Lechkhumi, offering it a substantial aromatic range. Georgian producers have been able to adapt their supply to global demand for quality, but some of them have nevertheless retained their ancestral production method. The custom is to use qvevris, large jars clay similar to the Greek amphora. They are covered with lime and buried, so as to solely leave the neck over the ground, by which the grape is poured. They are then hermetically sealed with a cork stopper, to maintain a constant temperature generally between 14 and 15 °C. This process triggers a natural fermentation and allows to obtain a unique result, totally different from grape vinified in oak barrels. The oldest Georgian qvevris have nearly 7,000 years, attesting the transmission of this antique knowledge from generation to generation. This traditional method has even been included in the list of Intangible Heritage of the UNESCO in December 2013.
However, in 2006, on the pretext of insufficient quality wines, Russia defended their importation, causing the ruin of Georgian wine producers who exported until then 91% of their production to the Russian market. But in June 2013, following the lifting of the embargo, viticulture has become again one the most flourishing sectors of the country's agricultural economy. Since then, Georgia tries to fight against poor quality varieties by introducing specific legislation at every stage of wine production. The Sakpatenti, the National Center of Intellectual Property of Georgia's, is charged to enforce these procedures and monitor the marketing of Georgian wines on foreign markets. Economic problems during the Russian embargo have raised awareness in Georgia on the importance of developing on new markets, in order not to be dependent on a single actor. So, even if most of the wine production is exported to the Baltic region, the country has been able to create new interactions and now sells 20% of its wines in the European Union and 10% in the US. It imposes itself each day more and more on the international stage and is now a country with one of the strongest potentials of wine development. By combining its historic know-how to an international development strategy, Georgia has now a competitive advantage in many countries. The growing interest that arouse these wines guarantees a very promising future for Georgian producers on the world wine market.
