Much like Hungary, evidence of winemaking in Georgia dates as far back as 6000 BC, according to the archaeologists who discovered the distinctive clay pots used for fermentation long ago. These pots, or kvevris, remain a symbolic part of Georgian 
winemaking today.
As mentioned in our previous entry on Romania, the appropriation of private land by the Soviet Union had a devastating effect on viticulture across the Eastern Bloc, with up to 80% of vineyards lost in Georgia.
However, one producer that persevered throughout this regime was one of our own producers. Tbilvino started out as a huge factory in 1962, a bastion of winemaking for the USSR, apparently responsible for every 9 in 10 bottles across the united countries.
As the Iron Curtain fell in the early 90s, Tbilvino gained their independence and their own vineyards, breezing into the Western market as they concentrated and perfected their grape and wine production. Their pride of the Georgian traditions has driven their success, consistently winning awards from bodies such as the IWSC.
Tbilvino believe it is their duty to represent “the image of a country with thousands of years of winemaking tradition”. What better way to do so than by using traditional Georgian grapes like Saperavi and Rkatsiteli, with some wines still made in a good old fashioned kvevris.
