The country Georgia has the longest, continuous winemaking tradition on the globe. They have 8,000 vintages. Yet, much about the viticulture and enology from this country is unknown by wine enthusiasts. There are those in the United States who are exceptions. We are constantly in search for native Georgian varietal grapes grown in the United States and ancient Georgian winemaking technique with qvevri buried in the ground. Qvevri winemaking is the only winemaking process that is on the UNESCO list of Intangible Cultural Heritage.
Saperavi grapes
Sitting in the lobby of the Hotel Giò in Perugia, Italy, I joined a group from the country Georgia. Ia Tabagari was pouring wines from Georgia. Earlier that day I attended a session where Ia talked about qvevri winemaking. I found it extremely fascinating. The first wine Ia poured was an Rkatsiteli. I mentioned that I had wines made with this grape in the United States. The Georgians were surprised. Next they poured a Saperavi that I also had in the United States. The two main Georgian grapes, a white and a red, I have previously tasted at wineries in the Finger Lakes region of New York. In addition I had the white Rkatsiteli at wineries in Virginia.
Conducting a bit of research reveals the road these two varietal grapes have taken from Georgia to America. The six thousand mile journey was trekked by Dr. Konstantin Frank who managed a vineyard in the Kakheti region of eastern Georgia. Dr Frank eventually settled along Keuka Lake in the Finger Lakes region of New York. His research on cool and cold climate viticulture, while at the University of Odessa, led him to plant vitis vinifera grapes on his New York property. Dr. Frank is largely responsible for championing the planting of European grapes in the Finger Lakes region, where at the time native American grapes thrived.
Buried qvevri and one broken qvevri at Castle Hill Cider in Keswick, Virginia
Dennis Horton of Horton Cellars in Gordonsville, Virginia acquired Rkatsiteli cuttings from Dr. Frank and now has several acres of Rkatsiteli growing in Virginia. Other Virginia wineries source some of the Rkatsiteli grapes and produce Rkatsiteli wines. A few wineries in the Finger Lakes are growing Saperavi that has also made its way to a winery in central Pennsylvania. Fero Vineyards and Winery in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania acquired Saperavi grapes from Dr. Frank’s descendants and has produced their first vintage. Georgian grape varieties are slowly beginning to spread throughout the United States. What about ancient Georgia qvevri winemaking?
Marani at St. David Agmashenebeli, a Georgian Orthodox Monastery in Ashley, Pennsylvania
Our first view of qvevri in the United States was at Castle Hill Cider in Keswick, Virginia. Stuart Madany, production manager purchased several qvevris from craftsmen in Georgia and is fermenting cider in them. The qvevris were buried outside near the winery production area. Also buried outside, we observed a marani of qvevris at St. David Agmashenebeli, a Georgian Orthodox Monastery in Ashley just outside of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Then there is the buried qvevri that Kathy and I brought back from Georgia and buried outside our house in central Maryland. We made our first wine in that small qvevri in 2014.
As American winemakers become aware of qvevri winemaking, some will want to experiment. The biggest challenge is acquiring qvevris to bury. Fortunately, America has a qvevri maker in Texas. The Qvevri Project is a group that is supporting qvevri winemaking with Georgian grape varieties in the United States. Billy Ray Mangham of Sleeping Dog Pottery in San Marcos, Texas is making and selling qvevris. He traveled to Georgia and learned qvevri making from craftsmen. Joining Billy Ray on the Qvevri Project are winemakers Dr. Brent Trela and Tom Vincent. The Qvevri Project also conducts research investigating wine production in qvevri.
Our 1st qvevri wine made in Maryland
We have also heard of others in the United States who are growing Georgian grape varieties and making wine in qvevris, but we have not had an opportunity to visit them. Although qvevri winemaking may not be embraced by all American winemakers, there are enough who are creative and have a spark of interest in experimenting with wines made in buried qvevri. This interest is growing as more awareness of ancient winemaking techniques are learned.
Qvevri winemaking is fascinating due to its long history and the wines this technique produces. When you have an opportunity be sure to indulge in a tasting of qvevri-made wine.
For more information about wineries and winemaking in the country Georgia, visit our Georgia articles. For information about qvevri winemaking, check out our winemaking site.
Cheers,
Terry
-1.5in.jpg)
Someone Is Negative About Your Writing
Kathy and I experience this a few weeks ago. After doing nothing immediately, we let it rest for awhile and then composed a positive response. However, taking our particular tact did nothing to soften the blow. Years ago I copied a response by an author to a friend that was on the receiving end of negativity. Unfortunately, I have forgotten the source of this piece, but thought it may prove helpful to those attending the session and wondering about dealing with negativity.
I have an acquaintance with a New York Times best selling author originally from Bisbee and we’ve met more than once. Not long before one of our meetings, I had someone slam me and my writing, actually telling me I should go back to college and start over. When I shared this with this author, she said the following to me and I’ll never forget it:
Nancy, every writer worth their salt is told they can’t write. I was told this, Stephen King was told this, Dick Francis was told this, even Hemingway was told he should stop writing. Can you imagine a world without Hemingway? As much as it stings to hear you can’t write, understand from whom it’s coming and where it’s coming from. First, for a person to go out of their way to say something that mean to you tells me they’re mean like that in real life and not a happy person. The kind of anger expressed towards writers, when it comes from a fellow writer, comes from an extremely ugly place inside a person and that’s not someone I want to know. Second, and this is the most important, for someone like that to go out of their way to even say the things they say, well, they’re also incredibly jealous. My thoughts on this guy saying this to you? Enjoy the fact he has just put you in some incredible company and has assured your success.
I hope this helps you when you deal with negativity. The first half of the response was appropriate for us.
Cheers,
Terry