Telavi Wine Cellar
Famous Georgian Wine from
Georgian Wine from Alazani Valley
In the middle of Alazani Valley, lies Kakheti’s largest and most important city, Telavi. Just outside the city is where TELAVI WINE CELLAR was founded in 1915.
For nearly a century, TELAVI have blended innovation with a sense of history, keeping faithful to the noble traditions of Kakhetian winemaking, while adapting to modern methods to produce Georgian wines that would please the most refined, and discerning global palate. The Georgian wine of TELAVI WINE CELLAR embody the personality and diversity of Georgian viticulture and highlight the determination to present the best of the diverse local grape varieties and distinguished terroir.
Georgian Wine Tradition of Kakheti Region
Our vineyards have been cultivated for generations. The bibliographer Vakhushti Batonishvili mentioned our Kondoli vineyards as a source of noble wines, in his book of 1742 “Life of Georgia” For three centuries these have been the benchmark of quality, showcasing the best of Kakheti region.
The terrain is composed of alluvial, strongly skeletal, loamy soil on a limestone bedrock.
Climate, Vineyards, and Georgian Wine Variety
Climate is transitional from humid subtropical to continental under the influence of the Great Caucasus Mountains from the left bank of Alazani River and Tsiv-Gombori mountain range from the right. Cold air flows down the valley from the Caucasus glaciers, forming an ambient microclimate for quality viticulture with large swings between day and night temperatures, thus, ensuring perfect grape ripening conditions.
Of the 240 hectares of Kondoli vineyards, 30% are given to white grapes and 70% to reds. Most of the area is planted with indigenous Georgian vine varieties, such as Saperavi, Rkatsiteli, Alexandreuli, Mtsvane and Kisi. We dedicate a small area to international varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, Chardonnay and Riesling.
A further vineyard site (30.5h), planted purely with Saperavi vines, is situated on the opposite (left) bank of Alazani River, in the heart of famous Kindzmarauli Specific Viticulture Area.
We also have a smaller vineyard in the Napareuli appellation. The vine training systems are traditional for the Kakheti region: bilateral cane or spur pruning. The vine density per hectare is 2400-3400 and the grape yield can be no more than 9 tons per hectare for standard range of Georgian wines.
