Kirile, "Tsitska-Tsolikouri" 2019

In 2018, Arkadi Robakidze and Gogita Makaridze lost their dear friend and famous village Tamada (the Georgian name for the village "toast-master," one who is of quick-wit and commands the dinner table, large ceremonies, etc.). His name was Kirile. In memoriam, they decided to dedicate their winery after him and use his image on their labels. Kirile Wine Cellar is located over a tiny acreage of 0.8ha with four distinct plots of mainly clay soils in the central-western winemaking region of Georgia known as Imereti. This is a region of the historic winemaking nation (the first nation, by many accounts, to have ever made wine -- 8,000 vintages in!) that is known for both grape and mulberry production and, as such, is conducive to really lovely, deep wines. Imereti is itself one of the 5 major winemaking regions of Georgia, and the climate here lends itself particularly well to winemaking where the humid, salty air of the Black Sea wanders inland to temper the relatively arid conditions of Village Terjola where Kirile is located. The Rioni River is one of the major bodies of water that helps define the topography of Imereti. In the cellar, Kirile works in the traditional Georgian method, utilizing lined Qvevri, long macerations of white grapes and never adding any SO2 throughout the entire process nor fining or filtering the wines at any point. These are long, complex, deep and pure wines from an inimitable place very near the heart of the whole winemaking world.

Vinification: A blend of indigenous georgian varietals Tsitska and Tsolikouri. The grapes are organically farmed, hand-harvested, pressed and a transfered into the traditional Georgian Qvevri, where they undergo a long fermentation using indigenous yeasts. Unfined, unfiltered with no SO2.

Tasting: A medium-bodied, cloudy white. On the nose: beeswax, cultured butter, freshly milled-wheat and preserved lemon. On the palate: sharp acidity that beams into focus and gently recedes into the background like a shooting star. Golden delicious Apples, citrus peel and grilled mirabelle plums.