WINE

There's  been wine in Georgia almost as long as there have been Georgians. Wine is central to the Georgian life-style and to their self-image. Almost everyone drinks large quantities. There are some 500 varieties of grapes in Georgia; 38 varieties are commonly used. Draught wine is about 80 to 90% of the domestic market - each village produces its own wine.

The national beer is Kazbegi, a tangy German-style brew produced in Tbilisi since 1881. Today the Natakhtari brewery produces Czech-style beer which is much more widely available and probably more tasty (drank some at the Cathedral) than others.

Jon says that almost every family in Georgia has their own grape vines/vineyard. Even here in the central city where Jon and Julissa live, vines are found on trellises over the public sidewalk or in the small backyards, or on vines that to up to second story decks of apartments.

A vineyard on a second story balcony.

A sidewalk trellis near Jon and Julissa's apartment.

A whole basket of wine corks at Vino Underground, a marvelous experience in wine tasting.

We learned the difference between "factory" wine and organic wine. Most of what we tasted was "REAL" organic wine, more often than not, very dry. But it was a wonderful learning experience from a knowledgeable source.

CLICK HERE to see the wine tasting event at Vino Underground.

Our host at Vino Underground was Otto John.

The wine here is unbelieveable and mighty tasty!!!

Tune in later on to get a view of some of the vineyards in rural Georgia.