Grape harvest kicks off in Racha, western Georgia

The 2014 grape harvest is in full swing in Racha, a prominent winemaking region in western Georgia while it has nearly ended in Kakheti, another leading wine-producing region in the country’s east.

Growers in the Racha region are expecting a harvest of up to 970 tonnes – about the same as last year. But in Kakheti where the picking season was further progressed, Georgian farmers enjoyed the benefits of a bumper harvest and earned 115 million GEL by selling 115,000 tonnes of grapes this year.

A coordination centre for grape vintage under the supervision of the government, Rtveli 2014 was established in Racha and worked as a 24/7 service. Furthermore, 10 private wine plants purchased grapes from farmers.

The Georgian Government did not allocated a state subsidy to winemakers in Racha as it believed demand for the grapes would be high. However, a subsidy for white wine grapes was determined as 35 tetri and black grapes as 15 tetri per kg.

According to the Georgian Ministry of Agriculture, the average price for black grape varieties like Aleksandrouli and Mujuretuli was 8 GEL.

One of Racha region’s most famous wines was Khvanchkara – a high-end, naturally semi-sweet red made from Alexandria and Mudzhuretuli grape varieties and only cultivated in Khvanchkara vineyards in Racha.

The wine had a strong, distinctive bouquet and a well-balanced tannin profile with flavours of raspberry. It was a dark-ruby colour. Khvanchkara wine was one of the most popular Georgian semi-sweet wines.

The wine has been made since 1907. In recent years it has been awarded two gold and four silver medals at various international exhibitions.