A large Georgian qvevri has been placed in front of the Georgian Embassy to the United States as the country marked Georgian wine day yesterday.
The Georgian Embassy to US hosted "the Georgian qvevri opening ceremony with the wine tasting".
Qvevri is a Georgian wine-making vessel, which is usually buried in the ground or set on the floor in large cellars. It is used for fermentation, storage and ageing of wine.
Georgia - Cradle of Wine - counts 8,000 years of non-stop wine making tradition. The unique technology of natural wine-making in Georgia is linked to Qvevri, traditional egg-shaped vessel”, the Georgian Embassy to US wrote on its Facebook page.
The fertile valleys of the South Caucasus, which Georgia straddles, are believed by many archaeologists to be the source of the world's first cultivated grapevines and Neolithic wine production over 8,000 years ago.
Spotted outside the @GeorgianEmbassy. Qvevri! Celebrating Georgian wine #GEOUS @BakradzeDavid pic.twitter.com/wsrrvuwTVA
— Scott Cullinane (@ScottPCullinane) October 4, 2019
Qvevri wine-making is an ancient Georgian tradition that has been passed down the generations that even today remains widespread around the country.
In 2013 Georgia’s unique traditional method of fermenting wine in qvevri was registered on the Intangible Cultural Heritage list of the UN educational, scientific and cultural organisation (UNESCO).