In just two decades, Askaneli has grown to become one of the most dynamic wineries in Georgia. The name is derived from the village “Askana” in Guria, which is the hometown of charismatic founder Gocha Chkhaidze. Guria is a byword in Georgia for eccentric creativity, exuberant performance, and a dry, dark wit.

Brothers Vakho and Giorgi Khutsaidze consult to some of Georgia’s most admired wineries; this is their small family winery which they established in 2017. Dynamic and youthful, the brothers are experts in organic and low intervention viticulture in Georgia.

Nukri Kurdadze knows the big side of wine business: he had a successful career representing the wine brands of Pernod Ricard in Russia. On retirement, he followed his dream. With his son, Sandro, a philosophy graduate, he established a tiny, organic vineyard in the prize heart of Kakheti.

Giuaani is a young company with old origins. The Giuashvili family have farmed vineyards at Manavi, a noted wine village of Kakheti, since the 1800s. In 2010 they established Qiuaani, with a new winery containing both qvevri and modern technology.

This boutique producer makes tiny quantities of excellent wines, beautifully labelled and selectively distributed. They are already something of a cult among Tbilisi’s nascent trendy wine scene.

An exemplary larger producer, Schuchmann has shown the world the versatility, consistency and appeal of contemporary Georgian wine.

GWS is one of the biggest and most dynamic producers of Georgia. It emerged from the Soviet-era government winery “Telavi2”, which was established in the 1970s. In common with several former Soviet wineries, Telavi2 was purchased by forward-thinking entrepreneurs in the early 1990s, just as Georgia was emerging into independence.

Iago Bitarishvili makes just 5,000 bottles a year, but his influence and impact is that of a major, and visionary, producer. From his family vineyards in Kartli he makes arrestingly elegant Amber and White wines from the local Chinuri grape.

Khareba is a large and commercially significant Georgian wine producer with an aristocratic origin. As long ago as the 17th century, wines from its vineyards in Vachnadzeani, in Hereti, were championed by the noble Jandieri and the Vachnadze families.

Teliani are combining state of the art wine craft – the science of how to coax the best from nature – with a wisdom and inherited know-how that comes from a line of winemakers stretching back 8000 years.

Founded by a German-Georgian team near Telavi, Kakheti, this new winery is an example of the flourishing of Georgia’s boutique wine scene. The beautiful winery, courtyard garden and restaurant are built using the delicately proportioned hand-finished bricks and stone of local origin.