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Kakheti is the most important wine region in Georgia in quantitative, qualitative and even historic terms. Almost three-quarters of the country's wine grapes are grown here, on land that has been used for viticulture for thousands of years. In June 2013, when Russia lifted its seven-year ban on Georgian wine imports, the first wines across the border were from Kakheti wineries.

Kakheti is home to some of the oldest human habitations in the entire Caucasus region, and archaeological findings have suggested that wine has been produced here for several thousand years. The region's strong relationship with wine and vine was captured in Georgia's famous hymn 'Thou Art a Vineyard', written in the 12th Century by Demetrius I – a king known for his writing and poetry – during his time at the David Gareja monastery in southern Kakheti (very close to Georgia's border with Azerbaijan). Demetrius dedicated the work to the region's fertility, and it remains an important part of Georgian heritage today.

Vineyards in Kakheti, Georgia
© Wikimedia/Levan Gokadze

The climate in Kakheti is moderate, with a similar average annual rainfall and heat summation to that of southern France. The nutrient-poor soils here are something of a trademark for Caucasian viticulture; their discovery saw the early Georgian vignerons (as far back as 6000 BC) stumble across near-perfect terroir millennia before the concept of terroir was formalized and given a name.

A particular kind of soil, called 'cinnamonic', is found in Kakheti's key wine-growing zones. This typically comprises sandy, reddish-colored, calcareous clays. The soil's color is the result of its high iron content, which also serves to bring depth of flavor and rustic, earthy notes to the local wines. This type of soil occurs in mostly dry regions where organic matter decays rapidly and does not accumulate in the topsoil. This motivates vines to dig deep in search of nutriment, forming strong, complex root systems without being deprived of water. Cinnamonic soils are found in various locations around the Black Sea, notably Kakheti and Apkhazeti in Georgia, Krasnodar Krai (a key wine region of southern Russia) and various parts of southern Bulgaria.

A historical Georgian province, Kakheti is not an official administrative province in the modern day. Viniculturally speaking, the area is unofficially divided into several sub-regions, and even a number of microregions. The most significant of these center around the villages of Tsinandali, Telavi, Gurajaani, Kvareli, Sagarejo and Sighnahi, which dot the banks of the Alazani River as it flows from the Caucasus Mountains to the Mingecevir reservoir in western Azerbaijan.

The principal grape varieties used in Kakheti's red wines (Saperavi and Cabernet Sauvignon) establish a balance between east and west, traditional and modern, Georgian and French. Their white counterparts are made mostly from Rkatsiteli and Kakhuri Mtsvani grapes.

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