The FINANCIAL – Khvanchkara is possibly one of the most renowned and best-quality wines in Georgia. Khvanchkara wine draws its name from the village in which it is produced, situated in the Ambrolauri region of Racha, on the right bank of the river Rioni, and protected by high cliffs. This ancient winery can show any tourist that the region of Racha has much more to offer than just its mountains and amazing nature.
The village Khvanchkara, where this winery is located, is a truly historic area for wine-making in Georgia. Established in the early 20th century, the winery Khvanchkara–“Khvanchkara production”, was started by the Georgian noble Dimitri Kipiani, in the 1880s. He made perfect demi-doux (semi-sweet) red wine from the unique Aleksandrouli and Mujuretuli grape varieties by the process of incomplete fermentation. It was there after known as “The Kipiani Wine”.
Before the business was taken over by its current managers, “Khvanchkara” LTD, today known as Khvanchkara Winery, was established in 1996 and passed through the several owners. Since 2010, David Chanturia has brought shares of company. And since 2017 its Executive Director has been Giorgi Chanturia, his son, and together with his team, he has been continuing its fine wine-making traditions:
Since 2010…
“Lots of things have changed since 2010. First of all, we carried out rebranding, changed the logo, and patented our heraldic emblem. What’s more, an exclusive bottle has been created especially for our products, made in Brno, in the Czech Republic.”
“This is also the second year that we have bought Italian equipment with refrigeration systems. It is also noteworthy that before 2010, only 2 kinds of wines were in production, while today our portfolio includes 10 different varieties of wine.”
“And in the very nearest future, in May, a specially branded shop-restaurant will open, where it will be possible to buy our products or just sit in the restaurant and try our wine.”
Products
“Our products are separated into two categories: premium and economy. And for the future, we are planning to add a Georgian brandy of an exclusive high category with 35 years of aging.”
“Our assortment includes: Natural semi-sweet red wine Khvanchkara; Dry red wine Aleksandrouli, from our region; Dry white wine “Tsitska”, from Imereti, which is one of the most popular of our wines; Dry white wine “Tsinandali”; Semi-sweet red wine “Kindzmarauli”; Dry red wine “Saperavi”; Dry white wine “Rkatsiteli”; Semi-sweet red wine “Alazani Valley”; Semi-dry pink wine “Rosé”; and Georgian brandy Khvanchkara “XO” that we issued last year and is made from 15 year-aged Khvanchkara wine spirit.”
“Our strategy is as follows: We want to offer a great and high quality assortment, but our main goal is for our product to become the most in-demand and for us to become well known as a specifically Khvanchkara manufacturing company.”
A customer of Khvanchkara wine should know that…
“In our winery the wine is made according to ancient traditions, as Prince Dmitri Kipiani did at the time, and not by the method modern factories are following. This is a very different style that is expressed in the wine’s taste and quality. Khvanchkara made by our wine-makers with its natural features, specific to our region, is completely different from the Khvanchkara made in the Kakheti region.”
Popularization
“It’s been two years already since we began the rehabilitation process of the winery and we are still adapting it to modern technologies. This is being done in order to attract as many tourists as possible. We already have a lot of visitors and there is large interest from foreigners. The history and antiquity of the factory is always a big surprise to visitors.”
‘Furthermore, the export of wine is one of the major priorities of our company. We care that as many people as possible learn about our wine.”
Future plans
“The plan for the future is to expand our work. We are thinking of working on amber (kvevri) wine, increasing the number of choices, number of products, and using the maximum resources. In addition, we plan to have the factory and company adapted to modern technologies and standards.”
“In the future we want our products and the company to become familiar with the world market and to gain recognition. For this it is necessary to finish updating the factory fully. We want to do great promotions for the product Khvanchkara and to make more and more customers know that there exists a wine company Khvanchkara that has a full century of history!”
By Eva Bolkvadze
