2018 Artevani Qisi - an elegant qvevri - made craft organic orange wine
The bottle we tasted was No. 1393 out of a limited edition of 1800 produced in 2018.
I've had a chance to taste quite a few of great Georgian orange wines coming in different styles, as well as to compare them to orange wines from northeast Italy and I must say that this is probably the most elegant orange wine I have tasted so far. So much so, that I'd recommend anybody who's not familiar with orange wines yet to start their experience with a bottle of 2018 Artevani Qisi. While having all attributes of a Georgian orange wine, including distinct aromatics and high tannins, this wine was totally "understandable" if I can put it this way.
This bottle of 2018 Artevani Qisi comes from Art Mtevani winery, located in Kakheti, the principal winemaking region in Georgia. The winery was set up in 2005 by hereditary winemaker Paat Sardalishvili whose signature you can see on the front label. The winery's philosophy is to produce high-quality wine in small quantities with high attention to details in every step of growing and making wine, so that the wine could expresses terroir at its best. As of 2012, the winery is a certified producer of organic wine and classify their wine as biological. All wines produced at Art Mtevani are qvevri-made.Kisi grapes come from Maghraani village located in the bend of Alazani River, that along with other three neighbouring villages may potentially form a new Protected Designation of Origin in Kakheti—“Maghraani Kisi”, covering a total area of 12.5 square kilometers. Kisi in a way is a face of contemporary Georgian winemaking. It was almost completely neglected for the most of the 20th century but enjoyed a comeback recently. Back in 2013 it was cultivated rather as an experiment but by 2019 it is being among the most well-known Georgian wine varieties.
Unlike other wines produced at Art Mtevani, 2018 Artevani Qisi doesn't have an organic certificate but it's produced in accordance with organic wine standards. It's was vinified in qvevri in contact with pomace for 7 months.
