Nose
The nose reveals firmly structured aromas of cherry, spices, concentrated forest berries-black currant, blackberry and prunes.
Palate
A full-bodied wine with an initial palate of blackberry and other red and dark berry flavours. The middle palate is round, full and soft. Fresh, clean blackcurrant flavours and liquorice notes are balanced by attractive and ripe grape-tannin complexity. Moderate acidity and a full body harmonise well to deliver delicious long finish.
Growing Conditions
Imereti is, after Kakheti, Georgia’s second-largest wine producing region. Its climate is very favourable for viticulture, primarily thanks to the warmth and humidity of the Black Sea to the west and the shelter afforded by the Greater and Lesser Caucasus mountains to the north and south. In addition, most of Imereti (70%) is mountainous, giving the region a rich and diverse group of unique terroirs. Sviri microzone is located in Imereti Region, Zestaphoni municipality, on the left bank of the river Kvirila. Here, the weather from May to October is mostly sunny and dry. Middle humid subtropical climate with mild winter and hot summer. Soil types of Alvian, clay and sand-clay soils, mainly with southern exposition. The large accumulation of organic and mineral substances helps to produce high quality wines. Otskhanuri Sapere performs best features in this microzone.
Harvest
The 2018 season was one of the best in the microzone. It was characterised by less rain and dry, hot days. Sviri microzone farmers have quite small vineyards, so it is relatively easy to carefully select the best grapes from them to make this wine. Picking was done by hand in the evening, grapes were then transported with special containers owned by the company and crushed in the early morning. The grapes were crushed on 10 October.
Bottling
This wine is filtered before bottling in early Summer. Diam 5 corks are used on 4,500 bottles in total. The wine is stored and aged in the cellar where the temperature is 12-16 degrees and the humidity is 50-70%.
Winemaking
Western Georgia is home to around 100 indigenous varieties of grape from which high-quality red and white wines are produced. The traditional Imeretian (western) method of wine-making is slightly different from the more well-known Kakhetian (eastern) one. Although both rely upon underground clay amphorae, the Imeretian method also calls for the addition of small amounts of pomace to the grape juice during fermentation. The grapes are crushed directly in the Qvevri along with the grape skins and the juice soon begins to ferment under the action of wild yeasts. Fermentation takes about 7-10 days and after this, the wine is removed from grape skins and pips. The volume of these Qvevris does not exceed 1.000lt and the volume of the fresh juice at a time is 500lt. This allows the temperature in the Qvevri not to rise too much. Otskhanuri Sapere has small immature green grapes which were removed by hand along with the stalks. Juice yield does not exceed 50%.
Aging
Otskhanuri Sapere wines have good ageing potential and it is recommended to wait at least 2-3 years after vintage before consuming. Young wines are highly acidic so the winery works with the winter months by opening the cellar doors to cool it down even more. This encourages seed extraction from the wine, reducing the acidity and creating a softer and more balanced wine.
Appearance
The Otskhanuri Sapere has an intense ruby-red and dark cherry colour.
Food Pairing
Lamb, veal, grilled meats and vegetables, mushrooms, beef stew, and Gouda cheese.
