🍇 Khikhvi
A white grape from Kakheti, Georgia, that makes dry and amber wines.
Khikhvi is a white wine grape from Kakheti, a winemaking region of Georgia. It is regarded as one of the oldest and most valued local varieties. It is grown mainly in Kakheti, in the Telavi, Gurjaani, Akhmeta, Signagi and Kvareli districts. It is one of the permitted varieties of the Kakheti (Kakhuri) appellation, and up to 15% of it may be added to Akhmeta amber wine and to Kardenakhi and Tsarapi wines.
Two types of wine are made from Khikhvi. The first is a dry, pale wine in a European style, aromatic, with notes of flowers, tropical fruit and citrus. The second is amber wine in the traditional way: the grapes ferment with their skins in a qvevri, a clay vessel buried in the ground. This wine is fuller, with tannin and notes of honey, dried fruit and spice.
The grape gives wines with good acidity and the ability to age. Khikhvi is often added to blends with other Kakhetian varieties.
It is served chilled with sweet pastries and Georgian dishes, above all with cheese.
How it connects to Wine
🍇 Khikhvi → kind of → 🍇 Grape varieties → kind of → 🍷 Wine
Links
- Part of
- 🍇 Grape varieties
- Origin
- 🗺️ Georgian wine
- Where it grows
- 📍 Kakheti, 📜 Kardenakhi, 📜 Akhmeta, 📜 Kakheti (Kakhuri), 📜 Tsarapi
- Wines made from it
- 🍷 Orange wine
Frequently asked questions
What is Khikhvi?
A white grape from Kakheti in Georgia used for pale dry wines and amber wines.
Where does Khikhvi grow?
Mainly in Kakheti, in the Telavi, Gurjaani, Akhmeta, Signagi and Kvareli districts. It is permitted in the Kakheti (Kakhuri) appellation and, up to 15%, in Akhmeta amber, Kardenakhi and Tsarapi wines.
How is amber wine different from the pale one?
Amber wine ferments with skins in a qvevri. It is fuller, with tannin and notes of honey and dried fruit.
What to read next
- 🗺️ Georgian wine — The country's wine and winemaking: regions, grapes and appellations.
- 🍷 Orange wine — White wine fermented with its skins; by the OIV definition (2020), white varieties only and at least 1 month of maceration.
Similar
🍇 Kisi · 🍇 Mtsvane Kakhuri · 🍇 Kakhis Tsiteli · 🍇 Kakhis Yurdzeni · 🍇 Akhmeturi Shavi · 🍇 Kakhis Vardisperi
Sources
- VIVC — Vitis International Variety Catalogue: passport KHIKHVI (no. 6178)
- National Parliamentary Library of Georgia — dictionary entry «Khikhvi»
- Product specification: Kakheti (Kakhuri) wine PDO, Georgia (GOV.UK)
- Product specification: Kardenakhi wine PDO, Georgia (GOV.UK)
- Product specification: Tsarapi wine PDO, Georgia (GOV.UK)
- Product specification: Akhmeta / Akhmetis Mtsvane wine PDO, Georgia (GOV.UK)
- Wikidata