📜 Tsinandali

Tsinandali is a Georgian protected appellation of origin for dry white and dry red wine from a micro-zone in Telavi Municipality, Kakheti, on the right bank of the Alazani. It was registered as Georgia's appellation No. 3 on 30 August 2005. ¹ Under the EU–Georgia Association Agreement the name is also protected in the European Union. ²

Where it comes from. The micro-zone runs from the north-eastern forest slopes of the Tsiv-Gombori range down to the Alazani valley, between the Chuma gorge in the north-west and the Akura gorge in the south-east. It takes in 15 villages, among them Tsinandali, Akura, Vanta, Kondoli, Ruispiri and Ikalto. The grapes must come only from vineyards there, at 350–700 m, but they may be pressed and made into wine anywhere in Kakheti. ¹

Climate. The specification describes a moderately humid climate with hot summers and mild winters and more than 2,300 hours of sunshine a year. The mean annual temperature is 12.4 °C, with 23.2 °C in July and August and 0.9 °C in January. About 845 mm of rain falls a year, most of it in May, and the growing season lasts 208 days. Buds open in mid-April and grapes start to ripen in the second half of August. Hail is the main risk, especially in May and June. ¹

Soils. Brown soils 70–100 cm deep cover the upper part of the zone, while deeper alluvial and proluvial soils of 100–150 cm lie lower towards the Alazani. Most are medium or heavy clay with only 1–2.5% humus and 2.5–16% calcium carbonate, and they are mildly alkaline. The specification links these lime-rich soils with the quality of the wine. ¹

Grapes and vineyards. White Tsinandali is made from Rkatsiteli, at least 85%, and Mtsvane Kakhuri, at most 15%; red Tsinandali only from Saperavi. Rows are 1–3 m apart, vines 0.8–1.5 m apart in the row, and trunks 60–90 cm high. The grapes must reach at least 19% sugar, yields are capped at 10 t/ha for Rkatsiteli and Saperavi and 8 t/ha for Mtsvane Kakhuri, and a tonne may give no more than 650 litres of wine. Grapes may travel only in wooden or plastic crates, never in plastic bags. ¹

How it is made. The white is fermented from free-run juice that is first settled and then fermented at no more than 20 °C. The red is destemmed, fermented at up to 30 °C and then goes through malolactic fermentation. Either may be bottled young or aged in wooden barrels for at least six months, and it may be sold only in bottles. ¹ The National Wine Agency names Tsinandali as the classic example of European-style wine from Kakhetian grapes. ³ Georgian law requires every wine with a protected appellation to be certified and tasted by a state commission before sale. ⁴

In the glass. The white should be light straw in colour, with meadow flowers, fruit and citrus, and the red dark red, full and velvety. Both need at least 11% actual alcohol and no more than 15% total, at most 4 g/l sugar and at least 5 g/l acidity. The limits for sulphur dioxide are 200 mg/l for the white and 150 mg/l for the red, and the sugar-free extract must reach 16 g/l and 22 g/l. ¹

History. In 1835 the nobleman Aleksandre Chavchavadze borrowed a million roubles to improve his estates and built a large cellar with a wine laboratory at Tsinandali. From the 1880s a state estates department bought about 2,000 hectares around the village and in 1886–1887 built a two-storey cellar, a palace and a barrel workshop. Tsinandali Rkatsiteli No. 13, Green Tsinandali No. 14 and Saperavi Tsinandali No. 16 won top marks at the Chicago exhibition of 1892, and a three-year school of viticulture opened there in 1897. By 1990 the wine had won 10 gold and 9 silver medals. ¹

Why it matters to you. Tsinandali is a place name with rules, not a brand, so read whether the bottle is white or red and look for the dry style it promises. ¹ Thanks to the agreement with the EU, wine sold there under this name must come from Georgia. ² WHO stresses that there is no safe level of alcohol consumption. ⁵