Georgia Winery Visits, Part 2

 As I pass through the region, I see a lot of young vineyards, a sign of strong growth. The vineyards look healthy. Many are quite closely planted, only suitable for hand harvesting. What will happen when salaries increase? The area is 600-800 meters in elevation, the diurnal variation is quite high.

My next stop is at Orgo. I am also tasting the Dakishvili range here, as both wineries have the same owner. Both wineries together produce 300,000 bottles per year, 70% in the traditional method.

The first wine is the Orgo 2021 Rkatsiteli. It has a similar flavour profile to the Schuchmann, with apricot and fig notes. It is a bit more acidic, and the mouthfeel is not as big (88 points). The 2020 Kisi shows a very dark amber colour, partly a result of the grape variety, but could also be because of late harvesting, longer skin contact or more substantial sulphur treatment. The green apple and apricot flavours are quite intense. It is an elegant wine with quite silky tannins (91 points). Then there is a cuvee from 2021, from 85% Rkatsiteli and some other varieties. This is a very fresh wine with apple and pear flavours, quite lush (89 points).

One of the unfortunate aspects of tasting in Georgia is that all wines are very young. Wineries are only starting now to hold some wines back. Apparently these white wines are ageing well. This is even more an issue with the red variety of Saperavi, which is acidic and tannic, and would benefit from ageing. However, here I taste the 2021 Saperavi, fermented in the clay amphora, and then transferred to stainless steel. In contrast to most other red varieties, not only the skin of the Saperavi grapes is red, but also the pulp. It is often labeled ‘black wine’. This wine bursts out with plum and black cherry flavours. It is an elegant wine with fine tannins (93 points).

The Dakishvili wines appear a little finer than the Orgo range. The colour in the wines is a little lighter. I taste a similar set. I rate the first three wines 90-92 points. A special wine is the last one, a 2020 50/50 blend of Saperavi and Cabernet Sauvignon. This wine combines the fleshy flavours of Saperavi with the elegance and length of Cabernet Sauvignon. It works well (93 points).