The archive of the Institute of Viticulture and Winemaking contains interesting information about when and how Georgian wine began its journey.
According to these reports, Europe got acquainted with Georgian wines at the turn of the XIX-XX centuries. In 1900, at the Paris exhibition, Georgian winemaking had a great place. The Newspapers of that time were writing the articles about the exhibitions. As it was written there were displayed at the exhibition photos of the wine cellars of the `Royal Vineyards of Kakheti`, tools, quite a large collection of grape bunches - Rkatsiteli, Saperavi, Tavkveri, Tita and others; also, wine samples with bottles, tikis.
Georgian wine producers learned and took many organizational skills from Europe. Cooperatives of winemakers were created and founded, wine bottles decorated with colourful labels appeared on the market. Ioseb Babunidze founded the first wine factory in Telavi in 1885 and opened branches in St. Petersburg, Kyiv and Moscow. In the 90s, Georgian wine entered the international arena, received many awards, certificates, including the Grand Prix.
Georgia exports mostly red wine, about 70 percent, with a large share of semi-sweet wines, although the demand for exclusive wines is also increasing. In the traditional way, the wine put in a kvevri is becoming more and more popular in America and Europe.
