SHUMI Winery #82
Discover the Unique Blend of Georgian History, Culture, and Wine
SHUMI WINERY is located in the historical region of Georgian winemaking – the village of Tsinandali, Kakheti. It borders on the National Park and the Museum named after A. Chavchavadze. The land on which the Winery and Tourist Complex are located, at different times belonged to the Georgian and Kakhetian kings, the family of Prince Alexander Chavchavadze, and then became part of the summer residence of the Russian Emperor Alexander III.
The territory on which SHUMI is located, as a result of the flood of 1865, turned into a rocky shore. The Company cleared and drained the marshland. After that, a unique Tourist Complex was built on more than 9 hectares, which has no analogues in the world both in its infrastructure and in content. You will not find as many samples of Georgian culture collected in one space as in SHUMI: the largest Private Vineyard with a Comprehensive Varietal Collection, the First Wine Museum in Georgia, the Decorative Garden, which presents sculptures by famous Georgian and international artists, the Marani, the Enoteca, the Georgian Ethnographic Pavilion, the VINOBIZA Pavilion, the Gestalt House, Gastronomic Zone with Restaurant, Cafe, Terraces, Tasting Areas and much more.
Maintaining Georgia's Viticulture and Winemaking Traditions
SHUMI began its activity in 1997, acquiring historical terroirs in various microzones of Georgia, which have a thousand-year tradition of viticulture-winemaking. In 2001, SHUMI built its production facilities and harvested its first grapes. In 2003, in order to preserve the integrity of the genetics of Georgian autochthonous grape varieties, SHUMI created the First Private Ampelographic Collection in Georgia, which today is considered the largest private collection in the world with more than 2000 grape varieties from different countries.
Preserving Georgia's Autochthonous Grape Varieties
For thousands of years, there have been more than 500 autochthonous grape varieties in Georgia, which are the pride of the country.. Unfortunately, some of them have been lost or are on the verge of extinction. SHUMI scoured Georgia far and wide searching for the diverse grape varieties, and as a result saved several dozen very specific grape varieties native to Georgia and saved them from extinction. To this day, the Company successfully fulfills this historic mission, with great enthusiasm continues to find and return rare grape varieties both from local private vineyards and from various collections around the world. Although the Georgian gene pool is rich in unique wine grape varieties, which allow to create ideal wines, today, unfortunately, a large number of grape varieties are forgotten and are not used for economic purposes and wine production. Highly qualified specialists working on the basis of the SHUMI collection vineyard for many years have rediscovered many varieties from the collection. To return them to production, the company planted industrial vineyards. SHUMI produces unique wines made from this rare grape variety. Some of them, revived by Shumi, were moved to the Georgian ampelographic gene pool along with autochthonic grape varieties, as completely individual varieties with great oenological potential.
SHUMI WINERY produces wine from 16 varieties of grapes, with the exception of exclusive alcoholic beverages, for the preparation of which in some cases more than 450 varieties are used.
The work of producing the best wine in the vineyards begins with the delicate care of the vineyards, where most of the work is done manually throughout the year – every decision made in the management of the vineyard is further reflected in the quality of the wine. SHUMI is very sensitive to the environment, so it makes only small interventions in the local ecosystem and helps preserve natural flora and fauna. The use of pesticides is minimized, and in some vineyards only bio- and biodynamic methods are used.
SHUMI is also the first winery in Georgia to produce a certified organic wine as well as the first to utilize and develop biodynamic and green harvest wine-making methods, almost all its wines are vegan. Also the first company in the history of Georgian viticulture that used the method of “green harvesting”. In order to better emphasize the character of its own unique terroirs, SHUMI, in cooperation with the Free University of Brussels, implemented the use of cultivated yeasts obtained from the same terroirs: Mukuzani, Kindzmarauli, Napareuli, on which the grapes were harvested.
Combining Centuries of Georgian Viticultural Traditions with Modern Biodynamic Methods
Georgia has ancient traditions of viticulture and empirical experience. Agrotechnical measures for the care of vineyards have been developed and improved for thousands of years. SHUMI uses the experience accumulated over the centuries in the cultivation and care of its own vineyards. The best example of this is the “Salome” vineyard with the Georgian Saperavi variety cultivated in the Napareuli microzone in 1997, which was conducted by biomethods until 2012 and then cultivated by biodynamic methods. Along with the world experience of biodynamic farming, SHUMI WINERY uses Georgian traditional agrotechnical measures for growing grapes. The company produces exclusive, limited production of “Salome” wine only in the best harvesting years. This unique wine technology has been created by the famous French winemaker Jean-Michel Ferrande and the Georgian winemaker Giorgi Khatiashvili.
SHUMI produces a wide range of bio wines, in the production of which wild yeast is used, living in the natural environment of growing grapes: IBERIULI Bio Saperavi, GEORGICA Bio Qvevri Rkatsiteli, VINOBIZA Premium Bio Saperavi, IBERIULI Bio Saperavi Qvevri, Bio Chacha – national high alcoholic beverage and others. SHUMI Wine Cellar stores organic wines from the 2008 harvest to the present day with aging potential for more than half a century.
From Hand-Harvesting to State-of-the-Art Equipment
Grapes are harvested in the SHUMI’s vineyards only by hand, in small baskets, in the coldest period of the day and for vines intended for premium wines, the method of “green harvesting” in summer and triage in autumn is used. Grapes are sorted twice by hand before processing and the wines of the highest quality are produced and maximally convey the character of the SHUMI terroirs. For the manufacture of alcoholic beverages, stainless steel containers are used, Qvevri – clay jugs buried in the ground, barrels – exclusively from French oak. SHUMI WINERY is equipped with technologically advanced equipment of the latest generation, which provides precise control over all stages of the wine production process, and is considered one of the best in Georgia. SHUMI has implemented the latest international standards for the quality management and safety system under the ISO 22000: 2018.
The Art of Crafting Premium Wines at SHUMI Winery
For the production of alcoholic beverages, the Georgian ancient method in Qvevri and as well as the latest world methods of winemaking are used. One of the most challenging aspects of Qvevri winemaking is compliance with sanitary standards, as the use of all chemicals to wash the jugs is prohibited. Qvevri must be washed only with means obtained from different plants that have antiseptic properties and require specific knowledge and experience of the worker.
SHUMI participates in an international project aimed at promoting abroad the traditional Georgian way of winemaking in Qvevri, which was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2013.
The Qvevri Cellar Museum was established at Plumpton College in the UK with the support and participation of SHUMI. The cellar has both a museum and cultural and educational function: it informs students and those who are interested in the history of Georgia, viticulture and winemaking, about the method of winemaking in Qvevri. Within the framework of the project, students of the University of Plumpton undergo an internship in the production of Qvevri wine, in SHUMI WINERY, Georgia.
SHUMI has a number of inventions and patents. It offers a wide range of Qvevri wines. For example, SHOBILI is a Qvevri sparkling wine, created using SHUMI technology. It combines the 8000-year history of Georgian winemaking and the 400-year history of French champagne; BARBALE is the world’s first and only ice wine produced in Qvevri. 102 rare grape varieties from the SHUMI Ampelographic Collection were used to prepare this unique drink.
SHUMI produces a wide range of alcoholic beverages: white, pink, amber and red; dry, semi-dry, semi-sweet and sweet wines, sparkling wines, ice wine, fortified wines, brandy, chacha.
SHUMI‘s portfolio includes unique wines and beverages that have no analogues in the world, such as: GENESIS is a completely new word in the world of wine, wine is made from grapes of more than 300-year-old vines, which rarely give a harvest. As a sign of respect for the historical vine, SHUMI WINERY erected a monument – a prototype of the statue of this vine on the territory of its Tourist Complex; LAZARE – represents the history of Georgian viticulture and winemaking for more than 80 centuries, more than 450 grape varieties from the SHUMI Ampelographic Collection have been used; ZIGU is an exclusive drink that has no analogues in the world, created by the patented SHUMI technology and produced from more than 300 rare grape varieties grown in the vineyard of the SHUMI Ampelographic Collection.
SHUMI WINERY offers visitors a wide and original selection of tasting packages: IBERIULI Premium Wine Tasting (one vineyard, one grape variety – two technologies); Saperavi IBERIULI Wines (one grape variety – different microzones); Tasting of BIO Wines; Vegan Wine Tasting; Vertical Tasting of Exclusive SALOME Wine; Chacha Tasting; Brandy Tasting, and many others.
In addition to alcoholic beverages, SHUMI also produces various food bioproducts. Such as: churchkhela “Tsinandali” (Georgian traditional dessert), which is extraordinarily unique created with a technique developed and patented exclusively by SHUMI and made from organic whole meal flour of the ancient native Georgian wheat variety, “Tsiteli Doli”, it is rich in biologically active substances, vitamins and minerals, which are widely known to provide health benefits; khmiadi (Georgian traditional baked bread), bio honey, grape juice, Georgian endemic plants, tea and other. Lunch and dinner are available at the SHUMI Winery and Tourist Complex or at one of SHUMI’s biodynamic vineyards in the foothills of the dramatic Caucuses mountains and Picnic in Walnut Grove surrounded by wild nature. The menu reflets a wide range of Georgian dishes prepared from local high-quality ingredients and SHUMI-grown organic products. Some of the patented cooking methods and recipes are unique and do not exist anywhere else in the world.
SHUMI is the absolute record holder for the number of awards in the history of the prestigious international competition WINE TRAVEL AWARDS (WTA). SHUMI won twice in all the nominations it participated in, according to the results of public online voting: Must Visit; Brand is the visiting card of the country; Progressive approach; Authentic location; Object d’Art; Art & History Object; Unique program; Cultural mission; Magnet of the region; An effective event. And it won 4 trophies – a special jury prize in the nominations: Magnet of the Region, Progressive Approach, Art & History Object and Must Visit.
SHUMI – is the first company in Georgia, which in 2002 offered eno-gastronomic tourism services to customers. On a regular basis, SHUMI WINERY is the winner in the nomination “BEST AWARD FOR WINE TOURISM” within the framework of the National Tourism Award “WELCOME TO GEORGIA”, receives TripAdvisor awards – “Travelers’ Choice”, the territory of the SHUMI Tourist Complex is recognized as “the most beautiful place in Georgia”. Also, SHUMI is the winner in the nomination “THE BEST PLACE FOR GASTRONOMIC REGIONAL TOURISM”. For the first time in the history of Georgia, SHUMI WINERY became the winner in the nomination “BEST PRACTICE RELATED TO ARCHAEOBOTANY IN WINE TOURISM” at the international competition in Sicily, organized by the Council of Europe.
SHUMI exports its products to 32 countries around the world.
SHUMI is one of the best producers of Georgian wines and its products are famous for their quality, they have earned more than 600 highest awards at prestigious international competitions, including prizes and medals that no other company in the history of Georgia has ever received. SHUMI WINERY was recognized as the BEST PRODUCER OF GEORGIA at one of the most prestigious competitions in the world – MUNDUS VINI Grand International Award!
Reviews
Each grape variety is a historical monument. It is our duty to preserve them for future generations. “Shumi Winery” makes a great contribution to the protection and preservation of the gene pool of Georgian grapes. On my recommendation, in 2003 the company planted a collection vineyard, thereby saving dozens of Georgian rare varieties from extinction.
This place is amazing!
Our tour guide was a friendly and very professional man, he showed us around explaining everything about this winery, the traditional Georgian wine making history and culture and after the tour answered all our questions! There was nothing he did’t know.
After the tour we decided to do a wine tasting and were offered a perfect combo to taste the difference between the European method and the Georgian one. Again we got a very interesting explanation of each wine. It was so tasty and interesting that we decided to come back in the evening for a Khinkali master-class.
In the evening at the master-class we had a very nice lady showing us everything It was a friendly and funny way to see how the Khinkalis are made and to find out about some traditions of Georgia and Kakheti itself.
After the master-class we were offered to try their first ice-wine made in Qvevri and it tastes so good that we bought a bottle to bring home.
It was really an amazing experience and I would suggest it to everyone!
Great Place to Learn About And Taste Georgian Wine!
We had a really wonderful visit. Our guide Tamari was very friendly and informative and we learned a lot from her about Georgian wines, wine making, and its history. All of their wines were really good but I have to say that the Zigu wine made from a mixture of 300 grape varietals was absolutely incredible. Their place is really a combination wine museum and winery so I highly recommend this as part of any Georgian itinerary.