After getting back to David Gareja I decided to explore another local winery in Sighnaghi. Walking up on a steep unpaved street, companied by stray dogs was worth the effort. The owner and winemaker, Paul introduced himself and showed me around his house, and qvevries, and let me taste different sorts of his wine. The house has a balcony, with a gorgeous view of the town and the mountains around.
Paul's balcony:
The view on the town:
These are traditional Georgian glasses to drink wine from. Sometimes you kiss a deer or a turtle mouth-to-mouth. In the wine tasting, you should pick one which you like the most.
Paul at the qvevris.
Paul Rodzianko with one of his masterpieces. A very interesting person of American origin and Russian heritage. Gaumar Joz! Gaumar Joz! Gaumar Joz Joz Joz! Bushki bushki bushki bushki!
Between the different sorts of wine, you have to erase the taste of the previous one in your mouth. This is best done with some cheese, slices of toasted baguette, and some home-made sunflower oil. This was the day I realized I never tasted the real sunflower oil before. Well, better late than never.
The sunflower oil:
We chatted quite a bit and Paul invited me for the dinner the day after. I was still in town, so I booked a traditional Georgian dinner in his winery, for which I showed up early just in order to learn how they cook chicken ajika:
Pork shishlik getting grilled:
Parts of the dinner. Of course it came with wine pairing, which doesn't appear on this photo:
One of the highlights: Pine cone with vanilla ice cream. When the pine cone is young they marinade it with sugar and other stuff, making a kind of marmalade from it. It was my first time in life eating a pine cone as is. It was an unforgettable experience. The texture and the taste were just perfect, and they matched the vanilla ice cream very well.
Jaja (chacha) stored in a wax bottle made in a monastery in Kaheti. This is the time to mention jaja. Jaja is a brandy, which is easily made of pomace, a side product of the winemaking process. Jaja is also the name of the Abkhazian goddess of the harvest. I can tell: she and her colleagues did a great job.
If you're in Sighnaghi, a must do program is to visit Cradle of Wine Marani, stay for wine tasting and maybe even for dinner.
Paul's balcony:
The view on the town:
These are traditional Georgian glasses to drink wine from. Sometimes you kiss a deer or a turtle mouth-to-mouth. In the wine tasting, you should pick one which you like the most.
Paul at the qvevris.
Paul Rodzianko with one of his masterpieces. A very interesting person of American origin and Russian heritage. Gaumar Joz! Gaumar Joz! Gaumar Joz Joz Joz! Bushki bushki bushki bushki!
Between the different sorts of wine, you have to erase the taste of the previous one in your mouth. This is best done with some cheese, slices of toasted baguette, and some home-made sunflower oil. This was the day I realized I never tasted the real sunflower oil before. Well, better late than never.
The sunflower oil:
We chatted quite a bit and Paul invited me for the dinner the day after. I was still in town, so I booked a traditional Georgian dinner in his winery, for which I showed up early just in order to learn how they cook chicken ajika:
Pork shishlik getting grilled:
I also learned how to properly open a hazelnut with a real horseshoe, and how to tell from the outside if a hazelnut is good or not.
Parts of the dinner. Of course it came with wine pairing, which doesn't appear on this photo:
One of the highlights: Pine cone with vanilla ice cream. When the pine cone is young they marinade it with sugar and other stuff, making a kind of marmalade from it. It was my first time in life eating a pine cone as is. It was an unforgettable experience. The texture and the taste were just perfect, and they matched the vanilla ice cream very well.
Jaja (chacha) stored in a wax bottle made in a monastery in Kaheti. This is the time to mention jaja. Jaja is a brandy, which is easily made of pomace, a side product of the winemaking process. Jaja is also the name of the Abkhazian goddess of the harvest. I can tell: she and her colleagues did a great job.
If you're in Sighnaghi, a must do program is to visit Cradle of Wine Marani, stay for wine tasting and maybe even for dinner.
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