Pheasant's Tears, Chinuri Skin Contact, Kartli, Georgia

Georgia is where it all began, at least 4000 years ago. Wine making has come along way in that time but as technology advances we start to realise that what is really good about wine is the basics - grapes, simplicity and a gentle understanding of the earth and what it produces.

American musician and artist John Wurderman was painting in a vineyard when a chance meeting with Gela Patalishvili took place which is where the story of Pheasant's Tears begins. Gela and his family have been making wines for 8 generations using the traditional Georgian method where the wines are fermented in Qvevri, very large clay amphora which are sunk into the ground. John and Gela joined forces to help put Georgian wine back on the map following years of communist rule and suppression of traditional wine making. The name Pheasant's Tears refers to an old Georgian story where only the best wines are good enough to make a pheasant cry. Hey, that would be good wine.

Chinuri is a Georgian white grape that is naturally high in acidity and is generally macerated on skins for 30 days, depending on vintage. The fermentation uses wild yeasts and the wine is bottles without fining or filtration. The result is a rich, grippy wine with haze for days, punchy, with aromas of quince and a spicy, citrus finish.