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ARMENIA: A PIONEERING WINERY BRINGS WINEMAKING BACK TO ITS ROOTS
by Yigal Schleifer
EurasiaNet.org
http://www.eurasianet.org/node/65429
May 18 2012
NY
Oenophiles tend to classify wines into either coming from the "old
world" -- France, Spain, Italy and other European countries that have
traditionally produced wine -- and the "new world," which includes
upstarts such as the United States and Australia. Soon, though, we
might need to come up with a new classification: the "ancient world,"
which would cover bottles coming from what's often described as wine's
birthplace: Transcaucasia, a region that includes Georgia, Armenia,
Azerbaijan and parts of Iran and Turkey.
While history and archeological finds may back up the region's
"birthplace of wine" claim, the quality of the wine produced there
-- at least in decades past -- mostly made a mockery of it. That is
beginning to change, though. Georgian wines have, in recent years,
made great strides in quality and have started earning international
attention and acclaim. Wines produced from indigenous grapes grown
in vineyards in eastern Turkey have also started to show promise.
Now an ambitious entrepreneur wants to revive Armenia's historic,
but mostly dormant, winemaking tradition. Zorah, an Armenian boutique
winery that just released its first vintage, was founded some ten years
ago by Zorik Gharibian, an Armenian who grew up in Iran and Italy,
where he now works in the fashion industry. Enlisting the help of
a pair of Italian wine experts, Gharibian is making red wine using
the indigenous areni grape and traditional methods, such as letting
part of the wine's fermentation take place in large clay jars that
are buried underground (Georgians use a similar technique).
I recently sent Gharibian, who is based in Milan, some questions in
order to learn more about his venture, which has been receiving some
positive reviews: Why and how did you begin Zorah?
"Why?" seems a simple enough question but, in this case, it is quite
a difficult one to answer. It was certainly not a rational decision
but a decision that came from the heart. Even though I grew up in
the diaspora I am very much proud of my Armenian identity and feel
a strong connection to my ancestral homeland, something passed on
from the previous generations. I suppose, going 'back' to Armenia
and creating something there is like a homecoming a return to my roots.
I have always had a passion for wine and having lived in Italy for so
many years, in the back of my mind, I always toyed with the idea of
making my own wine and for many years I spent weekends down in Tuscany
enjoying all that it had to offer. When I visited Armenia for the very
first time in 1999, however, it made a very strong impression on me.
Despite the difficulties it was facing after its post-soviet and
post-war era I was really moved and felt a strong connection to this
place. I began to spend some time there, get to know its people
and travel the different regions, and I think it was then that I
subconsciously decided to start the vineyards, wherever you turned
there seemed to be a reference to the grapes and wine. The idea
gradually began to take hold of me and the challenge of creating
something in Armenia and putting roots down in the land of my
forefathers excited me. It was truly a challenge. Once I came to the
Yeghegnadzor region, traditionally known as the quintessential grape
growing region of Armenia, I was really taken by the natural beauty
of the area and its rugged terrain and began to look for some land
to plant my vineyards.
Armenia is well known for brandy but not wine, why is that so?
There is absolutely no agricultural or viticultural reason for why
Armenia is known for its brandy but not its wine. It is a legacy
inherited from the Soviets. As it was common practice in the Soviet
Union each region would be designated with the production of one
certain thing. Armenian grapes were therefore used for brandy while
Georgia was designated as the winemaking region of the Soviet Union.
If you look back historically, however, Armenia has always been
considered a prime wine making country, and certainly the recent
findings at the Areni 1 cave, dating back 6000 years, are a testimony
to this (the cave is considered to be the site of what could be the
world's oldest winery ). Other findings in the vicinity of Yerevan
back in the 1940's show that Armenia had a well-developed wine trade
3000 years ago. History is also full of references to Armenia and its
wine trade. Greek scholars such as Herodotus, Xenophon and Strabo
described the river trade on the Tigris by Armenian merchants who
exported their excellent wines downstream to the Assyrians and beyond.
Terroir is a term that's increasingly used these days. What is your
terroir and what makes it different from others?
I truly believe that our terroir is unique. First, to find a vineyard
at such high altitudes - 1375 meters above sea leve - is incredibly
rare. Equally rare is also the fact that we are one of the world's very
few regions (this area in Armenia and a few regions in Chile) where,
because of the unique climatic and geographic conditions, there is no
Phylloxera [a vine destroying pest] so our vines are grown on their own
roots and are ungrafted, which means that they are pure and probably
unchanged for centuries. The vines thrive in the area's terrain and
soil: in fact in this area there are 40- and 50-year-old vineyards
which still continue to produce grapes because of the exceptional
condition of this soil for vine. The climate is ideal, the long hot
dry summers, with an incredibly vivid and unfiltered sunlight with
its high daytime temperatures and cool nights creates a day/night
temperature difference of about 20°C which ensures the development
of the natural sugars which balance the fruit's characteristic acidity.
This is also helped by the fact that we harvest in late October so
the slow ripening of the grapes also contribute to the acidity of the
wine. We have also decided to work only with indigenous grape varieties
of the region, which seem to have been forgotten for centuries, and
use the ancient traditions of aging in large clay amphorae which are
sealed with wax and buried into the ground so our wines are unique
and really a true expression of this terroir.
What are your growth plans for Zorah?
>From the very beginning of the project Zorah was conceived as a
boutique wine. My aim has always been first and foremost quality and
I have been very firm on this. It has taken me almost ten years to
arrive to my first vintage and I only decided to come out with the
2010 vintage when I was sure that the wine was of an extremely high
standard. I plan to move forward slowly to ensure the high level of
the wine. In the next few years we are working to come out with our
second wine, but again this will happen when I am 100 percent certain
of the quality. We are also working on white indigenous varietals,
still in their early stages. I don't intend to become a mass wine
ever. Zorah will always be a wine of limited production and sold only
on allocation.
What kind of a future do you see for the wine making industry in
Armenia?
The Armenian wine making industry is very much at its beginnings. Even
though historically and traditionally Armenia has a strong wine making
past, with the Soviet era it has disappeared completely. Present
local Armenian wine, unfortunately, is of rather low quality. But
there are now significant investments being made in the wine industry
and new modern wineries are being built which should help build a new
generation of Armenian wine. In Armenia I consider myself a pioneer in
this field. When I first began there was nobody who was approaching
wine making with my same mentality. I had no certainties whatsoever
about the end product, its salability or even if it would generate any
interest. I only had mere opinions of experts in the field. But based
on the interest generated by my first wine and its quality I can now
safely say that there is immense potential in Armenia for great wines.
I think if Armenia concentrates on its own indigenous grape varieties
and plays it right, with some patience and the right investments it
can become a true reality in the wine world, especially now that there
begins to be a great interest in the wines from the areas considered
the cradle of vine and wine.
Where are your wines available and when will they be available in
the US?
Zorah's "Karasė 2010" is now available in Russia, United Kingdom,
Ireland and obviously Armenia. Remaining true to the core of my project
I wish to enter each new market with leaders in the field who have a
sensibility for this venture. We are currently in negotiations with US
importers as well as Italy, Austria, the Benelux and the Ukraine. So
hopefully in the near future we will also be present in these markets.
by Yigal Schleifer
EurasiaNet.org
http://www.eurasianet.org/node/65429
May 18 2012
NY
Oenophiles tend to classify wines into either coming from the "old
world" -- France, Spain, Italy and other European countries that have
traditionally produced wine -- and the "new world," which includes
upstarts such as the United States and Australia. Soon, though, we
might need to come up with a new classification: the "ancient world,"
which would cover bottles coming from what's often described as wine's
birthplace: Transcaucasia, a region that includes Georgia, Armenia,
Azerbaijan and parts of Iran and Turkey.
While history and archeological finds may back up the region's
"birthplace of wine" claim, the quality of the wine produced there
-- at least in decades past -- mostly made a mockery of it. That is
beginning to change, though. Georgian wines have, in recent years,
made great strides in quality and have started earning international
attention and acclaim. Wines produced from indigenous grapes grown
in vineyards in eastern Turkey have also started to show promise.
Now an ambitious entrepreneur wants to revive Armenia's historic,
but mostly dormant, winemaking tradition. Zorah, an Armenian boutique
winery that just released its first vintage, was founded some ten years
ago by Zorik Gharibian, an Armenian who grew up in Iran and Italy,
where he now works in the fashion industry. Enlisting the help of
a pair of Italian wine experts, Gharibian is making red wine using
the indigenous areni grape and traditional methods, such as letting
part of the wine's fermentation take place in large clay jars that
are buried underground (Georgians use a similar technique).
I recently sent Gharibian, who is based in Milan, some questions in
order to learn more about his venture, which has been receiving some
positive reviews: Why and how did you begin Zorah?
"Why?" seems a simple enough question but, in this case, it is quite
a difficult one to answer. It was certainly not a rational decision
but a decision that came from the heart. Even though I grew up in
the diaspora I am very much proud of my Armenian identity and feel
a strong connection to my ancestral homeland, something passed on
from the previous generations. I suppose, going 'back' to Armenia
and creating something there is like a homecoming a return to my roots.
I have always had a passion for wine and having lived in Italy for so
many years, in the back of my mind, I always toyed with the idea of
making my own wine and for many years I spent weekends down in Tuscany
enjoying all that it had to offer. When I visited Armenia for the very
first time in 1999, however, it made a very strong impression on me.
Despite the difficulties it was facing after its post-soviet and
post-war era I was really moved and felt a strong connection to this
place. I began to spend some time there, get to know its people
and travel the different regions, and I think it was then that I
subconsciously decided to start the vineyards, wherever you turned
there seemed to be a reference to the grapes and wine. The idea
gradually began to take hold of me and the challenge of creating
something in Armenia and putting roots down in the land of my
forefathers excited me. It was truly a challenge. Once I came to the
Yeghegnadzor region, traditionally known as the quintessential grape
growing region of Armenia, I was really taken by the natural beauty
of the area and its rugged terrain and began to look for some land
to plant my vineyards.
Armenia is well known for brandy but not wine, why is that so?
There is absolutely no agricultural or viticultural reason for why
Armenia is known for its brandy but not its wine. It is a legacy
inherited from the Soviets. As it was common practice in the Soviet
Union each region would be designated with the production of one
certain thing. Armenian grapes were therefore used for brandy while
Georgia was designated as the winemaking region of the Soviet Union.
If you look back historically, however, Armenia has always been
considered a prime wine making country, and certainly the recent
findings at the Areni 1 cave, dating back 6000 years, are a testimony
to this (the cave is considered to be the site of what could be the
world's oldest winery ). Other findings in the vicinity of Yerevan
back in the 1940's show that Armenia had a well-developed wine trade
3000 years ago. History is also full of references to Armenia and its
wine trade. Greek scholars such as Herodotus, Xenophon and Strabo
described the river trade on the Tigris by Armenian merchants who
exported their excellent wines downstream to the Assyrians and beyond.
Terroir is a term that's increasingly used these days. What is your
terroir and what makes it different from others?
I truly believe that our terroir is unique. First, to find a vineyard
at such high altitudes - 1375 meters above sea leve - is incredibly
rare. Equally rare is also the fact that we are one of the world's very
few regions (this area in Armenia and a few regions in Chile) where,
because of the unique climatic and geographic conditions, there is no
Phylloxera [a vine destroying pest] so our vines are grown on their own
roots and are ungrafted, which means that they are pure and probably
unchanged for centuries. The vines thrive in the area's terrain and
soil: in fact in this area there are 40- and 50-year-old vineyards
which still continue to produce grapes because of the exceptional
condition of this soil for vine. The climate is ideal, the long hot
dry summers, with an incredibly vivid and unfiltered sunlight with
its high daytime temperatures and cool nights creates a day/night
temperature difference of about 20°C which ensures the development
of the natural sugars which balance the fruit's characteristic acidity.
This is also helped by the fact that we harvest in late October so
the slow ripening of the grapes also contribute to the acidity of the
wine. We have also decided to work only with indigenous grape varieties
of the region, which seem to have been forgotten for centuries, and
use the ancient traditions of aging in large clay amphorae which are
sealed with wax and buried into the ground so our wines are unique
and really a true expression of this terroir.
What are your growth plans for Zorah?
>From the very beginning of the project Zorah was conceived as a
boutique wine. My aim has always been first and foremost quality and
I have been very firm on this. It has taken me almost ten years to
arrive to my first vintage and I only decided to come out with the
2010 vintage when I was sure that the wine was of an extremely high
standard. I plan to move forward slowly to ensure the high level of
the wine. In the next few years we are working to come out with our
second wine, but again this will happen when I am 100 percent certain
of the quality. We are also working on white indigenous varietals,
still in their early stages. I don't intend to become a mass wine
ever. Zorah will always be a wine of limited production and sold only
on allocation.
What kind of a future do you see for the wine making industry in
Armenia?
The Armenian wine making industry is very much at its beginnings. Even
though historically and traditionally Armenia has a strong wine making
past, with the Soviet era it has disappeared completely. Present
local Armenian wine, unfortunately, is of rather low quality. But
there are now significant investments being made in the wine industry
and new modern wineries are being built which should help build a new
generation of Armenian wine. In Armenia I consider myself a pioneer in
this field. When I first began there was nobody who was approaching
wine making with my same mentality. I had no certainties whatsoever
about the end product, its salability or even if it would generate any
interest. I only had mere opinions of experts in the field. But based
on the interest generated by my first wine and its quality I can now
safely say that there is immense potential in Armenia for great wines.
I think if Armenia concentrates on its own indigenous grape varieties
and plays it right, with some patience and the right investments it
can become a true reality in the wine world, especially now that there
begins to be a great interest in the wines from the areas considered
the cradle of vine and wine.
Where are your wines available and when will they be available in
the US?
Zorah's "Karasė 2010" is now available in Russia, United Kingdom,
Ireland and obviously Armenia. Remaining true to the core of my project
I wish to enter each new market with leaders in the field who have a
sensibility for this venture. We are currently in negotiations with US
importers as well as Italy, Austria, the Benelux and the Ukraine. So
hopefully in the near future we will also be present in these markets.