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REFINING THE VINE: WINEMAKING IN ARMENIA AND GEORGIA LOOKING TO FIND MARKET RELEVANCE
FEATURES | 23.03.15 | 10:58
By GAYANE MKRTCHYAN
ArmeniaNow reporter
As the two ancient South Caucasus nations known to have grown vines
and made wine for millennia Armenians and Georgians have had as much
'good-neighborly' relations as competition in the ancient trade both
during the Soviet period and after independence.
As the geopolitical paths of the two wine-making nations forked after
the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union - with Georgia eventually
choosing closer integration with Europe and Armenia striving to
preserve its traditional alliance with Russia - grape-growers and
winemakers in both countries also began to see their future in the
increasingly competitive world from different perspectives.
While there may be points of difference also related to the past,
viticulturists and winemaking experts in both countries agree that
the 20th century wasn't the best time for winemaking. The Soviet
collectivization of vineyards in the 1930s when farmers were deprived
of ownership of their land was perhaps one of the strongest blows to
the industry.
"A winemaker is first of all a person and this person needs to be
the master of his own production, the owner of his vineyard," says
Shalva Kheruani, a veteran winemaker and president of the Degustation
Association of Georgia.
"If there hadn't been the 70 years of Soviet rule Georgia perhaps
would rank high among wine-making European nations today," he adds.
Avaz Harutyunyan, the president of the Union of Winemakers of Armenia,
agrees that vineyards lost their "masters" because of the Soviet rule.
"For 300 years grapes had had their master in this land. But
[after the Soviet rule] we lost our face. That's why the world does
not acknowledge either us or Georgians as major grape-growing or
wine-making nations," says Harutyunyan.
Even so, the two nations that claim to be the world's oldest winemakers
lost even more in terms of the industry after gaining independence
and adopting capitalist rules of production.
Among other things it also meant that free-market rules would apply
to winemaking - an industry that is labor intensive and requires
time and money before becoming profitable. As a result, the areas of
vineyards dramatically decreased in both South Caucasus countries.
In Soviet times, Georgia's vineyards occupied a territory of 160,000
hectares, while today they make only 48,000 hectares. In Armenia the
territory under vineyards has shrunk from 36,000 during the Soviet
period to just 18,000 hectares today. In Armenia, 95 percent of locally
grown grapes procured for the industry are used for brandy production,
and only five percent goes for wine.
While brandy making is a relatively new trade in Armenia, the nation's
winemaking culture and traditions date back to 4,000 BC. In 2011,
a group of local and international archeologists found proof of the
world's oldest winery in a cave near the village of Areni in central
Armenia.
But today winemaking is more advanced in Georgia, which also takes
pride in its being one of the oldest wine regions in the world.
The major shift came in the 19th century when Tsarist Russia declared
Armenia to be a "country of brandy" and Georgia a "country of wine".
That distinction followed major investments in brandy production
in Armenia in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when Armenian
brandy became famous around the world.
British Prime Minister Winston Churchill is known to have become a
big fan of Armenian brandy (or Russian brandy as he knew it) after
getting a taste of it at a 1945 Stalin-hosted conference of World
War II allies.
And while Stalin each month sent a box of 'Russian brandy' to Churchill
after the Yalta meeting, Harutyunyan says apart from that the Soviets
did little to promote the noble beverage produced by Armenians abroad
otherwise and its sales were mostly limited to the 15 Soviet republics.
"When the Soviet Union collapsed, Armenia, by inertia, began to
fit itself into the Russian market, instead of trying to reach new
markets," the specialist says.
But Georgia had to look beyond Russia when the two fell out over
geopolitical matters and Moscow banned imports of Georgian wines
in 2006.
Georgian Degustation Association head Kheruani says Georgian winemakers
realized then that they needed to pay more attention to quality to
win new markets.
"We went back to the 19th century as our wine tried to find its
owners," he remembers.
Georgian exports declined dramatically - from 50 million bottles
in 2005 to just about 9 million today. But quality, Kheruani says,
had to be raised in order to "surprise" the consumer in conditions
of suddenly stiffer competition.
"Our vineyards today have their own 'passports', the State determines
when the harvest should begin and end [to achieve the best results].
We have wine inspectors and it is no longer possible to procure grapes
of poor quality today," the Georgian winemaking expert explains.
His Armenian counterpart says that quality issues aside, Armenian
wines also need to be duly promoted abroad and besides domestically
organized wine festivals Armenia also needs to organize such events
abroad - something that Georgia has done in recent years.
"In Armenia the government has put emphasis on brandy production
so that we don't lose that as well, but problems are evident even
in that sector," says Harutyunyan, pointing out that in conditions
of recurrent crises in Russia, which is the main export market for
Armenian alcoholic beverages, brandy production should not be the
only emphasis.
According to Harutyunyan, winemaking is just as profitable, if not
even more profitable, as brandy production and if proper investments
are made in wine production in Armenia it may provide great revenues
for the nation.
"This does not mean giving up brandy production, we just need to give
up the idea of promoting brandy as our only top product," he says.
Recently, Armenian winemakers for the first time participated in an
international wine festival in Dusseldorf, Germany. Harutyunyan says
that participation by five companies became possible due to assistance
from the government and one international organization.
The specialist believes that for the government and leading producers
it is crucial that Armenian wines - like Georgian wines - can also
be showcased at major international fairs.
http://armenianow.com/society/features/61655/armenia_georgia_wine_making
FEATURES | 23.03.15 | 10:58
By GAYANE MKRTCHYAN
ArmeniaNow reporter
As the two ancient South Caucasus nations known to have grown vines
and made wine for millennia Armenians and Georgians have had as much
'good-neighborly' relations as competition in the ancient trade both
during the Soviet period and after independence.
As the geopolitical paths of the two wine-making nations forked after
the 1991 collapse of the Soviet Union - with Georgia eventually
choosing closer integration with Europe and Armenia striving to
preserve its traditional alliance with Russia - grape-growers and
winemakers in both countries also began to see their future in the
increasingly competitive world from different perspectives.
While there may be points of difference also related to the past,
viticulturists and winemaking experts in both countries agree that
the 20th century wasn't the best time for winemaking. The Soviet
collectivization of vineyards in the 1930s when farmers were deprived
of ownership of their land was perhaps one of the strongest blows to
the industry.
"A winemaker is first of all a person and this person needs to be
the master of his own production, the owner of his vineyard," says
Shalva Kheruani, a veteran winemaker and president of the Degustation
Association of Georgia.
"If there hadn't been the 70 years of Soviet rule Georgia perhaps
would rank high among wine-making European nations today," he adds.
Avaz Harutyunyan, the president of the Union of Winemakers of Armenia,
agrees that vineyards lost their "masters" because of the Soviet rule.
"For 300 years grapes had had their master in this land. But
[after the Soviet rule] we lost our face. That's why the world does
not acknowledge either us or Georgians as major grape-growing or
wine-making nations," says Harutyunyan.
Even so, the two nations that claim to be the world's oldest winemakers
lost even more in terms of the industry after gaining independence
and adopting capitalist rules of production.
Among other things it also meant that free-market rules would apply
to winemaking - an industry that is labor intensive and requires
time and money before becoming profitable. As a result, the areas of
vineyards dramatically decreased in both South Caucasus countries.
In Soviet times, Georgia's vineyards occupied a territory of 160,000
hectares, while today they make only 48,000 hectares. In Armenia the
territory under vineyards has shrunk from 36,000 during the Soviet
period to just 18,000 hectares today. In Armenia, 95 percent of locally
grown grapes procured for the industry are used for brandy production,
and only five percent goes for wine.
While brandy making is a relatively new trade in Armenia, the nation's
winemaking culture and traditions date back to 4,000 BC. In 2011,
a group of local and international archeologists found proof of the
world's oldest winery in a cave near the village of Areni in central
Armenia.
But today winemaking is more advanced in Georgia, which also takes
pride in its being one of the oldest wine regions in the world.
The major shift came in the 19th century when Tsarist Russia declared
Armenia to be a "country of brandy" and Georgia a "country of wine".
That distinction followed major investments in brandy production
in Armenia in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when Armenian
brandy became famous around the world.
British Prime Minister Winston Churchill is known to have become a
big fan of Armenian brandy (or Russian brandy as he knew it) after
getting a taste of it at a 1945 Stalin-hosted conference of World
War II allies.
And while Stalin each month sent a box of 'Russian brandy' to Churchill
after the Yalta meeting, Harutyunyan says apart from that the Soviets
did little to promote the noble beverage produced by Armenians abroad
otherwise and its sales were mostly limited to the 15 Soviet republics.
"When the Soviet Union collapsed, Armenia, by inertia, began to
fit itself into the Russian market, instead of trying to reach new
markets," the specialist says.
But Georgia had to look beyond Russia when the two fell out over
geopolitical matters and Moscow banned imports of Georgian wines
in 2006.
Georgian Degustation Association head Kheruani says Georgian winemakers
realized then that they needed to pay more attention to quality to
win new markets.
"We went back to the 19th century as our wine tried to find its
owners," he remembers.
Georgian exports declined dramatically - from 50 million bottles
in 2005 to just about 9 million today. But quality, Kheruani says,
had to be raised in order to "surprise" the consumer in conditions
of suddenly stiffer competition.
"Our vineyards today have their own 'passports', the State determines
when the harvest should begin and end [to achieve the best results].
We have wine inspectors and it is no longer possible to procure grapes
of poor quality today," the Georgian winemaking expert explains.
His Armenian counterpart says that quality issues aside, Armenian
wines also need to be duly promoted abroad and besides domestically
organized wine festivals Armenia also needs to organize such events
abroad - something that Georgia has done in recent years.
"In Armenia the government has put emphasis on brandy production
so that we don't lose that as well, but problems are evident even
in that sector," says Harutyunyan, pointing out that in conditions
of recurrent crises in Russia, which is the main export market for
Armenian alcoholic beverages, brandy production should not be the
only emphasis.
According to Harutyunyan, winemaking is just as profitable, if not
even more profitable, as brandy production and if proper investments
are made in wine production in Armenia it may provide great revenues
for the nation.
"This does not mean giving up brandy production, we just need to give
up the idea of promoting brandy as our only top product," he says.
Recently, Armenian winemakers for the first time participated in an
international wine festival in Dusseldorf, Germany. Harutyunyan says
that participation by five companies became possible due to assistance
from the government and one international organization.
The specialist believes that for the government and leading producers
it is crucial that Armenian wines - like Georgian wines - can also
be showcased at major international fairs.
http://armenianow.com/society/features/61655/armenia_georgia_wine_making