You scanned the bottle

You poured the glass. Here's the hill it came from.

The Shubitidze family marani in Gurgeniani, where the water falls and the wine rests in clay.

The Shubitidze family marani in Gurgeniani, a village the Caucasus looks down on.

Meet the family
The Shubitidze family's green hazelnut and vineyard land in Gurgeniani, with the marani building under a wide cloudy sky

Our Story

Four generations later, still Saamo's marani.

We are the Shubitidze family. Our marani is named for our great-grandfather, Saamo — the man who taught us that good wine is never rushed.

We still make it his way, in Gurgeniani by the waterfall — by hand, in clay, with the patience he left us.

No big factory. No rush. Just our family name on every bottle, and a story we wanted you to read.

Our Journey

It started in one village. Now it's in your hand.

  1. First

    The grapes

    We bring Rkatsiteli from Tibaani and Saperavi from Kindzmarauli — the old places, the right grapes.

  2. Then

    Into the clay

    In our marani in Gurgeniani, the harvest goes into qvevri, the way Saamo did it.

  3. Now

    The first bottles

    We put the family name on the label, and a QR so you could find us. You just did.

  4. Soon

    The door opens

    A place to stay by the waterfall — we are building it now.

How It's Made

No shortcuts. Just clay and time.

We make wine the way Georgians have for thousands of years. The grapes go into qvevri — large clay pots buried in the ground. There the wine rests, cools, and finds itself. We wait. The clay does the rest.

  1. 01

    Hand-picked

    Every grape comes off the vine by hand, on our own hills.

  2. 02

    Into the qvevri

    The juice goes into clay pots buried to the neck in our cellar floor.

  3. 03

    We wait

    Months underground. The earth holds the temperature steady. Nothing is rushed.

  4. 04

    Poured for you

    When it's ready, it goes in the bottle. The same bottle in your hand.

Qvevri clay pots buried to the neck in the tiled floor of the family marani in Gurgeniani
Our qvevri, set into the marani floor.
A qvevri sealed with a round stone lid and clay while the wine rests underground
Sealed with stone and clay while the wine rests.

The Place

Far from the noise. That's the whole point.

Gurg — wolf in old Persian. Gurgeniani is the village of wolves.

Gurgeniani is a small village in the green hills of Georgia, next to a waterfall that has never stopped running. The grapes come from Kakheti — Tibaani and Kindzmarauli — but the wine is born here, in our marani by the water. This is where you'll one day be able to stay.

Moments

No filter. Just us.

Short clips from the family — the vines, the harvest, the clay, the work.

  • Spring in the vines
  • Our rows
  • On the vine
  • Ready to pick
  • Almost ready
  • Just picked
  • The crates fill up
  • Harvest haul
  • Into the clay
  • Fermenting
  • In the marani

Tap a clip for sound

The Grapes

Two grapes, two old places.

Georgians have made wine for 8,000 years, and qvevri winemaking is a UNESCO treasure. We pick our grapes from the old Kakheti places that grow them best.

White

Rkatsiteli

From the village of Tibaani, where the best white grapes have always been picked. Made the old way in clay, it turns deep amber, with dried apricot and walnut.

Red

Saperavi

Georgia's great red, from the Kindzmarauli hills. Dark and deep, red all the way through — even the flesh. Made with our family's old customs.

Grown in the old places. Made in our marani.

The Wines

What's in the bottle started in that village.

Two whites, a red, and a chacha. Small batches, made by hand, in clay.

Tibaani amber wine label — Saamo Shubitidze's Marani, an elder winemaker by the qvevri

Tibaani

Our Rkatsiteli, aged two years in the marani. Before the Soviet years this wine carried the name of its village — Tibaani. Deep amber, slow, the true old taste.

White · 2 years
Rkatsiteli white wine label — Saamo Shubitidze's Marani, a Georgian woman with a grape basket

Rkatsiteli

The same grape, one year in clay. Younger and brighter — fresh apricot and a clean, warm finish.

White · 1 year
Saperavi dry red wine label — Saamo Shubitidze's Marani, a Georgian highlander warrior with shield and wolf

Saperavi

A dry red from Saperavi grapes. Dark and warm, built slow with our family's old customs. Made for a long table.

Red · Dry
Chacha grape spirit label — Saamo Shubitidze's Marani, a Georgian wild boar

Chacha

The strong one — a clear spirit distilled from our grapes, the village way. Sip it slow.

Chacha

Bottles are not for sale online yet. Soon.

Tell me when they're ready

Questions

Good wine raises questions. Here are the answers.

What is qvevri wine?

It is wine made in a qvevri — a big clay pot buried in the ground. The grapes ferment inside, cooled by the earth, the way Georgians have done it for 8,000 years. UNESCO calls it a treasure of the world.

What is amber (orange) wine?

It is white wine made like a red — the juice stays on the grape skins in the qvevri. That gives it a deep amber colour, more flavour, and a gentle grip.

Is it natural wine?

We make it simply — hand-picked grapes, fermented in clay, nothing to hide. (Final details on our method are being confirmed.)

Does it have sulfites? Will it give me a headache?

Every wine has a little sulfite — it forms on its own. We keep ours low. Most wine headaches come from not drinking enough water, not from the wine itself.

Is it dry or sweet?

Our wines are dry. (To be confirmed for each bottle.)

Should I drink it now or keep it?

Open it now and enjoy it. A qvevri red is also happy to rest a few years if you want to wait.

How should I serve it?

Serve reds cool, not cold. Serve amber and white lightly chilled. Use a big glass and give it a minute to open up.

Is it vegan and organic?

Qvevri wine like ours is usually vegan — nothing from animals is used. Our farming details are being confirmed.

Where can I buy it?

Not online just yet. The shop is coming soon. Leave your email below and we will tell you the day it opens.

Can I visit the winery?

Soon. We are building a small place to stay, right by the waterfall. Leave your email and we will let you know when you can come.

Still have a question? Talk to us
The winery and guesthouse at dusk, with carved wooden balconies, stone walls, and lit windows above the vineyard rows

Visit

The wine is ready. The door opens soon.

We are building a small place to stay, right here at the winery, next to the waterfall. When it's done, you'll be able to come, taste, and wake up to the sound of the water. Leave your email and we'll tell you when.

Gurgeniani village, Georgia