Georgia Sends 55 Qvevris to Canada

55 Georgian winemaking vessels (Qvevri) have been sent from Georgia to Canada, to be exhibited in Vancouver.

The information was released by the National Wine Agency (NWA) of Georgia who state that winemaker Sandro Milorava helped the Canadian restaurant owner Pascal Roy to transport the Qvevris from Georgia.

The Qvevris were made in western Georgia and are currently on the way to Vancouver. According to Milorava, the vessels will arrive in Canada by the end of June. The capacity of each Qvevri is 50 - 1000 liters. The Qvevris were made in Chiatura Municipality by Qvevri-maker Imeda Gogoladze.

Pascal Roy visited Georgia in autumn last year, hosted by wine company "Marani Milorauli" in Kakheti, where the Canadian guest participated in the harvesting process. As reported by the NWA, he plans to make local grape wine.

Qvevri is a large earthenware vessel used for the fermentation, storage and ageing of traditional Georgian wine. Resembling large, egg-shaped amphorae without handles, they are either buried below ground or set into the floors of large wine cellars. Qvevris vary in size: volumes range from 20 liters to around 10,000. The 800 liter qvevri is the most common.

Qvevri and the tradition of wine-making in the vessel were inscribed on the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Georgia registry in 2011. In 2013, UNESCO added the traditional Georgian method of making wine in Qvevris to its list of intangible cultural heritage.

By Thea Morrison

Photo source: National Wine Agencty