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WineKakhetiSeptember

Rtveli: Grape Harvest in Kakheti

Harvest season in Georgia's main wine region: picking, pressing, qvevri filling and long supras in the vineyards.

WhenSeason: from early or mid-September into October; start announced each year by the authorities and wineries

202610 Sep 2026

2027Date to be announced · expected

WhereKakheti

Public holidayNo

TelaviPhoto: Jelger Groeneveld, CC BY 2.0

Rtveli is the grape harvest and the festive season around it. In Kakheti it usually starts with Rkatsiteli and Saperavi in early or mid-September; in 2026 the official start was 10 September, later than in 2025 and 2024. Families and friends gather to pick, tread grapes in wooden troughs, fill qvevri and cook outdoors, and evenings end at long tables.

Many family wineries and guesthouses welcome visitors to join a picking day, and the larger estates run harvest events. It is the busiest and most rewarding time to visit the region.

Tips from your host

Book a harvest day with a family winery rather than turning up; pickers start early.
Wear old clothes and closed shoes: grape juice stains.
Taste churchkhela and tatara (grape-must pudding), made fresh at harvest time.

Where to see it

Photo: Jelger Groeneveld, CC BY 2.0

Cities & TownsTelavi

Kakheti's historic capital and best base for Alaverdi, Ikalto, Shuamta and Tsinandali, with a royal palace and a 900-year-old plane tree.

Photo: Levan Gokadze, CC BY-SA 2.0

Cities & TownsSighnaghi

Hilltop walled town from 1762 with cobbled lanes, 23 towers and wide views across the Alazani Valley to the Caucasus.

Wine & CellarsFamily Qvevri Cellars

Visit a Kakhetian family marani to taste wine fermented in buried clay qvevri, often with a home-cooked supra.

Wine & CellarsKvareli Wine Tunnel

A 7.7 km network of tunnels cut into the Caucasus foothills at Kvareli, used to store and age wine at a steady 12–14°C.

Last checked Oct 2026 by the Maspindzeli team. Mountain conditions change: ask us before you go.

Tours around Rtveli: Grape Harvest in Kakheti

Old Tbilisi (Kala)Photo: Alexxx1979, CC BY-SA 4.0

6 days

Wine ToursFood & Gastronomy

Rtveli Grape Harvest

Spend the Georgian vintage with a Kakhetian family: cut the bunches by hand, tread them in a wooden satsnakheli, pour the juice into qvevri and toast the new wine at a harvest feast.

Easy · WN-06from $1,030 pp

Old Tbilisi (Kala)Photo: Alexxx1979, CC BY-SA 4.0

7 days

Wine ToursFood & Gastronomy

Wine & Supra

Seven days built around the Georgian table: natural wine bars and a cooking class in Tbilisi, then qvevri cellars, monastery wineries and a full supra across Kakheti.

Easy · WN-07from $1,200 pp

Bodbe MonasteryPhoto: Supanut Arunoprayote, CC BY 4.0

1 day

Day TripsWine Tours

Kakheti Wine Day Trip

A day in Kakheti's vineyards: Bodbe Monastery, a walk on Sighnaghi's walls, lunch and qvevri wines in a family cellar, and the Tsinandali estate.

Easy · DT-01Cfrom $150 pp

More in September and after

Full calendar →

28 Sep 2027 (expected)Alaverdoba

An old harvest and church festival at Alaverdi Cathedral, with liturgy, songs and wine in the Alazani Valley.

2027 date expectedReligiousKakheti

Varies: recent editions have been held either in late April or on the first weekend of September; check each yearBatumoba (Batumi City Day)

Batumi's city festival, with concerts, fairs and fireworks in the old town and on Europe Square.

CityAdjara

Autumn; date and host town (Ambrolauri or Tsageri) vary by yearRacha-Lechkhumi Wine Festival

A regional wine fair for the producers of Khvanchkara, Usakhelouri and Tvishi in the mountains of western Georgia.

WineRacha-Lechkhumi