Tvishi

Tvishi is a village in Tsageri municipality, on terraced slopes above the Rioni where Lechkhumi looks across the river towards Racha. It is best known for the wine that carries its name: Tvishi, a naturally semi-sweet white made from the Tsolikouri grape grown in a small protected zone around the village. The mild, sheltered climate lets the grapes ripen late with plenty of sugar, and fermentation stops before it is complete, leaving a fresh, honeyed wine with lively acidity.

There is little formal wine tourism here, which is part of the appeal. Ask your guesthouse in Tsageri or Ambrolauri to set up a visit to a family cellar, where you can taste Tvishi alongside the rare red Usakhelouri, grown in nearby villages, and other Lechkhumi wines. The drive along the Rioni near Tvishi is lovely in autumn, when the vine leaves turn gold.

Winemaking in Lechkhumi goes back centuries, but Tvishi became known as a named wine in the 20th century, when Soviet-era wineries bottled it alongside Khvanchkara. After independence it was registered as a protected appellation of origin. Since the 2000s small family producers have revived it, some of them fermenting in clay jars and selling straight from the cellar to visitors who find their way here.