The grape harvest tradition likely emerged when Georgian farmers first pressed grape juice and turned wine drinking into a national feast. Kakheti and autumn are unimaginable without the grape harvest. Preparations begin before grape picking – first cleaning the qvevri (wine vessels), organizing wine cellars, and refreshing baskets and buckets. Those who still press grapes in traditional wine presses carefully clean them and buy several new rubber boots for harvest guests.
Then begins the real celebration with its own ritual – good spirits, bustling through vineyards with baskets, sunny weather, Kakhetian songs, and warm hospitality.
In previous centuries, animal sacrifice was part of the harvest. They would sacrifice a goat or sheep along with a rooster. On harvest day, the head of the family would go to the vineyard early and light a bonfire. Later, other harvest members would join with food, wine, bread, and the sacrificed animal.
In Georgia, grapes are picked by hand or cut with a knife. For collecting grapes, they used grape towers, baskets, woven containers, carts, and wooden vessels.
In some places, the wine press and cellar were located in the vineyard. The harvested grapes were first sorted by color, as white or green and black-red grapes needed to be pressed separately to ensure the wine had the proper color.
High-growing and low-growing vine grapes were also pressed separately.
They would first fill the Babilo vessel with juice pressed from high-growing vine grapes.
While grape picking is hard work, it’s always done with joy. And in the evening, it continues with feasting.
After picking and pressing the grapes, a series of tasks were necessary: cleaning and organizing the wine cellar, monitoring wine fermentation, storing table grapes, preparing grape juice for Tatara, making churchkhela, filtering wine, and more. In Georgia, the harvest begins in Kakheti, specifically in Dedoplistskaro. Grapes ripen earliest in this region. After Kakheti, the harvest moves to Kartli, then to Imereti, and finally Racha-Lechkhumi, Guria, and Adjara join this cycle. Some Georgian grape varieties are harvested very late, even in December.
Such varieties include Chkhaveri and Jani in Guria.
In Georgia, what makes the grape harvest special is the culture of Georgian hospitality, music, and the joy of being together. That’s why everyone who returns from the harvest has a story to tell about one big celebration.
