winery and spa – Growing With Leala

The next morning we are off to visit the market in the nearby town of Telavi. It is a smaller market than I have visited earlier in my travels but this one has more things for sale targeted towards locals – you’d see things like raw meat hanging in the walkways or pickled vegetables in large jars.

We continue more into town which is very quiet today except a main square area where they are setting up for the Independence Day festivities later. We pick up some small flags to participate in the celebration. Our tour guide also helps us purchase some sparklers to use to celebrate later.

Last stop before lunch is the Gremi complex where we see some old frescos and an attached fortress.

It is our second day in the wine country and we are heading to a family’s house for a traditional meal and a lesson on how to make the sweet treat churchkhela.

The food is all amazing and there is plenty of wine and chacha to go around. I have a very persistent cat at my side much of the meal that digs his deep nails into my legs on occasion to let me know he requests some food. He takes breaks from me to scare another person on my tour between the times he is bothering me.

We now learn how to make the sweet treat called churchkhela – typically nuts covered in thickened grape juice. Our sense of humor really comes out during our churchkhela making session. It is then I realize I have found my people. I am sure we have made our hosts and tour guide blush a time or two during this activity.

We finish our day trip with a visit to a local winery where we learn about the qvevri wine making process. Qvevri are large clay pots where everything about the grape is stored: fruit, skin and seeds. They are left to ferment for up to 6 months. After the wine juice is filtered out from the byproducts, the leftovers is used to make cha-cha, the very strong liquor I have had much of during my travels.

We try three wines and three cha-cha during our tasting. Our host is very funny and animated and shares his wines with passion. It is soon time to go so I buy a bottle to later share and we head back to the resort and spa because other ladies have their massage appointments today.

As soon as we get off the bus I head underground to start the wine tour at our winery resort. The guide shows us the wine making process. We head back upstairs and try three generous pours of their wines.

We have another long dinner, a sunset and some fun with sparklers.

After a late start we start our journey back to Tbilisi. We have some free time before dinner and some choose to use that time to enjoy the city but I spend the time packing since I have to leave for my flight at 2:30am in the morning.

We attend a dinner show with more Georgian dance and singing. I am pleased to find out it is different than the one I previously attended. I enjoy the dance, food, wine and good company. In the midst of this there is a feeling that even though some will continue their adventures together after this we are at the end of our journey. We have a fun bus ride back to the hotel that includes singing. Off the bus I give my hugs because I don’t think I have another late night in me. The tour has been such a fun experience. I am glad I have taken a chance on a new group. I hope to run into these lovely ladies in my future travels.

Thank you Georgia and thank you ladies for a great time!

We start out early for our journey out to the Kakheti wine region in Georgia. This area is known as the cradle of wine and I am hoping the next couple days are full of charming towns and tasting of interesting wines. The wine here is made a couple different ways but the traditional style is fermentation in clay pots called qvevri. Earlier excavations had Georgia amoung the oldest wine making countries but it wasn’t until a discovery in 2017 could it claim that it has the oldest evidence of wine making.

Our road had to be leveled to handle the weight of our bus.

Our first stop of the day is in Sighnaghi, the city of love. This charming small town’s claim to fame is that it used to be a place where people could come to get married 24/7…kind of like a Vegas of Georgia. People can still get married here but it doesn’t have the get married at a moment’s notice theme anymore. We buy some souvenirs and climb the cobbled streets for a few hours. If we had more time I could have probably could have had an overnight stay and a nice meal with a view.

After Sighnaghi we are invited to a home cooked meal. Here they show us how khinkali are made (georgian soup dumplings). Some attempt to make their own with varying results. The meal served is spread of many different georgian foods such as khinkali, salad, pickled vegetables, beets, cheese, bread, potatoes, beans, and of course home made wine.

Before we check into our wine resort and spa we make a last stop is at a former residence of Prince Alexander Chavchavadze. The Chavchavadze were an influential family during the 19th century and even though the orginal house and contents were destroyed in a fire, the relics inside were actually owned by the family at the time. The relics displayed were stored at their other residences but they are now here for viewing how life was like during those times. Besides having an interesting garden there is also a temporary exhibition of the Georgian National Ballet, a ballet that tours internationally. Before my trip to Georgia I researched performances of the ballet but none are scheduled – I would love to see their unique shows someday. Our visit to Georgia coincides with the graduation time for students so we see students taking photos at the residence to celebrate. Graduation time in this country includes car honking parades, white shirt signatures and pictures in formal wear – basically young people happy to be done with school.

We arrive at the winery resort just in time for my massage appointment. As part of our travel package a massage is included and I selected an early time slot this evening. The traditional massage is wonderful but it causes me to miss out on the last wine tasting of the day. I need to make an effort to attend a tasting tomorrow.

I’ve missed the tasting but it doesn’t stop me from buying my own bottle to enjoy on my beautiful balcony. I watch beautiful sunset views of snow capped mountains in the distance before joining the others for dinner. This portion of the trip is a good time to finally get to know the wonderful group I am traveling with. I’ve enjoyed my time with every person so far and that is a good sign that I’ve chosen well in signing up for this trip.