Kartli
Continental
The central river valley west of Tbilisi, known for Chinuri, sparkling wine from the Ateni gorge, and a historic princely estate.
Overview
About Kartli
Kartli lies along the Mtkvari river in central Georgia, between the capital, Tbilisi, and the western regions, and its wine culture is centred on the Ateni gorge and the Mukhrani valley. The main grapes are white Chinuri and Goruli Mtsvane and the reds Tavkveri and Shavkapito. Chinuri is used for sparkling wine and for still wine, and the gorge at Ateni was a centre of sparkling wine-making in the Middle Ages.
The region is lower and drier than Kakheti to the east, with hot days and cool nights. Georgian wine-making in the qvevri, the buried clay vessel, is inscribed by UNESCO as an element of intangible cultural heritage, and the qvevri is used here as elsewhere in Georgia. The Mukhrani valley has one of the country's best-known historic estates.
Kartli is marked on the map.
Georgia
Shaded: Shida Kartli, Kvemo Kartli. Map units are states, provinces or départements, so a smaller place appears as the larger area that contains it.
The land
Climate & terroir
Climate
Continental
Hot, sunny days and cool nights, with cold winters, along the Mtkvari valley. The climate is drier than western Georgia's and suits both white grapes and late-ripening reds.
Terroir & soils
What the vines grow in
Mixed river-valley soils of alluvial gravel, clay and limestone, with steeper, stonier slopes in the Ateni gorge.
Go deeper
Rules, years & producers
Georgian wine is classified by protected designation of origin, and Kartli's wines are named for their district and grape.
Ateni and Mukhrani
Two of the region's best-known districts, for Chinuri-based whites and Saperavi-based reds.
What's grown here
Grapes
Each grape's page links back here.