The Gurian Hills & Grandfather's Name

The story of Silovani begins not with a business plan, but with a name — Silovani Skhvitaridze, the grandfather of the current winemaker, Lasha Skhvitaridze. In the small Gurian village of Sachamiaseri, where the hills roll green and dense with chestnut and oak forest, the Skhvitaridze family had made wine for generations. Like many Georgian families, their winemaking was domestic, seasonal, and deeply rooted in the rhythms of village life — grapes harvested in autumn, fermented in qvevris buried beneath the family home, shared with neighbours and guests at supra feasts throughout the year. It was not a commercial enterprise; it was a way of being, a thread connecting the family to the land and to the 8,000-year history of Georgian wine.

When Lasha Skhvitaridze decided to formalise and revive this family tradition, he did so with a gesture of filial devotion: he named the estate after his grandfather. Marani Silovani — Silovani's Cellar — is thus both a living winery and a memorial, a place where the past is not preserved behind glass but fermented, aged, and poured into glasses around the world. The winery operates on family land in Sachamiaseri, at Georgi Zaziashvili Street No. 7, in the heart of a village that has remained largely untouched by the industrial agriculture and mass tourism that have transformed other parts of Georgia. This is Guria — the westernmost of Georgia's wine regions, a land of heavy rainfall, dense forests, and a winemaking culture that has always been more intimate and less celebrated than that of Kakheti to the east.

Lasha's decision to revive the family marani was driven by a commitment to purity and authenticity. He did not seek to scale up, to modernise, or to appeal to mass markets. Instead, he chose to work with what the family had — two small vineyards, one of roughly 0.2 hectares and another of around 3 hectares — and to farm them with organic principles, low yields, and careful attention. The focus from the beginning was on indigenous Gurian varieties, grapes that had been cultivated in this region for centuries and that spoke of its heavy rains, its clay soils, and its forested microclimate in a way that international varieties never could. Tsolikouri, the leading white grape of Western Georgia, with its bright acidity and citrus character. Chkhaveri, a delicate red that produces light, fresh wines of extraordinary elegance. Jani, Skhilatubani, and Sakmiela — rare, almost forgotten varieties that Lasha has recently reintroduced to broaden the estate's range and preserve Guria's viticultural biodiversity.

Since its establishment, Silovani has grown steadily in reputation within Georgia's natural wine community and beyond. The estate is a member of the Georgian Natural Wine Association, a network of producers committed to low-intervention, authentic winemaking that has become the standard-bearer for Georgia's presence in international natural wine markets. Lasha's wines are unfiltered, unfined, and produced without commercial yeasts or additives — a level of purity that appeals to sommeliers, importers, and enthusiasts seeking wines that taste of place rather than process. The scale remains deliberately small, the production limited, and the attention intimate. Every bottle that leaves Sachamiaseri carries not just wine, but a name — Silovani — and the quiet determination of a grandson who chose to honour his grandfather by continuing what he started.

At Silovani, the winemaking philosophy is one of absolute minimal intervention and maximum respect for the living processes of fermentation — a commitment to expressing the distinct humid terroir of Guria and the unique character of indigenous Western Georgian varieties through ancient techniques and gentle handling. All wines are fermented and aged in traditional qvevris — buried clay amphorae that provide thermal inertia and natural micro-oxygenation — using native wild yeasts exclusively. No commercial yeasts are introduced. No enzymes. No additives. No fining. No filtration. Sulfur is used minimally, if at all, consistent with the natural wine philosophy. This is not a marketing stance; it is a practical necessity born of scale, conviction, and the belief that the best wines are those that require the least manipulation — wines that taste of Sachamiaseri, of Guria, of the forest, and of the grandfather whose name they bear.

The vinification style is nuanced and adapted to each variety and the demands of the humid Gurian climate. The qvevri provides the perfect environment for this flexibility — the clay maintains stable temperature despite external humidity, the burial in earth insulates the vessel through the seasons, and the natural porosity of the clay allows gentle micro-oxygenation that softens tannins and develops complexity without the need for oak or technology. Native yeasts ferment the must slowly and completely, capturing the microbial fingerprint of the Sachamiaseri forest in every bottle. The result is wines of extraordinary purity and place — not polished or manipulated, but honest, alive, and deeply rooted in the Gurian terroir. The unfiltered, unfined approach preserves phenolic integrity, textural complexity, and the slight haze that natural wine enthusiasts recognise as a mark of authenticity.

"Tsolikouri" — The Bright, Citrus-Forward White: The Tsolikouri is Silovani's flagship and most widely appreciated wine — a white or amber-style wine made from the Tsolikouri grape, the leading variety of Western Georgia. Tsolikouri is known for its bright acidity, citrus character, and excellent adaptability to Guria's humid climate; at Silovani, it is fermented in qvevri with native yeasts, producing a wine of crystalline clarity, vibrant freshness, and distinct site-expression. Depending on the vintage and Lasha's decision, it may see brief skin contact for added texture and phenolic depth, or it may be fermented without skins for a cleaner, more direct expression of the grape. In the glass, it is pale straw to light amber with a slight natural haze. The nose offers lemon, green apple, white flowers, and a distinct mineral note that speaks of the clay soils and forest air of Sachamiaseri. The palate is light to medium bodied, with bright, mouthwatering acidity, a silky texture, and a long, clean, refreshing finish. It is the perfect introduction to Silovani's style — authentic, alive, and unmistakably Gurian. Serve at 8–10°C. Drink young. ~€16–€24 / ~$18–$26 USD.

"Chkhaveri" — The Delicate, Floral Red: The Chkhaveri is Silovani's most elegant and charming red — a light-bodied wine made from the Chkhaveri grape, a delicate red variety native to Guria that produces fresh, low-tannin wines of extraordinary elegance and floral complexity. Fermented in qvevri with native yeasts and minimal intervention, it is a wine of grace and subtlety, proof that Gurian reds can achieve a level of refinement that rivals the finest light reds of Europe. In the glass, it is pale ruby with bright clarity and a slight haze. The nose offers red cherry, wild strawberry, rose petal, and a subtle forest-floor note that evokes the chestnut groves of Sachamiaseri. The palate is light-bodied, with soft, gentle tannins, vibrant acidity, and a long, ethereal, refreshing finish. It is a wine of quiet beauty — the kind of wine that makes you understand why Lasha chose to focus on indigenous varieties rather than international grapes, and why Guria deserves recognition as one of Georgia's most distinctive wine regions. Serve at 12–14°C. Drink young. ~€18–€26 / ~$20–$28 USD.

"Jani" — The Rare, Revived White: The Jani is one of Silovani's most exciting recent additions — a wine made from the Jani grape, a rare, almost forgotten indigenous variety that Lasha has reintroduced to the estate as part of his commitment to preserving Guria's viticultural biodiversity. Little is known about Jani outside of historical records and local memory, which makes every vintage an act of discovery — for Lasha, for the drinker, and for the future of Georgian wine. Fermented in qvevri with native yeasts, it represents Silovani's exploratory spirit and its role as a guardian of genetic heritage. In the glass, it is pale gold with a slight haze. The nose offers delicate citrus, white flowers, and a subtle herbal note that hints at the variety's unique aromatic profile. The palate is light-bodied, with crisp acidity, a gentle texture, and a long, clean finish. It is a wine for the curious — a taste of history revived, a variety brought back from the edge of extinction by the patience and vision of a single vigneron. Serve at 8–10°C. Drink young. ~€18–€26 / ~$20–$28 USD.

"Skhilatubani" — The Forgotten Red: The Skhilatubani is another of Silovani's rare and revived varieties — a red grape that had nearly disappeared from Gurian vineyards before Lasha reintroduced it to the estate. Like Jani, Skhilatubani exists in the liminal space between history and the present, its character still being rediscovered with each vintage. Fermented in qvevri with native yeasts and minimal intervention, it produces a wine of unexpected depth and individuality — a reminder that Georgia's viticultural heritage is far richer than the handful of varieties that dominate commercial production. In the glass, it is medium ruby with a slight haze. The nose offers red berry, dried herbs, and a distinct earthy note that speaks of the forest soils of Sachamiaseri. The palate is medium-bodied, with moderate tannins, bright acidity, and a long, complex, savoury finish. It is a wine for the patient and the passionate — proof that the best wines are sometimes those that have been forgotten and then found again. Serve at 14–16°C. Drink young to medium term. ~€18–€26 / ~$20–$28 USD.

"Sakmiela" — The Experimental Native: The Sakmiela is Silovani's fifth indigenous variety — another rare grape recently added to the estate's expanding portfolio of Gurian biodiversity. Like Jani and Skhilatubani, Sakmiela represents Lasha's commitment to exploration and preservation, to the idea that a family winery can serve as a living seed bank for varieties that might otherwise be lost to industrial agriculture and monoculture. Fermented in qvevri with the same minimal intervention that defines all Silovani wines, it adds yet another voice to the estate's chorus of indigenous expression. The exact character of Sakmiela is still being defined by Lasha's careful work, but it promises to be a wine of authenticity and surprise — another reason to follow this small estate as it grows in both reputation and genetic diversity. Serve at 12–14°C. Drink young. ~€18–€26 / ~$20–$28 USD.

Vessels & The Cellar: The Silovani cellar in Sachamiaseri is the family marani — a traditional Georgian wine cellar where qvevris have been buried in the earth for generations. The qvevris are clay amphorae, lined with beeswax and sunk into the ground — vessels that have been used in Georgia for 8,000 years and that provide the perfect environment for natural fermentation and ageing. In Guria's humid climate, the qvevri's thermal inertia is particularly valuable: it maintains stable temperature despite external moisture and fluctuation, allowing fermentation to proceed slowly and completely without the risk of overheating or spoilage. The cellar is cool, dark, and quiet — the perfect environment for the patient transformation of grape into wine. There is no stainless steel, no oak barrels, no temperature-controlled tanks — just clay, earth, wild yeasts, and time. As Lasha tends his small production each year, he is not merely making wine; he is continuing a conversation that began with his grandfather Silovani in the same village, in the same cellar, with the same earth beneath his feet — a conversation about family, place, and the enduring magic of wines that honour the name they carry.