Georgian Wine and Hospitality

We were kept busy during our two weeks at the Summer literary Seminars in Tbilisi. Each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning there were two hour seminars or writing workshops held separately for the poets and the prose writers.

Away from the Writers' House, our time was our own. Most of us chose to explore the many interesting places in old Tbilisi, a city where cabs are inexpensive and it's easy to just walk between most places. Having common interests, Meg and I often walked the streets together, visiting museums, ancient cathedrals, Narikala Fortress and the Mother of Georgia statue on the mountaintop above the city, the many interesting parks filled with fountains and statues, and the small mom and pop shops on every street. For breaks, we would stop at a café to sit and talk. Often we would meet interesting people from Georgia and around the world and chat with them. Every large store and small shop in Tbilisi sells wine and liquor, including the famous chacha (grape-vodka). There are also stores and small bistros dedicated to selling the finest wines of Georgia. Not far from the Writers' House, we discovered a wine store with very pleasant staff and, in back, a peaceful courtyard away from the noise of the street.

WineLab is a small shop on Shalva Dadiani Street, filled with a wide selection of white and red wines made in Georgia. Although small, WineLab is easy to find. In front of the store a battered old Russian car is parked, with a huge amphora on the roof, and serves as WineLab's sign. One day, curious about this wine store, Meg and I ventured inside. A delightful and helpful young woman greeted us and made us feel at home. The store's walls were lined with bottles of wine. Before we bought any bottle, we were offered a sample, poured into large wine glasses on an island at the centre of the floor, similar to one you might find in a modern kitchen. There were tables inside, but the weather was warm and not humid. We had noticed the courtyard out the open back door and opted to take our wine outside.

The courtyard is a simple one, not dissimilar to ones found at home in Kingston. Decor included benches built of shipping pallets, homemade wine racks filled with empty bottles, plenty of small plants and a few trees, and tables with umbrellas and comfortable chairs. Sharing lovely Georgian wine in this courtyard was just enough to provide two people with a quiet break from the hustle bustle of the seminars and the busy streets outside, and when we didn't drink all the wine we were able to take the opened bottle away with us. Pouring the wine was interesting. After uncorking, WineLab staff formed a three inch diameter piece of chrome-mylar into a tube and inserted it into the neck of the bottle, creating a perfect pouring spout.

Meg and I sat with our wine and talked about the seminars, our explorations so far, and even at times about home. We both found the inhabitants of the courtyard interesting to observe. One wall of the courtyard is the side of an ancient apartment building, and residents sometimes came out then exited through WineLab to the street. A boy, son of WineLab's owner, played with several kittens, chasing them around the courtyard or being chased by them as they sought the food he had brought them.

After our first visit to WineLab, we returned to this peaceful place several times to just sit and visit for a while in late afternoon before heading for the readings in the evening. On each visit, we were greeted by the same young woman and a young man, both fluent in English and happy to advise us on our choices of red and white wines. Most of the time we had the courtyard to ourselves though one time three men, possibly residents of the building next door, came and sat for a while and another time a young woman sat at a table near us.