Best Telavi Wineries to Visit in 2026 — 6 Verified Picks
Telavi is the main town of Kakheti, the eastern Georgian region that calls itself the cradle of Georgian winemaking, and the wineries around it make a natural base for a qvevri-focused trip. Qvevri are the buried clay vessels in which Georgian wine has been fermented and aged for thousands of years, and several of the producers below still work in them, some in cellars that date back more than a century. The picks spread across the Telavi area: a producer inside the town itself, village estates in Shalauri, Kisiskhevi and Vazisubani, and the historic Chavchavadze estate at Tsinandali, whose appellation name is one of Georgia's best known. They range from a boutique tasting hall to a restored 19th-century estate to a larger hotel-and-winery complex, so the list suits a quick tasting stop as well as a longer stay.
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At a glance
| # | Winery | Sub-region | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tsinandali Estate | Tsinandali village, Telavi municipality | History and the oldest bottled wine in Georgia |
| 2 | Vazisubani Estate | Vazisubani, near Telavi | Qvevri tasting in a restored 19th-century cellar |
| 3 | Teleda Orgo | Kisiskhevi, Telavi | Qvevri wine from 50-year-old vines |
| 4 | Vaziani Winery | Telavi town | A free daily tour with qvevri and a working winery |
| 5 | Dakishvili Family Wine Cellar | Shalauri and Telavi town | A small-batch family cellar with a tasting boutique in town |
| 6 | Schuchmann Wines | Kisiskhevi, Telavi | A winery stay with a wine spa and guided cellar visits |
Tsinandali Estate
Tsinandali Estate describes itself as combining aristocratic heritage with contemporary luxury. In the early 19th century, Alexander Chavchavadze introduced European winemaking technology to Georgia here and built a large underground cellar that also housed qvevri. The estate says that cellar still holds his collection of over 16,500 bottles of 70 wine varieties, including a Tsinandali Estate Saperavi from 1839, which it describes as the oldest bottled wine in Georgia.
- Tasting
- Confirm with winery
- How to book
- Online or emailThe wine tasting, wine tour and oenotheque pages each link to a visit-planning form. The wine tasting is described as five distinct sets of estate wines paired with Georgian food. Prices are not published.
- Visit policy
- No opening hours or durations are published for the tasting, tour or oenotheque; the estate also has a hotel, restaurants and an 18-hectare park.
Vazisubani Estate
Vazisubani Estate was built in 1891 by Sulkhan Chavchavadze, then fell into decline and was abandoned for decades after 1921 before restoration began in 2013. Its site says the wines come exclusively from estate-grown grapes and are made in the traditional qvevri method, with the white wines left on their skins and lees to give an amber colour. The estate cites Mundus Vini (2020) and Decanter Asia (2019) awards for its Kisi, Rkatsiteli and Saperavi qvevri wines.
- Tasting
- Confirm with winery
- How to book
- Online or emailThe wine tasting tour covers the historic cellar and vineyards, with each glass paired with seasonal dishes. It is booked through the estate's messaging link, and the site also lists email contacts for reservations.
- Visit policy
- No tour hours or prices are published. The estate also runs a 19-room boutique hotel, a restaurant and vineyard dinners.
Teleda Orgo
Teleda Orgo was founded in 2012 by winemaker Giorgi Dakhishvili and Mamuka Tsereteli. The name takes Teleda, the ancient name of Telavi, and Orgo, an old Georgian term for a qvevri lid. Its vineyards in the villages of Kondoli and Kurdgelauri lie within the Tsinandali PDO, and the site says the winery's strength is vines that are 50 years old or older. Two cellars hold 49 qvevri of 2,000 litres each, and the winery also makes a sparkling Brut from Mtsvane that ferments first in qvevri.
- Tasting
- Confirm with winery
- How to book
- Online or emailReserve through the tasting reservation form on the winery's site. Two tastings are offered as part of the wine tour: three qvevri wines, or five wines in sparkling, classic and traditional qvevri styles, each with a snack board of cheese, olives and ham.
- Visit policy
- No opening hours or prices are published on the tasting page.
Vaziani Winery
Vaziani was founded in 1982 and modernised in 2012. During the 2012 reconstruction, the winery says it found about 200 buried qvevri that were more than 120 years old, of which only 39 survived undamaged. The wine tour lets visitors see those vessels, watch production in the modern winery and taste qvevri wines made by the family's own method, with trilingual guides covering the full winemaking cycle.
- Tasting
- Confirm with winery
- How to book
- Online or emailThe site describes the tour as free, covering a tasting of four wines: a white, a rosé and two reds. Qvevri and appellation wines are offered separately at a price the site does not state. Book the tour through the contact given on the wine tour page.
- Visit policy
- Open to visitors every day from 10:00 to 18:00, according to the wine tour page.
Dakishvili Family Wine Cellar
The cellar was founded in 2002 by Giorgi Dakishvili, and the family says it has made wine for over a century. It produces limited series of 500 to 5,000 bottles, roughly 50,000 bottles a year in total, from 11 hectares of vineyards in villages including Kondoli and Kurdgelauri. The family opened a separate wine boutique and tasting hall in Telavi town in spring 2023, which pours its wines and some limited family reserve bottlings sold only there, alongside snacks and local sweets.
- Tasting
- Confirm with winery
- How to book
- Book by phoneThe site says tasting reservations are arranged by contacting the winery; the number is on the winery's own contact pages. The cellar is in the village of Shalauri and the boutique is in Telavi town.
- Visit policy
- No opening hours are published for the cellar or the boutique, so confirm before visiting.
Schuchmann Wines
Schuchmann Wines was founded in 2008 by Burkard Schuchmann and his family, and makes wines from three appellations: Napareuli, Tsinandali and Kindzmarauli. The site says its wines are made in qvevri buried in the earth, and it lists a Cabernet Sauvignon Qvevri wine in its range. The wine complex combines a hotel, restaurant, wine bar and wine spa, and its hotel page says guests can learn about Kakhetian, classic and sparkling winemaking with guides and sommeliers.
- Tasting
- Confirm with winery
- How to book
- Book by emailThe site does not publish a tasting booking page; the contact page gives an email address for enquiries, so ask there about winery visits.
- Visit policy
- No tasting hours or prices are published.
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Frequently asked
What is a qvevri and why does it matter in Kakheti?
A qvevri is a large clay vessel buried in the ground, used to ferment and age wine. Vaziani's site describes the method as up to 8,000 years old and notes that the buried vessel keeps fermentation at a steady temperature. Teleda Orgo and Vazisubani Estate also make wines this way, and Vazisubani leaves its white wines on their skins in qvevri to give them an amber colour. If you want to understand Georgian wine, a qvevri cellar visit is the best place to start.
Do Telavi wineries need to be booked in advance?
Mostly yes. Teleda Orgo has a tasting reservation form on its site, Dakishvili asks that tasting reservations are arranged with the cellar directly, Vazisubani Estate takes wine tour bookings through a messaging link, and Tsinandali Estate links its tasting and tour pages to a booking form. Vaziani is the one on this list that publishes fixed daily opening hours, but it also asks visitors to book a tour by contacting the winery. Contact ahead for any of the six.
Which winery is best for history?
Tsinandali Estate. Its historic cellar holds the wine collection of Alexander Chavchavadze, which the estate says counts over 16,500 bottles of 70 wine varieties, including a Saperavi from 1839 that it describes as the oldest bottled wine in Georgia. Vazisubani Estate is the other historic option, built in 1891 and restored from 2013.
Can I stay overnight at a winery near Telavi?
Yes, at three of the six. Vazisubani Estate runs a 19-room boutique hotel in its restored palace, Tsinandali Estate has a hotel with 124 rooms and suites, and Schuchmann Wines runs a hotel and villa complex with a wine spa. Teleda Orgo, Vaziani and Dakishvili are tasting stops rather than places to stay.
Do I need a car to visit the wineries around Telavi?
For anything outside Telavi town, a car or a booked driver is the practical choice. Teleda Orgo and Schuchmann Wines are in the village of Kisiskhevi, Dakishvili's cellar is in Shalauri, Tsinandali Estate is in Tsinandali, and Vazisubani Estate is in Vazisubani, all outside the town centre. The two Telavi-town stops are Vaziani, which is in Telavi itself, and the Dakishvili wine boutique, which is a separate tasting hall in town.
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