Château Mukhrani

Chateau Mukhrani, located north of Tbilisi, provides convincing proof that wines from Georgia are not a 21st century fad, but were already popular in Western Europe more than 100 years ago. Originally, the ornate castle was a princely residence where the Georgian elite met. In 1875, Prince Ivane Mukhranbatoni decided to travel to France, where he studied the prevailing winemaking methods in Burgundy and Champagne. This led to the firm decision to use these methods to produce wine for his guests at Chateau Mukhran in the ideal climate in the foothills of the Carpathian Mountains on an equally suitable terroir. Using both local and imported grape varieties, he produced wines that received high ratings or even gold medals at international wine fairs in Odessa, Moscow and even Paris. At the 1889 wine exhibition in Paris, a sparkling wine from Chateau Mukhrani even won first prize. After an eventful history, Chateau Mukhrani has been producing wine again since 2007, and with immense success. Today, around 100 hectares of vineyards are planted, partly with autochthonous Georgian grape varieties such as Saperavi, Goruli Mtsvane, Takveri and Shavkapito, partly with the international varieties Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon. On the one hand, modern Western European methods are used in wine production, but on the other hand, traditional Georgian winemaking is also cultivated in the Qvevri. Patrick Honnef, a cellar master who honed his knowledge of the secrets of winemaking in Heilbronn in Württemberg and in Bordeaux with none other than Stefan Graf Neipperg at Chateau d'Aiguilhe, is at the helm here. The wines of Chateau Mukhrani can be enjoyed at a young age, but have enormous certain ageing potential. As was the case over 100 years ago, importers in Western Europe are interested in these exceptional wines, and "World's Best Vineyards" ranks Chateau Mukhrani among the 100 best wineries in the world in its current list for 2023.