By Mariam Lomidze, Culture & Events Reporter · 04/11/2026
- Expect a small, family-run cellar rather than a large commercial winery, so visits are modest in scale.
- The focus is on indigenous Imeretian grapes like Tsitska, Tsolikouri and Krakhuna, distinct from Kakheti's better-known varieties.
- Pair the visit with Kutaisi's Bagrati Cathedral, Gelati Monastery, or a trip to Okatse Canyon or Prometheus Cave to make a full day of it.
Most visitors who come to Georgia for wine head east, to Kakheti, where qvevri cellars and roadside tastings have become part of the standard itinerary. Imereti tells a different story, and Avalishvili’s Marani is one of the small cellars keeping it alive. Here, winemaking follows the natural style long practised in western Georgia, built around grape varieties that rarely travel beyond this region: Tsitska, Tsolikouri and Krakhuna.
November suits this kind of visit. The tourist rush of late summer has passed, the Imeretian countryside carries the muted colours of autumn, and a small family cellar is easier to appreciate without the queues that can build up at larger, better-known wine estates elsewhere in the country. This is not a destination built for spectacle. It rewards travellers who want to taste something specific to a place, made in a style shaped by generations of local practice rather than by international wine trends.
Why it fits an Imereti itinerary
The cellar sits within easy reach of Kutaisi, Georgia’s third-largest city and the natural base for exploring this part of the country. Kutaisi itself holds Bagrati Cathedral, a key landmark of Georgian architectural history, while the nearby Gelati Monastery adds a further layer of medieval heritage to the day. For travellers who prefer landscapes to monuments, Okatse Canyon and Prometheus Cave are both within comfortable driving distance, making it straightforward to combine a cellar visit with a morning or afternoon spent outdoors.
This combination of city, monastery and nature means a stop at Avalishvili’s Marani can sit naturally inside a wider day trip rather than requiring a special detour. It particularly suits travellers already curious about Georgian wine beyond the Kakhetian mainstream, or anyone wanting to understand how western Georgian winemaking differs in grape variety, method and character from the country’s more widely marketed wine regions.
Access is straightforward by road from Kutaisi or other Imeretian towns, which keeps the logistics simple for those building their own route rather than following a fixed tour.
Verified by GTour: listed in the Georgian National Tourism Administration register; details checked 17 October 2026. Tell us if something has changed.
Read more on gtour.ge: Imereti · Avalishvili’s Marani — Wine in Imereti, Georgia
Wine of the day — a daily GTour desk feature drawn from the verified-place register and our destination guides. Not sponsored.
Source: Georgian National Tourism Administration — official register (georgia.travel)
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Source: Georgian National Tourism Administration — official register (georgia.travel). Reported by the GTour desk; updated 4 November 2026, 11:45 (Tbilisi).
