Telavi Wine Cellar | MARANI — Wine in Kakheti, Georgia

In short

Telavi Wine Cellar, trading as Marani, is a winery in the village of Kurdgelauri near Telavi, in the Kakheti region of eastern Georgia. According to the winery, it was founded in 1915 and works with vineyards that are considerably older, including a plot first documented in the eighteenth century. Marani produces wine using both stainless-steel, temperature-controlled European technology and traditional clay qvevri, and it also makes a grape spirit (chacha) that it says was aged for nine months at sea. The estate offers paid tours and tastings by booking, runs an online wine club, and has entered its wines in international competitions including the International Wine Challenge, the International Wine and Spirits Competition, Decanter World Wine Awards and Mundus Vini.

The estate and its history

Marani sits in the Alazani Valley, the broad plain that runs between the Caucasus range and the Tsiv-Gombori ridge and that the winery describes as the oldest wine-growing region in Georgia. The winery says Telavi Wine Cellar was established in 1915 near the city of Telavi, the largest town in Kakheti, and that history and innovation have been “intertwined” at the site ever since. One of its vineyards, at Kondoli, predates the winery itself: the winery says it is mentioned in the 1745 book “Description of the Kingdom of Georgia” by the Georgian historian Prince Vakhushti Batonishvili, and has been a benchmark for Kakhetian wine quality for close to three centuries, on the winery’s account.

• 1745 – the Kondoli vineyard is first recorded, in Vakhushti Batonishvili’s “Description of the Kingdom of Georgia”, according to the winery
• 1915 – Telavi Wine Cellar is founded near Telavi
• 1999 – Dimitri Badzoshvili joins as a cellar assistant; he is now the winery’s senior winemaker
• 2005 – Raphael Jeno, a winemaking consultant with experience in France, Spain and Australia, joins the winemaking team
• 2020 – the Didgure vineyard, on the northern slope of the Caucasus, is planted
• December 2022 – a batch of Marani chacha leaves the Black Sea port of Poti on a nine-month voyage, as described by the winery

The original 1915 cellar building still stands beside a newer two-storey production complex, together with the company’s offices, a wine laboratory, a small vineyard and a garden overlooking the Alazani Valley, the winery says.

Vineyards, grapes and method

The winery places its vineyards within the wider context of Kakheti, which it describes as having the largest and most varied controlled wine-growing zones in Georgia, spread across roughly 22,500 hectares of white and red varieties planted at 250 to 650 metres above sea level. Within this area the winery names seven appellation zones it draws on: Tsinandali, Vazisubani, Akhasheni and Mukuzani on the right bank of the Alazani, and Napareuli, Kvareli and Kindzmarauli in the foothills of the Caucasus.

Marani’s own vineyards are three estates:

• Kondoli vineyards – 300 hectares in the Tsinandali microzone, on the right bank of the Alazani at 350–450 metres, on gravelly, alluvial-clay soil over a layer of limestone. The winery says 70 percent is planted with red varieties and 30 percent with white, mainly local grapes such as Saperavi, Rkatsiteli, Alexandrouli, Mtsvane and Kisi, alongside smaller plantings of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, Chardonnay and Riesling.
• Kudigora vineyard – the estate’s second-largest, at 30.5 hectares on the left bank of the Alazani, within the Kindzmarauli appellation zone, planted exclusively to Saperavi.
• Didgure vineyard – the newest, planted in 2020 on the northern slope of the Caucasus using what the winery describes as a unique method; it covers 23 hectares and combines local grape varieties with international ones.

Vines are trained according to methods the winery calls traditional for Kakheti, double guyot or double cordon, at a density of 3,400 to 5,000 vines per hectare. Yields are capped at 9 tonnes per hectare for the standard wine range; on plots reserved for premium bottlings, the winery carries out an annual green harvest to bring yields down to 4–5 tonnes per hectare. The climate is described as transitional between humid subtropical and continental, with cool air from Caucasus glaciers producing a wide swing between day and night temperatures that the winery says favours even ripening. Raphael Jeno, the winemaking consultant, states that 30 hectares of the estate’s vineyards are candidates for organic certification.

In the cellar, stainless-steel tanks, pneumatic presses, gentle-action pumps and full temperature control sit alongside oak barrels and both historic and newly made clay qvevri. Fresh grapes are destemmed, pressed and cooled on arrival; white wine fermentation and ageing take place in the west wing, red wine fermentation and cold maceration tanks are housed in front of the main cellar, and bottling and refrigeration are on the east side. A newer two-storey building, nearing completion according to the winery, adds a bottling workshop and an underground store designed to hold an even temperature for ageing both red and white wines. Jeno notes that while the winery experiments each year with fermentation temperature and maceration length, its best wines are still matured in old clay qvevri buried in the ground.

The wines

• Marani Chacha Equator Puremare — a 41.56% abv grape spirit the winery says was aged for nine months aboard a cargo ship that crossed the equator four times and covered about 61,500 nautical miles, then blended with mountain spring water; 700 ml, 150 GEL.
• Marani Chacha Equator Terramare — the same sea-aged chacha blended with a land-aged batch and mountain spring water, matured further in oak; 700 ml, 41.56% abv, 130 GEL.
• Marani Wild Saperavi — red wine from the Rare Collection range, made from Saperavi; 115 GEL.
• Museum Collection Artefact 01 — a Rare Collection bottling; 1,200 GEL.
• Marani Reserve 2012 — a Rare Collection wine from the 2012 vintage; 136.9 GEL.
• Satrapezo 10 Qvevri — a qvevri-made white from the Satrapezo table-wine range; 58.7 GEL.
• Satrapezo Saperavi — red table wine made from Saperavi; 71.3 GEL.
• Satrapezo Mtsvane — white table wine made from Mtsvane; 58.7 GEL.
• Satrapezo Aisvaini and Satrapezo Aisvaini Cabernet — two icewine-style dessert wines from the Satrapezo range; 51.8 GEL each.
• Satrapezo Late Harvest — a dessert wine from the Satrapezo range; 38 GEL.
• Kondoli Vineyards Rkatsiteli — a Single Vineyard white from Rkatsiteli, from the Kondoli estate; 24 GEL.
• Kondoli Vineyards Mtsvane-Kisi — a Single Vineyard white blend of Mtsvane and Kisi, also from Kondoli; 25.2 GEL.
• Marani’s Choice range (Tvishi, Khvanchkara, Usakhelauri) — semi-sweet wines named after their Georgian regional styles; priced individually from 90.9 to 113.9 GEL.
• Marani Vegan range (Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Saperavi) — varietal wines produced without animal-derived fining agents, according to the winery; 15.79–17.4 GEL each, or 51.7 GEL as a three-bottle set.
• Marani Special Cuvée Brut — a sparkling wine; 81.9 GEL.

Visiting

The winery lists two tour formats, both bookable in advance:

• Discover Marani — a walk through the winemaking process, from vineyard to press, then to qvevri and barrel, ending at the bottling line.
• Wine Tasting Tour — a tour of the production process followed by a tasting of seven wines selected by the winery.

The winery also runs an online wine club with free registration. Members get 15 percent off their first order and earn points (5 points per 1 lari spent) that unlock bronze, silver and gold tiers; gold members, with 5,000 points or more, are entitled to a free wine tour and tasting for two people at Telavi Wine Cellar, subject to advance booking, according to the winery.

Food and stays

The official website material reviewed does not describe an on-site restaurant, dining room or guesthouse at Telavi Wine Cellar. Visits appear to be centred on the cellar tour and tasting programme rather than overnight stays or meals.

Awards

The winery says its wines are judged annually at internationally recognised competitions, naming the International Wine Challenge, the International Wine and Spirits Competition (IWSC), Decanter World Wine Awards and Mundus Vini, and that its bottlings have received a range of top-category medals over the years. Examples listed on the winery’s awards page for recent vintages include: Kondoli Vineyards Rkatsiteli 2023 (silver, International Wine Challenge 2025); Kondoli Vineyards Mtsvane-Kisi 2023 (gold, Mundus Vini Summer Tasting 2025; bronze, IWSC 2025; bronze, Decanter World Wine Awards 2025; bronze, International Wine Challenge 2025); Satrapezo Saperavi 2020 (gold, Mundus Vini Summer Tasting 2025); Kondoli Vineyards Saperavi 2020 (silver, Mundus Vini Summer Tasting 2025); Marani Rkatsiteli 2024 (bronze, IWSC 2025); and Marani Tsinandali 2023 (bronze, IWSC 2025). The winery’s full awards archive covers results back to 2002.

Location and getting there

Telavi Wine Cellar is in Kurdgelauri, a village near Telavi, the main town of Kakheti. Telavi is roughly 95 kilometres from Tbilisi, a drive of about 1.5 to 2 hours on the main Kakheti highway, depending on traffic and the route taken through or around Gurjaani and Tsinandali. Visitors touring Kakheti often combine a stop at Marani with other sites in the same appellation zones it draws grapes from, such as Tsinandali, Napareuli, Kvareli or Kindzmarauli, or with a visit to Telavi’s old town and Batonis Tsikhe fortress.

Good to know

• The winery is in Kurdgelauri, a village near Telavi in Kakheti.
• Two tour formats are offered: a production-focused walk-through and a tasting tour with seven wines.
• Tours and tastings are by advance booking, according to the winery.
• The estate draws on three vineyards: Kondoli (300 ha), Kudigora (30.5 ha, Saperavi only) and Didgure (23 ha, planted 2020).
• Wines are made using both stainless-steel European methods and traditional clay qvevri, with the winery’s best wines aged in old qvevri buried underground.
• An online wine club gives a 15 percent discount on a first order and a points scheme with bronze, silver and gold tiers.
• The website reviewed does not mention an on-site restaurant or guesthouse.
• The winery’s chacha range includes a bottling it says was aged for nine months at sea, crossing the equator four times before bottling.

Questions travellers ask

How far is Telavi Wine Cellar from Tbilisi?

The winery is in Kurdgelauri, near Telavi, roughly 95 kilometres from Tbilisi, which is typically a 1.5 to 2-hour drive along the Kakheti highway.

Do I need to book a tour in advance?

Yes. The winery lists two tour options, the Discover Marani walk-through and the Wine Tasting Tour, both of which require booking, and its wine club’s free tour-and-tasting offer for gold-tier members also requires advance reservation.

What grape varieties does Marani work with?

The winery lists local varieties including Saperavi, Rkatsiteli, Alexandrouli, Mtsvane, Kisi and Usakhelauri, alongside international varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Malbec, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Riesling, planted across its Kondoli, Kudigora and Didgure vineyards.

Does Marani use qvevri or European winemaking methods?

Both. The winery describes a cellar that combines stainless-steel tanks, pneumatic presses and temperature control with oak barrels and both historic and newly made clay qvevri, and its winemaking consultant states that the best wines are matured in old qvevri buried in the ground.

Is there somewhere to eat or stay at the winery?

The winery’s official website, as reviewed, does not describe an on-site restaurant or guesthouse, so visits are best planned as a tour and tasting stop rather than a full-day or overnight visit.

Sources

• Telavi Wine Cellar | MARANI — official website (marani.ge)
• Telavi Wine Cellar | MARANI: ისტორია
• Telavi Wine Cellar | MARANI: მეღვინეობა
• Telavi Wine Cellar | MARANI: მეტის ნახვა
• Telavi Wine Cellar | MARANI: იხილეთ მეღვინეები
• Telavi Wine Cellar | MARANI: ჯილდოები
• Telavi Wine Cellar | MARANI: ღვინის ტური

Profiled in depth by the GTour desk on 28 October 2026 from the property’s official website; photographs are the property’s own, from its official website, credited under each image. Not sponsored; tell us if something has changed.