What to bring from Georgia as gifts for friends and relatives

Georgia is famous for its huge variety of original souvenirs, delicious traditional products, jewelry and handmade ceramic dishes. For those who choose what to bring from Georgia as a gift, we have compiled a list of the most interesting Georgian products for every taste.

Souvenirs from Georgia

Real Georgian wine

Georgian wines in a chain store

You can buy fine wine in bottles or homemade in plastic containers. The latter is widely represented by farmers in the market. For fine wine, head to chain stores (such as Smart and Carrefour), where you can taste some types of wine at a tasting.

You can also choose good wine in one of the many liquor stores. As for the brand, the best producers of real Georgian wine are Teliani Valley (Teliani Valley), Chateau Mukhrani (Chateau Mukhrani) and Marani (Marani).

 

What kind of wine to bring from Georgia? First of all, focus on popular varieties.

Wine brand Teliani Valley
    1. Saperavi – dry red wine with pronounced astringency, popular in many countries.
    2. Tsinandali – dry white, with a rich taste and bright acidity. Wine is aged in oak barrels for at least 2 years.
    3. Khvanchkara – the legendary semi-sweet red wine. It features an unusually rich velvety taste and an exquisite fruity aftertaste. This is one of the most expensive Georgian wines, since the region of the same name, in which grapes are grown for Khvanchkara, occupies a very small territory.
Wine Mukuzani
Mukuzani wine

4. Mukuzani – dry red, is considered one of the best in Georgia. It has a pleasant taste and aroma with notes of blackcurrant and cherry. This wine is aged in barrels for at least 3 years.

5. Silence- is a semi-sweet white. Different wineries use different grapes for the production of Tvichi. Particularly aromatic and delicious is obtained from the Tsolikauri grape variety in Marani.

6. Kindzmarauli – naturally semi-sweet red wine is made from the Saperavi variety, grown exclusively in the Kindzmarauli microzone in Kakheti. The Kindzmarauli brand is a “controlled name by origin,” and is therefore highly regarded.

Once you’ve chosen what can to buy from Georgia for true connoisseurs of the drink of the gods, take note of the original wines. As a rule, they are not sold in supermarkets; they need to be looked for in specialized liquor stores.

Wine Marani Satrapezo Gviani
  • Satrapezo Guiani from Marani – dessert wine (Ice wine). The wine contains white grapes of the racacelli variety. These grapes are harvested with the advent of the first frosts. Satrapezo Guiani is usually served with soft spicy cheeses or used as an aperitif.
  • Muscat from Chateau Mukhrani is a white dessert wine with a strength of 18%. It is characterized by a mixed floral aroma and dried fruits. On the palate are traced oak, chocolate and spicy notes. Serve Muscat to fruits and sweets.
  • Chateau Mukhrani Shavkapito is a dry red wine aged in oak barrels with a rich aroma of plums and cherries. It goes well with red meat and hard cheeses.
  • Lagvinari wines are wines that are presented in the menu of restaurants with Michelin stars. They can also be found in the famous London liquor store HEDONIZM wine. Lagvinari is exported to Norway, Austria and France. Each sort of wine is produced according to ancient traditions. Lagvinari white wine has an amber color, so in Europe it was called orange wine.

Wine horn

Wine horns

Real Georgian horn for wine can be bought at the market or in a gift shop. But note that some products are exclusively decorative in nature, while others can be used for their intended purpose. Checking this is quite simple: pour water into the horn. If it does not flow out, then the horn will withstand the wine. According to Georgian traditions, you need to give two horns – so that you can drink with a friend.

Chacha and cognac

Cognac Sarajishvili XO

If you need to choose what to bring from Georgia besides wine for lovers of alcoholic drinks , buy traditional Georgian moonshine chacha or a bottle of good cognac brands “Sarajishvili” or “Iverioni”. Homemade chacha is abundantly represented in the markets: its strength can reach 70 degrees. If you doubt the quality of home-made drinks, go for chain and cognac to chain stores or specialty stores.

Georgian tea

The famous Georgian tea is an inexpensive but pleasant gift. It is better to buy it at a tea shop or at the grocery market. The most popular varieties are black Sheikhqmedi black, as well as Gurieli and Rcheuli.

Georgian sweets: churchkhela, tklapi, gozinaki

The best addition to tea is amazing Georgian sweets. These are churchkhela, tklapi and gozinaki.

Georgian sweets counter
Churchkhela on the counter

Churchkhela is a Georgian national delicacy. For cooking this delicacy, use almonds, walnuts, raisins and hazelnuts. These ingredients are strung on a string and covered with thickened grape or pomegranate juice, sometimes with the addition of honey. Sugar, flavorings or colorings are never added to real churchkhela. The most delicious churchkhela can be bought on the market: just avoid cheap offers and churchkhela with a white coating.

Tklapi – sour pita

 

Tklapi

Tklapi (sour pita bread) is another traditional sweet. These are sheets of dried plum or berry fruit puree. Tklapi can be eaten with tea or added to kharcho soup.

Gozinaki – in its classic form is crushed nuts or sesame seeds, flooded with melted honey. By tradition, Georgians cook them for the New Year holidays. But gozinaki are sold in Georgia at any time of the year.

Exotic jam and honey

Georgia is famous for exotic jam. You can buy homemade jam on the market, and in shops made in factories. Georgians make jam from:

Fig jam
  • Figs
  • Pine cones
  • Tangerines
  • Dogwood
  • Quinces
  • Walnuts
  • Feijoa
  • Eggplant, watermelon, hot pepper, etc.

Also in Georgia there is a huge variety of natural, viscous and aromatic honey. As a gift, you can buy an unusual chestnut, acacia or citrus honey. Honey made from walnut flowers is popular.

Souvenir weapon

Many tourists are interested in whether it is possible to bring a dagger from Georgia. You really can buy souvenir weapons, which are sold in specialized stores. In addition to daggers, sabers, knives and other types of knives are presented in the assortment. Such a souvenir can be hung on the wall as a decoration.

Souvenir weapon

Traditional cheese

Sulguni cheese

The most famous Georgian cheeses are Suluguni and Imereti cheese, which has a mild flavor. They are sold both in the market and in any supermarket (for example, Aristaeus). If you choose cheese as a gift, it is better to buy those varieties that are stored longer. For example, smoked suluguni can be stored for up to a year, and fresh (unsalted) – from 7 to 10 days.

Spices and sauces

Spices on the market

Spices are the most popular gifts from Georgia for those who like to cook. First of all, take note of the famous seasoning of hops-suneli, Imereti saffron, adjika or Svanese salt (dry mix of spices).

It is also worth bringing home a traditional Georgian tkemali sauce. It is red (from blackthorn) and green (from the fruit of cherry plum). Satsebeli tomato sauce is suitable for meat, and nasharap, which is prepared from pomegranate juice, is suitable for fish.

Spices and sauces are often bought in the markets. Sellers are happy to talk about their products and help with the selection.

 

Jewelry with cloisonne enamel

If you choose souvenirs from Georgia for women, a traditional gift with enamel will be a wonderful gift. Georgian craftsmen manually make exquisite products from silver, gold or copper and cover them with cloisonne enamel with patterns, images of Georgian landscapes and houses, religious subjects.

Cloisonne Enamel Jewelry

After applying the enamel, the master craftsmen burn products in special furnaces, grind and polish. This method has not changed for more than twelve centuries. Each decoration is unique and never repeated. You can buy jewelry with cloisonne enamel in a jewelry store or at the individual craftsmen.

Ceramic or earthenware

Clay dishes

In souvenir shops and in Georgian markets you can find colorful ceramic dishes with intricate patterns. It can be sets, jugs for wine or teapots, which will become a spectacular decoration of the interior. For those who like to cook, you can bring ketsi – a traditional Georgian clay pan with sides for fries and other dishes.

Tobacco and smoking attributes

Smoking tobacco

You can find home-made tobacco of different strengths in Georgian markets, as well as smoking pipes and ceramic ashtrays. Sellers recommend buying medium-strength tobacco, as a headache can make you sick from a strong habit.

We hope that we helped you choose what to bring from Georgia as a gift, and you will please your friends and relatives with pleasant souvenirs from a sunny and hospitable country.

 

 

 


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