Qvevri Wine Making

Qvevri Wine Making is an ancient wine-making technique originated from Georgia and has a history of 8,000 years up to now.The core of it lies in the use of specially made clay containers called “Qvevri”, which are usually conical or egg-shaped. From material selection to firing, traditional techniques are followed, providing a unique environment for wine-making.

What is Qvevri Wine?

Qvevri Wine is a unique style rooted in Georgia’s 8,000-year-old winemaking history. It uses special clay vessels called Qvevri to ferment and age the wine fully. This wine keeps more natural grape flavors than many modern winemaking methods. It also holds key nutrients from grapes that appeal to discerning wine lovers worldwide.

What is Qvevri Wine

The process of Making Qvevri Wine

The first step of it Making is selecting quality grapes from vineyards. Growers pick fully ripe grape clusters to ensure optimal sugar and flavor levels. After harvesting, workers quickly sort the grapes and remove rotten or unripe ones.​

Next comes preparing the core tool: Qvevri clay pots, a key part of brewing. Craftsmen check the pots for cracks in advance to ensure good sealing. They wipe the pot interiors with grapevines or clean water to remove dust and impurities. Later, workers put whole grapes and skins, seeds into the pots.​

Then the fermentation stage begins.Brewers add a small amount of natural yeast to the pots to speed up sugar conversion. They gently stir the grapes in the potteries with clean wooden sticks daily. Stirring helps release more pigments and tannins for richer wine taste. Meanwhile, brewers check the pots’ sealing regularly to keep air out.​

After fermentation, the aging and finishing stage starts. Brewers keep the pots buried underground to use the constant temperature for aging. Aging time ranges from 6 months to 2 years, depending on grape varieties. During aging, the wine slowly settles impurities to become clearer and smoother. Finally, brewers filter the wine with gauze and bottle the pure Qvevri Wine to finish the process.

The process of Making Qvevri Wine

The Advantages of Qvevri Wine Making

Rich flavors：

It uses traditional clay pots for fermentation to fully infuse wine with grape skin and pulp aromas. You can clearly taste notes like berries and floral scents. And this process also retains flavor like anthocyanins and tannins from grapes, making the wine flavor more rich.

 

Stability:

Workers bury clay pots underground, and the constant underground temperature prevents temperature fluctuations from harming wine quality. Even when seasons change or weather suddenly shifts, the wine inside the pots ferments and ages steadily. This reduces the risk of wine spoilage and keeps each batch of Qvevri Wine more consistent in quality.

 

Pure natural：

Qvevri Wine Making relies on natural yeast for fermentation throughout the process, with no artificial colors, preservatives or other chemicals added. Consumers get pure wine made from fermented grapes, which is gentle on the stomach and suitable for more people. This also aligns with people’s current pursuit of healthy diets and attracts wine lovers who value wellness.The Advantages of Qvevri Wine Making

 

This article takes you to understand the meaning of Qvevri Wine, the process of making it, and the advantages of it. If you are looking for this kind of earthenware jar, you can contact us. Shunfa can customize this product for you. We have 13 years of experience in earthenware jar manufacturing and can provide you with high-quality earthenware jars.