October 1st marks the beginning of one of the most important months in the Republic of Georgia. In Georgian, October is Ghvinobistve which means “month of wine.” It’s during this month that harvest is at its height, and the countryside is full of people picking grapes and enjoying the meals and parties that go along with harvest.  The harvest festival is called Rtveli which is a traditional harvest festival with all the works; feasts (supra), music and dance.  October is a month of celebration and this year the festivities commence with Georgian Wine Day on October 4th, 2015. The events in the Republic of Georgia are organized by the Ministry of Agriculture and the National Wine Agency and will include events throughout the country and in Tbilisi.

If you aren’t in Georgia, you can still take part on Sunday.  Open those special bottle of Georgian wine you’ve been saving for a special occasion and lets us know about it via social media with the tag #GeorgianWineDay. I will be using Storify to save and share posts with this hashtag.

If you aren’t convinced that October 4th is a special enough day to open those bottles you are hoarding, remember that we are celebrating the birthplace of wine, more than 8000 vintages and a continuation of the oldest wine culture in the world.  I think its worth a bottle or two to pay homage to Georgia and our beloved ghvino.

Remember wine is a celebration of life, its a connection of people, to history and above all to the earth.

Gaurmajos!