Of the 2000 or so grape varieties in the world, Georgia alone is home to over 500 indigenous varietals. The most well known is probably Saperavi, a deeply coloured red (it translates as “dye”) commonly used to make semi-sweet wines that are much sought after in Georgia and Russia. Rkatsiteli is Georgia’s most widely planted white grape variety, also grown over the border in neighbouring Moldova, Ukraine and Bulgaria.
Back in the restaurant where I’m seated, a friendly waitress with dark features places a large roundel of bread oozing with melted cheese in the middle of the table: khachapuri, Georgia’s favourite side dish and the accompaniment to most meals. The filling contains fresh or aged cheese, normally sulguni, a local pickled cheese that’s also enjoyed in neighbouring countries and Eastern Europe.
Next comes a refreshing plate of cold lobio, red kidney beans cooked and crushed with onions, vinegar, coriander, walnuts and chilli pepper, then left to marinate overnight. A smaller dish is placed next to them; pkhali, a wonderful vegetarian starter of small spinach and walnut balls. A selection of cheeses is also laid out on a rustic wooden board, adorned with a handful of fresh herbs and half-moon shaped tomato slices.
A procession of dishes continues to arrive at our table. Next comes satsivi, cold turkey in a creamy walnut sauce. Georgian cuisine is inconceivable without walnuts – not only are they extremely rich in nutrients, but their milk-like texture replaces dairy, which is found, for the most part, exclusively in cheeses. Walnut sauces are very popular in the Caucasus and are served with a variety of dishes, including badrijani, which consists of aubergines wrapped around a walnut paste.
Soon the aroma of sizzling meats fills the air. Mtsvadi, succulent cubes of skewered pork traditionally cooked over the embers of a bundle of dried grapevines, are served with onions and adorned with parsley and pomegranate seeds.