The capital of Kakheti wine country — qvevri clay-jar winemaking since 6000 BCE, churchkhela walnut candy, and almond orchards below the Greater Caucasus
Telavi is the capital of the Kakheti region — Georgia's wine country and one of the world's most ancient winemaking regions, where viticulture has been practised continuously for at least 8,000 years. The region produces roughly 70% of Georgia's wine, including the signature amber wines made in qvevri — large clay jars buried in the ground where grape skins, seeds, and stems are left in contact with the fermenting wine for months, creating the distinctive orange-coloured, tannic natural wines that have made Georgian winemaking a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage. Telavi's old town is pleasa…
Telavi has been the administrative centre of Kakheti since at least the 8th century CE, when it served as the capital of the Kingdom of Kakheti before the unification of Georgia under the Bagrationi dynasty. The city was repeatedly attacked by Timur (1386, 1403), the Safavid Persians (1615), and the Lezgian raiders of the 18th century — each time recovering due to Kakheti's agricultural wealth. King Herekle II (Erekle II) of Kakheti signed the Treaty of Georgievsk with Russia here in 1783, placing Kakheti under Russian protection; the treaty effectively ended Kakheti's independence. The regio…