Georgia: Officials Claim Victory in Russian “War” on Georgian Wine

Using a mix of patriotic rhetoric and military jargon, President Mikheil Saakashvili has compared the Russian embargo on Georgian wines, one of the country's top exports, to an "economic war." At the beginning of the harvest season, Saakashvili promised support to farmers and wine companies alike for the battle ahead.

"An economic war has been declared on us to make us weak now so that they do not lose a bigger war later," he said in an opaque reference to Russia during an August 31 speech in the lush, southeastern region of Kakheti, the Mecca for Georgian viticulture. "We will incur a loss, but we must not make the enemy happy. We must not let the enemy achieve its goal."

With Russia, the main market for Georgian wines, now gone, the challenge was to find substitute overseas clients with a taste for a fruity Tsinandali white or a robust Kindzmarauli red, as well as for dozens of other appelations. As part of the government's harvest strategy, high-ranking officials – Prime Minister Zurab Noghaideli, Agricultural Minister Mikheil Svimonishvili, Interior Minister Vano Merabishvili, Defense Minister Irakli Okruashvili, and Prosecutor-General Zurab Adeishvili – were assigned to the five biggest grape-producing regions of Kakheti: Sagarejo, Gurjaani, Telavi, Kvareli and Sighnaghi. The five men were tasked with providing logistical support to farmers looking for clients and to buyers looking for grapes.

The plan was for the government to provide farmers with everything from tractors to organizational skills, but without subsidizing the price of grapes. Instead, to pick up the slack in demand, Saakashvili encouraged Georgian businesses to support the grape harvest and to buy ten tons of grapes each.

"We should all help Kakheti this year