Bolnisi Old Cellar

The winery “Bolnisi Old Cellar” was founded in 2017 by winemaker Grigol Kurashvili. His father, Murad Kurashvili, taught him winemaking from childhood: the Kurashvili family is originally from Lechkhumi, from the village of Okureshi, located in the microzone of the famous grape variety Usakhelouri. However, Grigol’s parents, after getting married, lived in Bolnisi for some time, where Murad decided to take care of his wife’s grandmother’s old Rkatsiteli vineyard. In 1996, when vineyards were still being cut down en masse in Kvemo Kartli and the local population was growing high-yielding grape varieties or vegetables for commercial purposes, Murad Kurashvili purchased land and began growing Rkatsiteli. The cultivation and restoration of the Asuretuli Shala in the Bolnisi microzone is also associated with Murad Kurashvili: one day, while visiting a friend, he became interested in the hosts’ red wine and asked for a few seedlings so that he could grow a variety with a spicy aroma himself; in 2001, he purchased another vineyard to grow that variety. In 2017, Grigoli was convinced by a friend to present the family red wine at the “New Wine Festival”. It was there that they learned that the Kurashvilis’ favorite variety was called Asuretuli Shala: “Shala, like Tavkveri, is a single-sex vine, which is why it is quite difficult to care for it. There were times when I wanted to buy new seedlings, but I discovered that Shala had been planted in mixed vineyards with Saperavi. In order to obtain a pure variety, we have to work very hard and often lose money — sometimes we bring 3 tons a year, and sometimes only 300 kilos,” Grigoli notes. Grigoli’s family wine received positive feedback at the “New Wine Festival”: they contacted the prestigious wine showroom “8000 Harvest” and expressed a desire to cooperate. In the same year, it also participated in the international exhibition-competition of wine and alcoholic beverages “Vinexpo” and won a silver award. Today, “Bolnisi Old Cellar” offers its customers Rkatsiteli, Asuretuli Shala, Tavkveri, Saperavi, Gramfino (Granacha 50%, Palemilafino 50%), and Asuretuli Shala pink, made using the Swabian method. It also offers Usakhelauri green and yellow Tsolikauri from the Usakhelauri microzone in the village of Okureshi, Lechkhumi. The production processes take place in the cellar of Grigoli’s partner, winemaker Gocha Liparteliani. Grigoli owns Rkatsiteli, Asuretuli Shala, and Riesling vineyards in the Bolnisi microzone, which he cultivates with the help of his brother and friends using only organic products. Since 2023, Grigoli and Gocha's partnership has grown into a Bolnisi gastrotourism project: with the help of a jointly obtained state grant, they have begun construction of a tasting cellar near the vineyards, where guests will be introduced to the principles of vineyard care, will be able to taste the products of the "Bolnisi Old Cellar" and "Villa Kelasuri", and will also be.