At A Glance
- Field
- Detail
- Region
- Kakheti and Kartli, Georgia
- Village
- Shilda, Kakheti
- Main grapes
- Native Georgian varieties from Kakheti and Kartli
- Bottle
- Saperavi Solo
- Defining feature
- Traditional qvevri fermentation, recognized by UNESCO in 2013 as intangible cultural heritage
The Producer
Levan and Giorgi Chychynadze operate Tiko Estate with Levan's wife Maria. The small winery makes wines from native Georgian grape varieties in Kakheti and Kartli. White, red and orange styles all appear in the range.
Place
The estate is based in Shilda village in Kakheti, Eastern Georgia, about two hours from Tbilisi. Kakheti's warm days and cool nights shape bold, aromatic wines. The estate also works in Kartli, where limestone rich soils give Shavkapito a fresh, delicate character.
Soil And Site
The Alazani River valley has a continental climate and iron rich soils. Climate affects ripening speed, while soil affects water supply and root growth, which in turn influence fruit maturity and acidity at harvest.
Story
Levan and Giorgi Chychynadze trained at a wine institute in Crimea, Ukraine. Levan completed vintages in Australia, France and America, while Giorgi worked a vintage in Burgundy, France. The team brings over 40 years of wine industry experience, 50 vintages across four continents and ten countries. At Tiko Estate, that international background is applied to native Georgian grapes and traditional qvevri fermentation.
Vineyards And Cellar
Qvevri are traditional clay pots used for fermentation, and Tiko Estate uses them in its wines. Orange Kisi is fermented and aged on its skins in qvevri for up to six months. Skin contact is the technique behind orange wine: the grapes ferment with their skins, so colour and tannin pass into the wine.
Wines
The range spans white, red and orange wines. Mtsvane is the white wine, Saperavi Solo the dry red, and Orange Kisi the orange wine made with skin contact. The broader list includes Kisi, Khikhvi, Rkatsiteli and Saperavi from Kakheti, as well as Shavkapito from Kartli.
In The Glass
Mtsvane opens with perfumed aromas of white flowers, apricot skin and lemon blossom. Lemon curd and orchard fruit fill the palate, with white pepper over a distinct mineral backbone. Saperavi Solo carries ripe black cherries, blackcurrants and plums, with grippy tannins and bright acidity. Orange Kisi brings the textured profile associated with extended skin contact, with colour and skin derived tannin in the wine.
A Bottle To Understand It
Saperavi Solo 2023 is an unoaked, dry red made from Saperavi. It carries vineyard aromatics with juicy intensity, and the absence of oak leaves the grape's own fruit exposed.
Anecdote
In 2017, Levan and Giorgi Chychynadze started the winery and named it after their mother. Tiko was the nickname her father, the brothers' grandfather, had given her, and Tiko Tiko is a sweet nickname often used for children in Georgia. Their father had died young, leaving their mother to guide them. The brothers used her nickname for the estate to honor her and all she did for them. The name went straight onto the winery's label, Tiko Estate.
Final Word
Tiko Estate produces about 30,000 bottles annually across eight products.