Georgia Believes in Its Wine Heritage and Dreams of a Peaceful Future

Shortly after leaving Tbilisi Airport, the Georgian capital, the mountains of the Greater Caucasus emerge in the distance, forming a picturesque backdrop. It takes about two hours by car to reach the Kakheti region in the far east of the country, and the destination of this report — the Lopota Lake Resort. The drive winds through endless mountain roads and small villages where time seems to have stopped. Here, it’s not unusual to see cows crossing the road or stray dogs darting out of abandoned garages and shops along the way. The scars of Georgia’s turbulent history — from civil war to conflict with Russia — are still visible in these villages. Yet despite the trauma, Georgia is determined to believe in a better future. Officially a candidate for EU membership since 2024, the country remains deeply divided between a ruling party seen as pro-Russian and a pro-European opposition.

Supported by a resilient economic model, Georgia posted an exceptional GDP growth of +9.4% in 2024, ranking among the fastest-growing economies in the world. Since 2000, the numbers are even more striking: GDP per capita has soared by 370%, and experts from Batumi Projects forecast a 500% increase per capita by 2030.

Tourism — which boomed after the pandemic — and viticulture, the country’s second-largest export sector, are central to this dynamic. In the first half of 2025, Georgia’s tourism industry generated a record $2 billion in revenue, up 3.8% from the same period the previous year, and 35.4% higher than pre-pandemic levels in 2019. This enthusiasm is also fueled by the growing number of direct flights from Europe in recent years, responding to increasing demand from passengers and airlines alike.

In Kakheti, considered the historical cradle of Georgian wine and home to three-quarters of the nation’s vineyards, wine tourism is booming. Between 2020 and 2022, a new generation of wine-oriented hotels opened in Telavi, the regional capital, and about twenty high-end properties are scheduled to open between 2025 and 2028 across the country. The year 2024 was also exceptional for Georgian wine exports: 95 million liters exported, generating $276.1 million in revenue, up 6% and 7%, respectively. Growth was especially strong toward the UAE (+80%), Turkey (+62%), and the UK (+42%), even though Russia remains Georgia’s main market, absorbing nearly two-thirds of its wine exports.