Shumi Georgica Mukuzani 2017 | Red wine

• Country of origin: Georgia
• Producer: Shumi
• Type / style: Red / Dry
• Grape variety: Saperavi 100%
• Classification: PDO Mukuzani
• Alcohol by volume: 13.0%
• Residual sugar: 2.79 g/l
• Acidity: 5.9 g/l
• Body: medium (+)
• Bottle volume: 750 ml
  
• Readiness for drinking: now~2027
• Price range: 3,000~3,999 Yen
• JAN Code: 4860053061009

What is Mukuzani?

Mukuzani is one of Georgia's most respected appellations, on the right bank of the Alazani valley in Kakheti, eastern Georgia. Only dry red wine made from 100% Saperavi qualifies, and ageing in oak is mandatory. Georgians have long treated Mukuzani as the benchmark for serious dry red wine.

Inside this strictly controlled micro-zone, well-drained slopes and a wide day-to-night temperature swing give Saperavi firm acidity and generous tannins, the backbone that lets these wines age for decades.

Shumi winery

Shumi is a family-owned producer founded in 1997, among the very first of Georgia's modern wineries. It sits in the village of Tsinandali in Kakheti, next to the Chavchavadze estate museum and the national park. The name comes from an old Georgian word meaning "wine as it is, undiluted".

The estate farms around 300 hectares spread across Georgia's key appellations and micro-zones: Mukuzani, Napareuli, Kindzmarauli and Tsinandali. In 2003 Shumi planted what is now the largest private varietal collection vineyard in the world, a living library of indigenous Georgian grapes that rescued several dozen of them from extinction.

"Georgica" is Shumi's upper range, made only from grapes harvested on 25 to 40 year old vines.

What is Saperavi?

Saperavi is Georgia's flagship black grape. The name means "dye", and the variety lives up to it: it is a teinturier, carrying colour in the pulp as well as the skin. The result is deep, almost opaque wine with the structure to age for a very long time.

Expect dark berries, plum, licorice and tobacco, backed by firm tannins and high acidity. Saperavi is made in every style from dry to sweet to fortified, but it shows its full hand in oak-aged dry reds like this one.

Why choose this wine?

Harvested in 2017, bottled in April 2019. Hand-picked Saperavi from 35 to 40 year old vines, patiently matured in French oak. Nine years on, the grip that makes young Saperavi hard work has resolved into a velvety texture, and tertiary notes of tobacco and sweet spice have opened up.

This is a Mukuzani you do not need to wait for: it is drinking beautifully right now. An easy recommendation whether Georgian wine is new to you or you simply like a serious red, and it delivers well above its price.

Tasting notes

Appearance

Deep ruby with a garnet rim.

Nose

Pronounced. Black cherry, cassis, plum and dried fig, opening with air onto tobacco, leather, forest floor, cocoa and mellow sweet spice (clove, cinnamon). Toast and vanilla from the French oak are well knit into the fruit.

Palate

Medium (+) body. Nine years of age have drawn the tannins fine and smooth, giving a velvety texture. Ripe fruit sweetness and firm acidity hold each other in balance over a well-defined frame. The finish is long, with pleasant grip and a lingering trace of spice.

Food pairing

Made for full-flavoured meat. Beef steak and charcoal grills, grilled lamb, braised hamburg steak, beef stew, roast duck. For Georgian food, mtsvadi (shashlik) or kharcho. Among Japanese dishes it works well with yakitori in tare sauce, sukiyaki and beef shigureni. It also suits aged hard cheese and nuts.

Service

• Service temperature: 16~18°C
• Decanting: recommended, 30 minutes to 1 hour before serving

Vineyard

• Region: Kakheti
• Viticultural region: Mukuzani (micro-zone)
• Village: Mukuzani
• Vineyard: estate-owned
• Vine age: 35~40 years
  
• Altitude: 600 m
• Average annual temperature: [作成中]
• Average annual rainfall: [作成中]
• Vineyard manager: [作成中]

Winemaking

• Ingredients: grapes 100%
• Producer: Shumi
• Production place: Shumi (village of Tsinandali)
• Harvest: hand-picked
• Destemming: yes
• Fermentation vessel: stainless steel tank
• Maceration: 14 days
• Malolactic conversion: yes
• Sur lie: no
• Maturing: French oak barrels
• Bottling place: Shumi
• Bottling date: listed on the package (12 April 2019)

Import information

• Importer: Vin Cross Co., Ltd.
• Import method: Container import
• Import route: Shumi ⇨ Vin Cross Co., Ltd. ⇨ Daniel's Wine Club
• Quality control method during transportation: reefer (temperature-controlled) container

Storage information

• Seller: Daniel's Wine Club
• Storage place: Daniel's Wine Club
• Storage temperature: 16~18°C

Gifts, wrapping, noshi

You can find gift boxes, along with packaging and noshi (traditional Japanese ceremonial wrapping) options, on the "Accessories and Gifts" page.

If you’d like to add a personal touch to your gift, we can also include a card or message in the package. Please feel free to contact us if you need assistance. We will do our best to ensure your gift arrives in perfect condition.