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Bouquet of Abkhazia is the only fortified wine in the assortment of the Sukhum winery. The recipe for the drink was developed by one of the most famous winemakers in the country, Nikolai Achba, the first batch was released in 1929. The brand has been well known to customers since Soviet times, and the wine has become a kind of symbol of Abkhazia. The manufacturer labels “Bouquet of Abkhazia” as a wine drink, since it is made with the addition of ethyl alcohol.
Historical information
Winemaking has flourished in Abkhazia since ancient times. Historians suggest that the Greeks brought grapes to the region in the XNUMXth century BC. e., and during the existence of the Georgian state, winemaking in the region of Dioscuria (modern Sukhumi) was very developed. The locals carried on a brisk trade with Western Europe through Genoa and Venice until the arrival of the Muslim conquerors.
In connection with the rejection of wine by Islam, viticulture gradually came to naught, and began to revive only in the 60th century. Then Abkhazia was one continuous vineyard. Up to XNUMX local varieties were cultivated here, but then they were practically destroyed by phylloxera. Despite the large number of plantings, the method of making wines was very simple. In Abkhazia, they preferred to drink young wine, which ripened up to six months in large jugs dug into the ground. Abkhazian winemakers did not practice longer aging.
Industrial production of wine began to develop in the country only in 1924, when the construction of the Abkhaz Vin Sad plant began. Nikolai Achba, a descendant of an ancient princely family, made a great contribution to the development of winemaking. He developed the most famous Abkhazian wines that are still produced today: Lykhny, Psou and Bouquet of Abkhazia. The company was renamed many times, but the name of the brands was not changed.
Now the plant “Wines and Waters of Abkhazia” is managed by the grandson of the winemaker Nikolai Achba. Thanks to Russian investments, the company underwent a complete reconstruction in the early 2000s: buildings were repaired, Italian equipment was installed. Previously, the company purchased wine materials in Moldova, now the company uses its own grapes in the production of premium wines. Planting areas are expanding, specialists are doing a lot of work to restore local varieties. Every year, the Sukhumi enterprise produces 28 million bottles of products that it exports to the CIS countries.
Wine production technology Bouquet of Abkhazia
Initially, the wine recipe provided for mixing two grape varieties – Tsolikouri and Isabella, now only the latter is used in production. Clusters are harvested by hand in early autumn, when the berries have the maximum amount of sugar. The ridges are separated, the grapes are placed under a gentle press, the resulting must is fermented on the pulp with the addition of pure yeast culture.
Wine Bouquet of Abkhazia is made using a technology close to the method of producing port wine. Various methods are used to enrich the wine material with extractives, including tannins. Ethyl alcohol is introduced when at least 5% of sugar has already fermented in the wort.
How to drink wine Bouquet of Abkhazia
The wine is considered white despite the fact that Isabella grapes have dark skins. The color of the drink is amber with a pink tint, the aroma is rich with a predominance of cherry tones. The taste is velvety with fruity notes. The fortress reaches 16% vol., the sugar content is 140 g/dm3.
Dessert wine goes well with aged cheeses and confectionery, local sweets are suitable for national dishes: Abkhazian baklava (abaklaua), fig marshmallow (alakharyua), khachapuri, miracle (a kind of cheesecake with cottage cheese). The temperature for serving wine Bouquet of Abkhazia is +18 – +20 ° С.