Why Georgia Exports 21x More Wine than Armenia

[@arthurhartunian6249]

As someone in this industry in the US, I can say that this was a very accurate analysis and explanation of history and current wine trends in the area Akrav. Once again, well done!

[@AkravHistory]

Thank you for your insightful comment! It's great to hear validation from someone in the industry. Cheers! 🍷

[@StoicHistorian]

Great video, easily my two favorite countries to learn about! Can't wait to try both of these

[@AkravHistory]

Thank you! Both wines have rich histories worth exploring. Cheers to your future tastings! 🍷

[@williamhadrian423]

From Canada, live in Armenia and I just find the Georgian wines have a certain taste generally I can't explain that makes me love Georgian wines more.

[@AkravHistory]

It's wonderful that you've experienced both countries firsthand! Cheers to exploring more tastes! 🍷

[@Armangeddon]

Well done

[@AkravHistory]

Cheers! 🍷

[@Armangeddon]

@@AkravHistory Genatz 🍷

[@turkishfront]

(I'm Turk) In the past, Armenians, Greeks and Turks lived together in our village (Central Tokat). My grandfather always told that his father had a large wine jug (almost the size of a room) and that he made grapes from what he picked from his vineyards. Of course, when the classical Turk got older, he became a vinegar maker and started to worship, and this wine culture was also lost. The big wine jar said it was 300 years old. After keeping some of the wine for themselves, they would sell the rest to the Greeks and Armenians. Because it is forbidden for Muslims to buy alcohol lol

[@AkravHistory]

Thank you for sharing that rich piece of history from your family. It's unfortunate that some traditions fade away, but it's heartening to hear stories that recall a more harmonious time. Cheers! 🍷

[@turkishfront]

@@AkravHistory I don't know my friend, I don't know whether it is better to live together or to be separated by cursed borders. Nationalism poisoned us, but it also tasted like wine. French wine I think. 😅

[@alenvaneci]

@@turkishfront If I may ask, which village are you talking about?

[@abupinhus]

You should check you family history. Muslims rare, if even produced wine/spirits. But what often happenen in your area, that armenian/greek people intermarried to muslim families, and as result stopped to produce wine.

[@turkishfront]

Dimorta (Üzümören)@@alenvaneci

[@facoulac]

very informative. I would have never imagined I would watch a wine comparison of two caucasian countries in a cold afternoon!

[@AkravHistory]

What better way to spend a cold afternoon than diving into the wine-soaked histories of the Caucasus? Glad you found it informative. Cheers to cozy learning! 🍷

[@NXP-38]

W fr!

[@AkravHistory]

Ez win! 🍷

[@NXP-38]

@@AkravHistoryfrfr🍵

[@arcanios806]

I would really live to buy some Armenian wine, but it is nearly impossible...it is very sad.

[@AkravHistory]

It's a real shame, isn't it? Many of Armenia's finest wines rarely make it past her borders. And by the time they do, it's so much more expensive than the local selection. Cheers to hoping for better distribution in the future! 🍷

[@arcanios806]

@@AkravHistory Cheers! And thanks for the great video!

[@alexandergeodakyan1988]

​@@AkravHistoryArmenian wines and Armenian alcohol in general is pretty popular in the Balkans. In Bulgaria for instance Ararat brandy and Zorah wine are sold in almost any supermarket 😃

[@AkravHistory]

That's very interesting. Well Ararat brandy is famous everywhere but I rarely hear about the wines abroad. Thanks for sharing!

[@whathappens6877]

Comparing Georgia's, Armenia's and Moldova's wine industry would have been interesting

[@AkravHistory]

Great suggestion! A three-way comparison with Moldova could indeed offer a richer perspective. I'll consider that for a future video. Cheers!

[@Babooy]

Real Good video my G

[@AkravHistory]

Thank you so much!

[@AlexGenjoyian]

Nice video bro can you do a video about the Armeno-Georgian war or maybe. The relationship of Georgia and Armenia in historical times and today?

[@AkravHistory]

Thanks for the compliment and the great suggestion! I'll definitely consider diving into more Georgian relations, both historical and contemporary. Stay tuned!

[@nojustno7530]

Fascinating video, did not Armenia was so far behind Georgia.

[@AkravHistory]

Thank you! Yes, Georgian wine has more exposure, but Armenian wine is catching up and has its own unique flavors and history. Cheers! 🍷

[@tidyteam_]

Hi Akrav! I have a question for you: Whats de difference between Artsakh and Nothern Cyprus? Do you consider we will recognise Northern Cyprus as an independent nation if Artsakh is too? I love Armenia and I feel very bad for what's doing Azerbaijan with Artsakh right now, greetings from Spain!

[@alenvaneci]

The difference between those two cases is that Artsakh was declared on historically Armenian-populated land with an overwhelming Armenian majority at the time, while "Northern Cyprus" was the result of a Turkish military occupation of historically Greek-populated land with a Greek majority. One was the result of self-determination, the other of ethnic cleansing.

[@AkravHistory]

Yeah, he pretty much covered it! They are fundamentally different, Artsakh has been historically Armenian, whereas Northern Cyprus was created after the 1974 invasion by Turkey. But to add some support: - Historical Roots: Artsakh has ancient ties to Armenia, dating back to the Urartian period. Northern Cyprus doesn't. - Ethnic Composition: Artsakh had a predominantly Armenian population when it was designated to Azerbaijan. Northern Cyprus was more mixed. - Cultural Heritage: Artsakh is rich in ancient Armenian cultural landmarks, such as monasteries and khachkars. Northern Cyprus doesn't have a similar concentration of cultural heritage.

[@AVV_Beats]

Only 18% of Cyprus' population was ethnic Turkish in 1974 (ie when the partition began), and they were spread out across the island. It makes no sense for a) that minority ethnic group to be granted de facto independence, and b) for that group to have control of almost half of the island. And that's before we get into issues of Turkey meddling with politics, shipping thousands of settlers to the island etc. Mountainous Artsakh was ALWAYS majority Armenian, over 90% at the time the borders were being drawn. The cultural heritage of that region is overwhelmingly Armenian in identity, and much of it predates the arrival of Turks west of the Caspian Sea. It is only as a result of Stalinist divide-and-conquer tactics that it was made an (albeit almost completely autonomous) region of Azerbaijan. Any sane person looking at the demographics of the region at the time the borders were drawn could see that designating Artsakh as anything other than Armenia was just a ticking time bomb and contrary to common sense. Azeris will argue that because prior to Russia's entry into the region in the early 1800s the region formed part of a "Karabakh Khanate", it is historically Azeri, but not only does that completely ignore the demographic data and Armenian heritage, the Khanate was not an independent state, and at that time indistinguishable from the Persian Empire which exercised suzerainty over it. The story of Artsakh is just another chapter of what Turks have been doing to Armenians, and indeed every other undesirable ethnicity within and around its borders - Greeks, Kurds, Assyrians, Jews - for centuries. Depopulate via expulsions or murder, erase the evidence, obstruct avenues of redress, investigation or reconciliation, maintain innocence until everyone forgets about it.

[@asharista3152]

My favorite Armenian wine is Vernashen semi sweet. Costs around $8

[@AkravHistory]

I don't think I've tried that one! My favorite from the big ones is Tariri. From the smaller ones I really liked Adventure.

[@John-thinks]

Very interesting! I always buy Armenian wine if I can, it's the best!

[@AkravHistory]

Yesss!

[@GorGrigoryan-x7t]

love the video but pls upload a history video again and plsssss upload it has been 2 months😭

[@AkravHistory]

Thanks for the comment! I try to inject some history in most videos, including this one! Sorry for the slow schedule, work has been busy around the holidays, but the script for the next video is almost done!

[@andrewrogers3067]

I’m curious what Azeri’s and Armenians think of Georgians

[@AkravHistory]

I've met some wonderful Georgians and wish for stronger political ties between the countries. What do you think?

[@CodeProvider]

​@@AkravHistory Spineless immoral backstabbers, Turks' best friend. They have a history of literally selling their daughters to the Turks. Also I've been to Tbilisi, and the food is terrible.

[@MtiuliBichi]

Hi Akrav, when are you going to make a video about Javakheti (or as how you Armenians call it Javakhk) and another video about how Tbilisi actually belongs to Armenia and not Georgia ?

[@AkravHistory]

Tbilisi is what now?

[@Naviamold]

😂

[@Lazika617]

its all good to have own opinions but it seems you misrepresented the Georgian wine quite a bit, for example when looking at the statistics you say Armenian wine has better quality and that Georgian wine receives more awards because it has a larger industry, but lets examine this claim, as of this comment for the 2024 IWSC gold awards, Armenian wine received zero, but as did Moldova who has a similar sized wine industry to Georgia, and Italy who has a far larger wine industry received less Gold awards then Georgia. As for the grapes Georgia has a unique landscape where grapes are gown at different elevations, allowing the wines to have alot of variety in between the grape species unique to Georgia. Again its fine if you think Armenian wine tastes better but to say Armenian quality is superior seems disingenuous when looking at all the statistics.

[@AkravHistory]

Hey, thanks for your comment! If I was trying to defend Armenian wine, I'd tell you that one year of awards is not very representative. It'd be like saying Argentina is the best football team forever and always because they won the most recent World Cup. Instead, let's go with this: I tried to make it clear in the video that I know very little about wine, that's why I looked at the wine awards. And when I talk about personal taste, I tell it as a story to make sure it's clear that it's a personal taste. I also very clearly inform of my own bias by saying "in my perfectly objective and unbiased opinion" in a sarcastic tone. I really don't care more than that about wine to debate which one is better, but I found the wine histories of these countries interesting and wanted to talk about it. I hope you did too. Cheers!

[@Lazika617]

@@AkravHistory I know, but It was a similar result last year as well, I used 2024 because it was the most recent, and to be fair to you the wine industry and taste is a deep and nuanced pool and its not like im exactly qualified to educated on, I just wanted to add a bit of information on why Georgian wine industry was able to still be successful and grow, and I also hope Armenia restores its wine roots, the soviet occupation has left a scar on both our nations.

[@pargevkarapetyan2251]

👌👍👏

[@AkravHistory]

Thanks!

[@adoberoots]

I agree that Armenian wine is on average better than Georgian wine. There are some very good Georgian wines but they tend to lack the distinctiveness that Armenian wines have. Production in Georgia also seems to be much more focused on sweeter wines, which I very much don't like.

[@AkravHistory]

I agree, give me an Armenian Areni any day! But different strokes for different folks. Cheers! 🍷

[@Ruirspirul]

this is absolute bullocks. I would suggest you to check IWSC wine competition and compare medal counts.

[@adoberoots]

@@Ruirspirul I don’t really understand your comment. “Medal counts” will not change my personal preferences, especially my general dislike of sweet wines.

[@Ruirspirul]

@@adoberoots maybe you should stop drinking sweet wines if you dont like them. just as a suggestion…

[@adoberoots]

@@Ruirspirul right, that’s why I don’t care for Georgian wines. All of the supposedly good ones are sweet and the dry ones are not very interesting or distinct to me. Maybe I’ve yet to try the right one 🤷 but I’ve tried plenty and have never been blown away.

[@TheSloughje]

Yeah but what about beer? 😂😂

[@AkravHistory]

I have not tried Georgian beer, but Armenia's is pretty decent!

[@armanbagramyan4961]

axper please stop using ai generated art, it's unfair towards real artists

[@AkravHistory]

I appreciate your concern for artists. I get where you're coming from as an artist myself. Just for context, this video took over 2 weeks to produce. My last video's revenue was a grand total of €2.43. Unfortunately, producing the art manually is just not feasible at the moment. What I can promise is to stay transparent about the tools I use and time I invest, and am open to revisiting this approach if the channel scales up. Until then, it helps me deliver content. Cheers!

[@Ruirspirul]

this is cute but also absolute bullocks… soviets had a minor influence Armenian wine culture. main reason why Georgia sells more is simply because Georgia is a wine culture, like France or Italy and Armenia isnt. this goes to wine making and wine consumption. Armenians dont drink wines on birthdays, they drink hard spirits. also almost every family makes wine in Georgia and you have almost 1000 small wineries, when in Armenia you have maximum 20 big wine companies.

[@AkravHistory]

Yes, and most of what you listed can be attributed to the soviets. Armenia was very much a wine country pre-Soviet. Thanks for the comment.

[@Ruirspirul]

@@AkravHistory that is not true. you dont lose wine culture in 70 years because of soviet party… that is a cute story you might be able to sell yo Americans but it is far from reality. Soviets had nothing to do with the fact that Georgia has over 500 indigenous vitis vinifera varieties, soviets have nothing to do with the fact that first Georgian wine appellation was created in 1888… soviets have nothing to do with the fact that all houses in my village have an underground celler with qvevris in the ground etc… Armenia does not have wine culture, it has a wine history and thats totally different thing altogether.

[@AkravHistory]

My dude, I'm reading to you from the papers that I researched for the video, I'm not coming up with this information from my head. I'm not sure I understand what you're getting at. I don't claim in the video that the soviets are to be thanked for Georgia's wine culture. In fact, I praise the Georgian winemakers for rebelling against Soviet central planners and upholding their deeply rooted wine culture. This is in the video. But all across my research tell a similar story with wine in Armenia. Here's a detailed article about what happened to winemaking culture in both countries under Soviet rule with many references to academic papers. (balticworlds.com/wine-in-the-soviet-food-regime/). Are you suggesting that Armenia had no significant wine culture prior to the Soviet influence? Considering the historical evidence of winemaking in the region dating back millennia, is it not possible that Armenia also had a wine culture when they had 'wine history', as you put it? How would you interpret this in terms of a 'wine culture'?

[@Ruirspirul]

@@AkravHistory wine culture is when people make wine and drink wine. you think Armenians were making and drinking wine all the time and yet soviets came and said no more and Armenians obliged and after 70 years Armenia lost wine culture? chats just childish, naive and very far from reality. wine culture is not that grape ornament on the church, nor it is an Areni cave.

[@Ruirspirul]

@@AkravHistory in reality this is what happened, Armenia never had a thriving wine culture, it did have some vineyards and some huge wineries. it also had an historic involvement in wine making but thats not a wine culture. soviets came in and converted most of those wineries into a brandy making companies. wine culture of Armenia was almost not affected. you cant change something that does not exist.

[@iraklishurgaia7690]

Because Georgian wine is better 🍷

[@AkravHistory]

So we're having a fight? 😏

[@StaLeninosus]

Look, I don't drink wine, but objectively Armenian wine is just higher quality