Wine · Wine region · Short entry
Armenia
Հայաստան
Armenia's official tourism agency names Ararat, Armavir, Aragatsotn, Tavush and Vayots Dzor as its wine-growing regions. It credits volcanic soils, high vineyards, many sunny days and native grapes such as Areni Noir and Voskehat with the wines' character. The Areni-1 cave in Vayots Dzor has an ancient winemaking site; the agency's claim that this makes Armenia the 'cradle of winemaking' is disputed by older evidence from Georgia.
Areni-1 and competing claims
The official tourism agency says winemaking has been practised in Armenia for more than 6,100 years and that the discovery of a winery in the Areni-1 cave makes the region "the cradle of winemaking in the entire world". The second part of that claim is not supported by the evidence read here: the 2017 PNAS study of Georgian Neolithic pottery dates chemical evidence of grape wine there to about 6000–5800 BC, earlier than the Areni-1 date the agency gives. The same study cites the large jars buried underground at Areni in Armenia as a comparison for Georgian qvevri. The tourism agency describes the Areni Wine Festival, held in Areni village on the first weekend of October, and the Yerevan Wine Days in early June. The original excavation report on Areni-1 was not opened, so no further detail is given.
Five regions
The tourism agency names five regions as favourable for growing grapes and making wine: Ararat, Armavir, Aragatsotn, Tavush and Vayots Dzor. It describes Ararat as the sunniest region in Armenia, with vineyards on both sides of the highway; Armavir as producing most of the country's white grapes; Tavush as the greenest area, home to the Ijevan wine and brandy factory; and Vayots Dzor as the home of the red Areni Noir (Sev Areni) and of a signposted wine route. In general terms it credits Armenian wines to a diverse range of natural conditions, volcanic soil, high-altitude vineyards and an abundance of sunny days. It gives no altitudes, soil maps or climate figures.
What the tourism agency says
The tourism agency says red wines from native and local red varieties make up most of Armenian production. It describes Haghtanak, a red variety grown in Armavir, as giving wines with long ageing potential, dark-berry aromas and peppery notes. It names Voskehat, Khatoun Kharji and Kangun as white varieties for dry white wines and mentions rosé and orange wines made from local white grapes. These are a tourism body's descriptions, not a technical link between site and wine.
Grapes by region
The tourism agency does not describe a legal appellation system, and no Armenian wine names appear in the EU register. It links grapes to regions: Mskhali, Kakhet, Karmrahyut and Garan Dmak in Ararat; Areni Noir (Sev Areni) in Vayots Dzor; Garan Dmak, Mskhali and Kangun, with the red Haghtanak, in Armavir; and Banants and Lalvari in Tavush. Whites named for dry wines are Voskehat, Khatoun Kharji and Kangun. Producers make red, rosé, white and orange wines.