Yes – and this is not just a marketing claim. Archaeological evidence dates winemaking in Georgia back over 8,000 years, making it the oldest documented wine-producing country in the world. The traditional method of fermenting wine in qvevri – large clay vessels buried underground – predates the modern wine industry by millennia and is still actively used by Georgian winemakers today. UNESCO recognised Georgia’s ancient qvevri winemaking tradition in 2013. When you visit family winemakers in Kakheti, you are tasting wines made using methods that have barely changed in thousands of years.

A supra is a traditional Georgian feast – a long, abundant, communal meal led by a tamada (toastmaster) who guides a series of heartfelt and often poetic toasts throughout. It is one of the defining experiences of Georgian culture and hospitality. On most of our full-day tours you will experience at least one version of a supra – either a full family supra or a substantial meal with wine pairings hosted at a family winery. On our dedicated Supra tour, this is the centrepiece of the day: 3+ hours of unlimited wine, abundant food, polyphonic singing, and as many toasts as you can handle. No two supras are quite the same.

Qvevri (sometimes spelled kvevri) are large egg-shaped clay vessels buried underground and used to ferment and age wine. Instead of separating the grape skins from the juice as most modern winemakers do, Georgian winemakers often leave the skins, pips, and stems in contact with the juice throughout fermentation – sometimes for months. This produces wines with a distinctive amber or orange colour, complex tannins, and flavours you are unlikely to have encountered elsewhere. Most Georgian natural winemakers also use minimal or no added sulfites, which is part of why Georgian wine has a reputation for being gentler the morning after than comparable European wines. On some of our tours you will taste both modern-style and qvevri wines side by side.

Our full list of fixed itineraries is on our main Tours page at https://eatthistours.com/tours/ – browse route summaries and then get full details on each individual tour page, where you will find options to book a shared or private tour.

SHARED TOUR:
To join a shared tour, use the booking widget on any standard tour page and select the shared tour option. Enter your date, number of guests, and other details. Your submission is an actual booking in most cases – not an inquiry – so please make sure all details are accurate before confirming. If you only want to ask a question rather than book, please do not submit the booking widget. Message us on WhatsApp instead.

PRIVATE TOUR:
For a private tour, select the private option in the booking widget on any standard tour page. This gives you your own vehicle and guide. It does not automatically include changes to tour stops, though you do have more flexibility with timing. Meals and tastings are usually booked in advance – if you arrive early or late, wineries may not always be able to accommodate you. If you need small adjustments to a standard route, send us a quick message on WhatsApp. Minor variations that fall within the defined itinerary route are sometimes possible if they work logistically. Price may vary if customisations are made.

CUSTOM TOUR:
Around 90% of people who submit a custom tour request did not actually need one – they just needed a small tweak to one of our fixed itineraries. If you are looking for a 1 or 2 day wine tour, look at our fixed itineraries first. They are relatively off-track, specialist, and never going to large corporate tourist traps. If you have already looked and nothing fits, send us a message with your general requirements and we will let you know if an existing itinerary works or whether a custom tour is genuinely needed. Custom tours are only available for groups of at least 5 adults.

Multi-day (3+) extended tours:
For groups of at least 5 adults looking for a serious multi-day wine adventure, we offer highly specific food and wine trips covering multiple regions of Georgia. You can read more here: https://eatthistours.com/georgian-wine-explorers-multi-day-trips-for-serious-wine-enthusiasts-experts/

Kakheti – The largest producing region in Georgia, home to the most famous wineries and grape varieties, and overwhelmingly responsible for the majority of the country’s wine output. This is the first wine destination for most tourists on their first trip to Georgia, and it is only two hours from Tbilisi. Rkatsiteli and Saperavi are the main grapes, with wines that tend toward bold, full styles.

Shida Kartli and Mtskheta – This region benefits from a mix of Kakhetian grape varieties and its own local endemic grapes, so you get to taste a bit of both. The wines are generally slightly lighter in style with less tannin, and the region is just 40 minutes from central Tbilisi – ideal for a shorter trip that also takes in the UNESCO attractions of Jvari Monastery and Mtskheta old capital.

Imereti – If you are based in West Georgia, starting a tour from Kutaisi makes good sense and avoids the long drive to Kakheti. This region is less well known for wine and sees fewer tourists at its wineries, making it a more off-track destination. The wines are significantly lighter in style compared to East Georgia, which is often a good entry point for Western visitors tasting Georgian wine for the first time.

Other regions – Most of Georgia produces wine; it is just that Kakheti is what most people have heard of. For those wanting to explore further afield, far fewer tourists visit these areas and you would normally need a specialist private tour. We do offer these for wine enthusiasts who want to go seriously off-track and taste wines they are unlikely to ever find outside Georgia. For most visitors on a first trip though, Kakheti should come first – exploring the lesser-known regions is really for wine professionals and enthusiasts returning for a deeper dive.

Food, wine, transport, and guide are all included in the price – as well as everything else listed in the inclusions on each individual tour page, which can vary by tour. You will not be handed a menu, asked to pay at a winery, or hit with unexpected charges on the day. The only extras are personal – souvenirs, additional wine purchases to take home, or a tip for your guide if you would like to leave one.

Most of our tours include both lunch and dinner and a lot of wine. Rarely will any individual guest have less than one bottle of wine per person available over the course of the day – often there is more on offer. You are always free to drink less and there is no pressure either way. Supra and feast meals genuinely are a lot of food – even tours we describe as including a smaller feast still involve a significant amount of food. Nobody leaves our tours hungry or thirsty.

It depends on the tour type. Standard scheduled shared tours have a maximum of 7-8 guests. Vines & Views and Real Rtveli harvest tours can take up to 15-16 guests. Supra tours typically run with 5-14 guests, and Wine Explorers tours vary between 5-15 depending on the trip. For private tours there is no fixed maximum – private groups can be any size, with vehicles scaled accordingly: sedan or SUV for 1-3 people, minivan for 4-8, minibus for groups up to around 20, and coaches or multiple vehicles for larger groups.

Generally yes, but we will not be offering a discount. For non-drinkers we typically substitute non-alcoholic alternatives – things like homemade seasonal fruit lemonades or compote – at all stops. The price difference after accounting for the admin of a custom non-alcohol arrangement is negligible anyway. Wine culture is deeply embedded in Georgian hospitality and the family hosts we work with often do not discount for non-drinkers regardless, as they offer a fixed-price hosted package. If you are pregnant, have religious restrictions, or are travelling with a group as the only non-drinker and still want the cultural experience, you are very welcome on our tours.

If your entire group (3 or more people) does not drink alcohol, we are probably not the right tour company for you – it is better to consider a sightseeing tour and restaurant visit where wine will not be a critical part of the experience.

Yes – we cater for a wide range of dietary needs daily and almost all requirements fit comfortably within a Georgian diet. Vegetarian is easy; Georgia has an abundance of vegetable dishes. Gluten-free is manageable, though you will miss out on khinkali and khachapuri – Georgia’s two most iconic dishes. Dairy-free is possible, though Georgia loves its cheese. If you have a serious allergy – particularly to gluten, walnuts (which appear in many Georgian dishes including some you would not expect), or anything requiring an epi-pen – please tell us at the time of booking. Many of our hosts cook in home kitchens and we cannot fully prevent cross-contamination. Georgian meals are served family-style with all dishes shared; your guide can advise on what to avoid. The short version: you will not leave hungry.

Private tours guarantee:

• Exclusive transport: Your own private vehicle, entirely unshared.
• Dedicated guide: A private guide focused solely on your group.
• Itinerary flexibility: Freedom to make minor adjustments during the day. However, since wineries and meals are booked for fixed times, last-minute changes may not be accommodated, and you will still be responsible for full payment.
• Personalised hosting: Individual attention at each location from the winemaker or host.
• Private tables: Your own separate space or table for every meal and tasting. (Note: On rare occasions, winery cellar tours may be combined with another group due to winery operational limits beyond our control.)

Private tours do not guarantee:

• Exclusive winery access: The winery remains open to the public. Unless you book a high-cost private event to close the entire facility, other guests may be on-site or in the same room, but your specific tasting and table will remain strictly private.
• The winemaker as host at every stop: We aim for a “meet the winemaker” experience (often including a hosted meal) at a minimum of one winery per day trip, which succeeds on over 90% of our tours. However, we cannot guarantee winemaker availability in every instance due to potential illness or scheduling conflicts.

Both options offer a premium, all-inclusive look at authentic Georgian food and wine culture. To use a simple hospitality analogy: our Superior tours are like booking a beautifully appointed, quality room at a top-tier boutique hotel, while our Signature tours are like upgrading to that hotel’s top-floor suite. (Please note this is just a metaphor for the level of inclusions – overnight accommodation is not included in our day trips!)

Here is how the two package levels break down:

• Superior All-Inclusive Tours: This is our high-grade baseline package. Operating in comfortable, modern, air-conditioned minivans or minibuses with careful drivers, these small-group tours (maximum 15 guests) feature highly curated stops, expert guiding, and a substantial fully inclusive meal (with many routes including lunch and dinner). You get a complete, generous, and uncompromised premium experience. Focused on 1-day and half-day trips.
• Signature All-Inclusive Tours: These are our landmark, deeply indulgent flagship itineraries (spanning 1 to 3 days). They command a higher price because they scale down the group size to a maximum of just 8 guests for a highly intimate atmosphere. They always include both lunch and dinner every day, a more indulgent selection of food and wine tastings, and focus on exclusive, direct hosting from the winemakers themselves.

Premium Authentic vs. “Luxury”
There is a distinct line between our Premium Authentic experiences and artificial luxury. A luxury approach in Georgia typically prioritises styled, highly modernised chateaus designed to project a polished “luxury identity,” paired with cost-prohibitive VIP vehicles that drive up prices without adding genuine substance. Our Premium Authentic approach focuses entirely on the Real Georgia – with occasionally just a taste of the more modern for balance. We pair modern, comfortable, air-conditioned transport, careful drivers, and elevated authentic food and wine. We focus on genuine hospitality rather than venues that just look fancy on the surface. Sitting down with a winemaker at their family table to hear them personally explain their wines feels far more premium authentic than any high-end, modern chateau restaurant meal.

If I book a Superior Tour, am I getting a basic or scaled-back experience?
Never basic! We do not offer low-cost, mass-market commercial tours. Every single itinerary we run is built from the ground up to be a top-tier package. With a Superior tour, you still get well-kept, comfortable transport, a dedicated expert guide, top-quality food, and exceptional authentic wines all day long. If a Signature tour is out of your budget, the Superior tour still delivers a generous, uncompromised premium experience – just a little shorter, less indulgent, and hence less expensive.