Kisi
Kisi is a white Georgian wine grape associated with Kakheti. It makes aromatic white wines and amber wines fermented with their skins in qvevri, the clay vessels used in Georgian winemaking. Its renewed use gives a smaller regional variety a place alongside the much more widely planted Rkatsiteli.
Decline and recovery
Georgia's National Wine Agency links Kisi's severe decline around the end of the twentieth century to the preference for Rkatsiteli under Soviet production and the subsequent contraction of vineyards. It records surviving old vines and renewed planting in the Telavi area.1. National Wine Agency of Georgia, “White wine grape varieties,” Kisi profile, accessed 21 September 2026.
From fragrance to texture
Kisi's pressed white wines can suggest pear and flowers. With extended maceration, the wine acquires additional texture from grape solids, and the fruit may seem closer to dried stone fruit. Tannin adds a drying sensation distinct from the freshness supplied by acidity.
Giuaani provides a documented contemporary example from Manavi in Kakheti. Its Kisi Qvevri ferments and matures with skins for six months. The winery describes a dry amber wine with floral and dried-fruit aromas and a supple tannic texture.2. Giuaani Winery, “Kisi Qvevri,” origin and production account, accessed 21 September 2026. This shows Kisi used on its own, with prolonged skin contact central to the intended style.
The wine belongs to the broader family of skin-contact whites. The duration and amount of contact help determine extraction; the vessel name alone does not specify them. Georgia's National Wine Agency describes keeping white qvevri wines with grape solids until spring as a Kakhetian practice.
Sources
- National Wine Agency of Georgia, “White wine grape varieties”, Kisi profile, accessed 21 September 2026.
- Giuaani Winery, “Kisi Qvevri”, Manavi vineyard origin and winemaking account, accessed 21 September 2026.
- National Wine Agency of Georgia, “Qvevri wine”, Kakhetian practice, accessed 21 September 2026.