TSINANDALI: A WINDOW TO GEORGIA

Investor.ge travels to Tsinandali, the home of the legendary Chavchavadze family, and a jewel of Georgia’s wine country.

The undisputed start to any tour of Georgia’s eastern wine country is Tsinandali, the former estate of the royal Chavchavadze family and the home of one of the country’s most famous types of white wines.

The Chavchavadze Family

One of the most famous families in Georgia, the lives and fates of the Chavchavadzes have mirrored and shaped Georgian history for over 200 years.

The family patriarch was a prince, born in Russia, who spent his life trying to balance Georgian tradition with his own quest for modernization.

The zeal Alexandre Chavchavadze had for life, Georgia and its culture is credited for saving Georgian wine, creating the Georgian national theater, and bringing translating great works of foreign literature into the Georgian language.

Tsinandali, the white wine made at his estate, helped secure Georgian wine’s place abroad and is still available today. His wine collection – currently over 16,000 bottles with varieties of Tsinandali dating back to 1841 – was infamous in Europe.

While he served in the Russian military, and had close ties to the Russian empire – his father served King Erekle II as an envoy in St.Petersburg – Chavchavadze fought for Georgian independence and was twice jailed for his part in insurgency attempts.

So it was an irony of history that his family nearly perished when Iman Shamil ordered a raid on the Chavchavadze estate due to the family’s ties to Russia and Russian nobility.

In July 1854, Shamil – a powerful Islamic military leader -- ordered 10,000 of his soldiers on a raid of Tsinandali as a result of the family’s ties to Russia and Russian nobility. Davit Chavchavadze, Alexandre Chavchavadze’s son, was forced to mortgage the house to save his family and others taken captive during the looting and pillaging of the estate.

Although his family was saved, except his youngest daughter who died during the forced evacuation to Dagestan, they lost Tsinandali to the Russian Public Bank when they could not pay back the 35,000 pieces of silver and 5,000 pieces of gold Davit had raised for the ransom.

The kidnapping became national and international news as Georgian nobility – and even the Russian tsar – became involved in the Chavchavadze family’s release.

The family was eventually traded for the ransom money, Shamil’s son and other captives nine months after the raid.

Davit Chavchavadze’s wife, Ana Bagatrioni, the granddaughter of King Erekle II, survived the ordeal and went on to be a pioneer for education for girls. She is credited with starting the first women’s school.

Tsinandali Estate

The family recovered the estate on the eve of the Russian Revolution, only to have it taken back by the Soviet government. It became a museum after WWII, and remains open to the public today. Visitors are welcome to stroll through the gardens, once called the Garden of Eden by Alexandre Dumas – just one of the estate’s famous guests.

For just seven lari, guests are taken on a guided tour of the house and can sample the estate’s legendary Tsinandali white wine.

The home was recently renovated with assistance from the Smithsonian Institute, and the rooms are filled with authentic pieces from the family including photographs, furniture, china and priceless books. No photographs are allowed inside the exhibit, however. There is a cafe, souvenir shop and gallery on site.

Getting there

Tsinandali is 176 kilometers from Tbilisi, and takes approximately two hours by car. Marshrutkas  (mini buses) from the capital are also available, from the upper floor of the main train station.

For more information, please visit: http://achp.si.edu/chavchavadze/index.html

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