There is a word in Georgian that translates to something similar to “feast.” A supra is not merely a meal though. It is a social event: a table, a toastmaker, a sequence of glasses (sometimes bowls; sometimes horns) raised in a specific order, food arriving in waves, strangers becoming friends before the night is over. It is, in the best sense, a gathering around wine. And this past Thursday evening in Rhode Island, that tradition found an unlikely stage: the deck of a boat drifting past the Jamestown coastline.

The event was the latest of our Wild (y) East series as we expand the Georgian wine category into new markets in the U.S. At 5:30 PM, the Coastal Queen set sail from Jamestown, carrying a cargo of some of our favorite producers. The concept was simple: a wine tasting at sea with the Rhode Island coastline drifting by. Snacks from Grapes and Gourmet kept the crowd grounded; the view did the rest.

The food was also a centerpiece. Polina Chesnakova, whose name has become synonymous with Georgian cooking in the American context, brought dishes inspired by the traditions of Wildes Grocery – a tribute to the bounty of Georgian pantries, where herbs, walnuts, pomegranates, and stone fruits define a cuisine as old as the vines themselves. This is the other half of the Georgian wine story that the American market has been slow to discover: the food that makes the wine make sense.

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As the sun dropped toward the water, the boat returned to shore, and the group relocated to Next Door Wine Bar in Narragansett. Wine Wizards, our Rhode Island-based wine distributor hosted this shore-side gathering. The evening closed as these evenings tend to: music, conversation, and awesome people. 

What makes Wild (y) East worth watching is not the spectacle is the insistence on culture over product. Georgian wine has spent the better part of a decade fighting for shelf space in American shops, and events like Wild (y) East really push for the category’s recognition. The wine and food were Georgian. The setting was American. The music was whatever the moment called for. The people were from everywhere.

In Rhode Island, the table was set on the water and on the sand. The supra, as always, continues.