Matthew Herfort
When it comes to wine, you start with a philosophy. At Marmenio we love traditional Georgian winemaking, but we marry it with experimentation and a willingness to grow and learn. Our goal is to make interesting (maybe even surprising!) wines, but with a familiarity that is inviting. I have a passion to share my experiences and knowledge, especiaily through sharing our wine, but most of all! love the surprises and joy that come with winemaking. I started making wine in 2016 as an amateur, but always with an eye towards natural winemaking as my standard practice. In 2017 I moved to the Republic of Georgia because of the fantastic natural winemaking movement there; it has a great reputation in a lot of serious winemaking circles and is a perfect blend of tradition and experimentation within winemaking. Since 2020 we have been completely independent, and we are currently experimenting with naturally sparkling wines (pet nat!), long skin contact maceration, and carbonic maceration, all done using traditional methods and qvevri. It is my sincerest hope that you enjoy our wines!
Winery
The winery is a short drive from the vineyard and is located in the village of Vardisubani, in the Telavi region of Kakheti. Hand tools are used whenever posible C c enalins dare?’ and neviatu alr we used skat loathct, as we do not use pressing. Whole cluster fermentation is used in some wines, ranging from 5-50% whole cluster additions directly to the qvevri. Afteraging in qvevri, the wines are transferred to stainless steel tanks and racking is used to achieve clarity, as we do not use filtration. Starting in 2020 we eliminated the use of added yeasts, and now the only addition to the wines is low levels of sulfites. Our wines are unfined, unfiltered, and otherwise produced with the minimal amount of intervention possible.
Vineyard
The vineyard is located in the village of Eniseli, part of the Kindzmarauli zone, in the Kvareli region of Kakheti. The size of the vineyard is 10hectares, with 6 hectares being planted with Saperavi, and 4 being planted with Rkatsiteli. We started in 2018 with a young vineyard and areprogressing towards certified organic. The use of insecticides and herbicides on the property is strictly prohibited by default. The entire vineyard is dry farmed. Tractor usage is minimal, with only occasional tilling of the soil, if at all. Spraying is done to maintain a balance of healthy fruit production and strong, healthy vines. Harvest is done by hand using small boxes to protect fruit and reduce spoilage prior to crushing.
Wines
