Petra travel / Georgia
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PETRA TRAVEL GEORGIA
Tour guide in georgia
Welcome to Petra travel / Georgia, your ticket to seeing all of the wonders our world has to offer. As a professional Tourist Guide, I am here to show you the diverse delights of landscape, culture, and cuisine throughout your travel journey. Take a moment to explore the various tour packages, please contact us on Facebook
About Georgia
THE OLDES WINE IN THE WORLD
Chemical evidence of wine, dating back to 6000–5800 BC (the early Neolithic period), was obtained from residues of ancient pottery excavated in the archeological sites of Gadachrili Gora and Shulaveris Gora, about 50 km south of Tbilisi in Georgia. The residues were identified as wine since they contained tartaric acid, which only occurs in large amounts in the Eurasian grape (Vitis vinifera) in the Middle East and the wine made from it. The detection of other organic acids (malic, citric and succinic), also found in the Eurasian grape, provided confirmatory evidence.
The wine residues were recovered from large-capacity jars, which were probably used for fermentation, ageing and storage. Prior to this discovery, the oldest chemically identified wine from Hajji Firuz Tepe (Iran) dated back to about 5400–5000 BC. These new findings are from about 600–1,000 years earlier, and indicate that wine-making and possibly viticulture were already in place about 8,000 years ago.
The discovery was made by Prof. Patrick McGovern, a molecular archaeologist from the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology and lead author of the study "Early Neolithic Wine of Georgia in the South Caucasus", published online in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) on 13 November 2017, and scientists from institutions in Georgia, France, Italy, Israel, Canada, Denmark and the USA, who participated in the joint “Research Project for the Study of Georgian Grapes and Wine Culture".
GEORGIAN TRADICIONAL DISHES
“Georgia has many gems to entice the curious visitor: beaches, mountains, historical cities. Yet Georgia is perhaps most famous, and rightfully so, for its sumptuous cuisine. Georgian restaurants can be found in countries around the world, but any traveler to Georgia will be rewarded with the pleasure of experiencing this unique cuisine at its source. Here is an overview of the 10 best Georgian foods and drinks:
10. Lobio
Lobio, which is Georgian for “beans”, plays an important role in Georgian cuisine. There are many varieties of Lobio, with one of the most popular being a cold dish called Lobio Nigvzit, in which the beans are mashed and mixed with garlic, walnuts, onions, and coriander. Hot varieties are typically spiced and served in a small brown earthenware pot.
9. Churchkhela
One of the most popular desserts is this sausage-shaped candy, also popular in many of Georgia’s neighboring countries. It is prepared by threading walnuts (sometimes almonds or hazel nuts) onto a long string and dipping it in concentrated fresh grape juice, which dries into a gelatin-like coating around the nuts.
8. Chakapuli
A delicious lamb stew, made with dry white wine, green plums, tarragon leaves, onions, and pepper. It is most popular in the springtime, coinciding with the plum harvest.
7. Chanakhi
A little similar to Chakapuli, Chanakhi is a lamb stew prepared in a clay pot. A layer of eggplant is put over top finely cut pieces of lamb, along with garlic, tomatoes, and onions, before being baked to perfection.
6. Shkmeruli
A chicken dish typical of the Racha region of Georgia. The chicken is first fried to a golden brown, and then cut into pieces and covered in a distinctive sauce of garlic and milk (though sour cream may be used instead).
5. Kharcho
A traditional Georgian beef soup, cooked with walnuts, rice, and cherry plum puree, and served chopped with coriander. Lamb, pork, or chicken can also be used in place of beef, and the soup will be spiced differently depending on the region of Georgia in which it is prepared. Kharcho is a rich and hearty concoction, especially useful for recovering from a long journey or sitting out frigid weather.
4. Georgian Wine
Georgia is one of the most ancient wine-producing areas of the world, and its wines are popular around the world and are especially renowned among the countries of the former Soviet Union. The traditional Georgian wine-making method using clay jars has been recognized by UNESCO. Wine is produced across the country, with the southeastern region of Kakheti making around 70%, in a wide selection of varieties.
3. Chacha
Georgia’s national liquor is something of a by-product of its ubiquitous wine industry. Often referred to as Georgian vodka, chacha is actually distilled from the grape pomace left over after wine-pressing; however, it can also be produced from other fruits such as mulberries, tangerines, and figs. Chacha is often home-brewed, with individual families and regions putting their own special spin on the drink, and many Georgians hail the medicinal properties of chacha, claiming that it is helpful for curing indigestion and other ailments.
2. Khinkali
One of the most popular and iconic Georgian foods. Khinkali are twisted knobs of dough stuffed with spiced meat, usually lamb or a pork/beef mix. (Alternatively potato, cheese, or mushroom can be used as fillings.) When the dumpling is cooked, the meat juices are trapped within. When eating khinkali, it is customary in the first bite to suck out the meat juices, before eating the rest.
1. Khachapuri
Along with Khinkali, Khachapuri is one of the most popular and readily identifiable Georgian foods. It is a cheese-filled bread, shaped and flavored in various ways. The two most common varieties are Imeretian, circular shaped and easily eaten on-the-go, and Ajarian, a supremely rich oblong-shaped khachapuri topped with butter and a fried egg.”
HISTORY OF GEORGIA (COUNTRY)
The nation of Georgia (Georgian: საქართველო sakartvelo) was first unified as a kingdom under the Bagrationi dynasty by the King Bagrat III of Georgia in the 8th to 9th century, arising from a number of predecessor states of the ancient kingdoms of Colchis and Iberia. The kingdom of Georgia flourished during the 10th to 12th centuries under King David IV the Builder and Queen Tamar the Great, and fell to the Mongol invasion by 1243, and after a brief reunion under George V the Brilliant to the Timurid Empire. By 1490, Georgia was fragmented into a number of petty kingdoms and principalities, which throughout the Early Modern period struggled to maintain their autonomy against Ottoman and Iranian (Safavid, Afsharid, and Qajar) domination until Georgia was finally annexed by the Russian Empire in 1801, which got nominally confirmed in 1813. After a brief bid for independence with the Democratic Republic of Georgia of 1918–1921, Georgia was part of the Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic from 1922 to 1936, and then formed the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic until the dissolution of the Soviet Union.
The current republic of Georgia has been independent since 1991. The first president Zviad Gamsakhurdia stoked Georgian nationalism and vowed to assert Tbilisi's authority over Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Gamsakhurdia was deposed in a bloody coup d'état within the same year and the country became embroiled in a bitter civil war, which lasted until 1995. Supported by Russia, Abkhazia and South Ossetia achieved de facto independence from Georgia. The Rose Revolution forced Eduard Shevardnadze to resign in 2003. The new government under Mikheil Saakashvili prevented the secession of a third breakaway republic in the Adjara crisis of 2004, but the conflict with Abkhazia and South Ossetia led to the 2008 Russo–Georgian War and tensions with Russia remain unresolved.
The history of Georgia is inextricably linked with the history of the Georgian people.