Georgia backs UK growth with upped investment

By Andrew Catchpole

Published: 22 May, 2025

Few could miss the Georgia stand at this year’s London Wine Fair, with this on-trend country planting 16 of its producers on a sizable stand at the centre of the hall. And this enlarged presence sets the tone for the rest of this year, following an uplift in UK volume sales of Georgian wines of 72% in 2024, backed by an increase of investment in the British market by 50% for 2025.

The additional monies from the National Wine Agency of Georgia, according to campaign front Sarah Abbott MW, are in tandem with several new and expanded listings at multiple retailers, including Waitrose, Lidl, M&S and Lidl, with more likely soon to be confirmed.

The investment will also help to drive on-trade and sommelier focused activity through 2025, with a series of targeted ‘Georgian Palate’ food pairing events. These launched with Japanese food earlier this year, then will include Spanish cuisine and Georgian wine in Manchester this July, and an Italian and Georgian wine pairing cross-over in London in September.

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Georgia is also to return to Harpers own SITT event in September, where both a strong on-trade and independent merchant attendance will give the wines yet more exposure.

Explaining the fast-growing interest, Abbott said: “We’re witnessing a real shift in perception – UK buyers are increasingly drawn to Georgian wine’s rich heritage and artisanal appeal.”

Her business partner at Swirl Wine Group, Madeleine Waters, added: “We’ve covered most of the bigger [importers and retailers], but now it’s the smaller people and regional wholesalers that are saying they should be adding Georgian wines, and shipping direct.

“It all feels really positive in terms of the trajectory of the wines, and having so many wines now in supermarkets will help with consumer perception, and will hopefully trickle back up to more premium wines that are in indies and restaurants.”

With regard to the on-trade, the aim now is to expand Georgia’s presence on restaurant lists, going beyond a red and a white ‘box ticked’ listing, encouraging outlets to embrace Georgia as a more fully represented category, as is happening with Greece.

The buzz around Georgia certainly appears to be filtering out. And this is helped along by a mix of strong cues and stories, not least the 8,000-year-old winemaking tradition, use of qvevri by many producers, plus a significant number of low intervention wines that all add to the multifaceted appeal.

As the innovators behind Georgia’s UK campaign, Abbott and Waters also highlighted more positives swinging in the country’s favour. These include the recent start of direct flights from London to Tbilisi, along with growing recognition of Georgian cuisine, which famed Noma chef René Redzepi memorably described as “one of the last great undiscovered food cultures of Europe”.

Add some 500 plus indigenous grape varieties into the pot and it’s easy to see why Georgia is on a high in terms of generating interest for its wines.

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