For the first time, the “Bike & Wine” format created by the directors of Italianwinetour, Andrea Guolo, and Vinonews24, Giambattista Marchetto, crosses European borders. The chosen destination is Georgia. Thus “Bike & Wine Georgia” comes to life, taking place in the Caucasian country from October 31st to November 3rd.
Georgia is the country where wine has been produced since 6000 BC. And the arrival of Bike & Wine represents, for Georgians, a true media and cultural event, eagerly awaited in Tbilisi, supported and organized by the Georgian National Tourism Administration on the proposal of the Embassy of Georgia in Rome, led by Ambassador, H.E. Tamara Liluashvili. “This is just the beginning of a path of projects that the Embassy wishes to present to the Italian public regarding wine, culture, religion and all the peculiarities that make Georgia unique; projects aimed at consolidating, for the future, bonds of friendship, drawing on the past we have shared over the centuries“, declares H.E. Liluashvili from Rome.
In the saddle during the tour that will take place from October 31st to November 3rd, will be the format’s founders, Andrea Guolo and Giambattista Marchetto, journalists specialized in wine with various collaborations with different publications and directing two vertical sites on wine tourism and the wine world. With them, journalist and videomaker now a fixture of the format, Gilberto Bertini, and journalist and writer Emanuele Gobbi. Special guest for the Caucasian trip Maria Giulia Pieroni, journalist for Elle Gourmet/elle.com.
The program includes visits to several wine companies. Starting from Bolnisi, in the surroundings of the capital Tbilisi, with the wine experience at Villa Kelasura, a reality inspired by Georgian winemaking tradition. It will also be an opportunity to discover the peculiarity of Bolnisi, a city founded by German colonists of Swabian origin. The following day there will be a move to the Kakheti region, where 70% of Georgian wine is produced, to visit the wineries Kolagi, Kardanakhi 1888, Lazare and Twins. The third day will be dedicated to visiting, still in the Kakheti area, the winery Lagazi, then cycling to Marani Milorauli to visit a Qvevri producer, the terracotta vessels traditionally used for winemaking in Georgia, closing the day with transfer to the Bodbe monastery, a historic Georgian Orthodox site. The last day will be dedicated to visiting Nimbi winery, founded in Khashmi with all-Italian technology under the direction of the king of oenologists Riccardo Cotarella.
FIVE YEARS IN THE SADDLE
Over its five years of operation, Bike & Wine Press has touched the main Italian wine territories, from Langhe to Valpolicella, from Alto Adige to Montalcino, with two editions dedicated to the Marche region and with extraordinary participation in the 2025 edition of L’Eroica on the dirt roads of Chianti Classico and Crete Senesi. Over time, two short travel films have also been produced, dedicated to Valpantena and Colli Piacentini. The experience in Georgia expands the horizons of the format which already has other stops planned within European borders for next year.
The spark for Bike & Wine Georgia came from discussion with Tamar Tchitchiboshvili, importer and “ambassador” of Georgian wine in Italy, who brought the project to the attention of the Ambassador of Georgia in Rome.
“Cycling through wine roads is the best way to understand territories and the characteristics of wines themselves“, say Guolo and Marchetto, a message launched for the first time right after the pandemic, as the first edition started on April 26, 2021, the day restaurants and bars reopened, with a long tour from Bologna to Argentario. “The goal is to live this travel experience in a sustainable way – they add – A commitment shared over these years with many travel companions, colleagues and friends who put themselves to the test to then produce content for the major Italian publications“. Over these five years, they have been written about, among others, by Corriere della Sera, Il Gusto di Repubblica, Il Sole 24Ore, Il Giornale, Food & Wine Italia, The Good Life Italia, Winenews, Travel + Leisure Italia, Italia in Bicicletta (Repubblica/National Geographic). Among participants, also two Masters of Wine like Gabriele Gorelli and Andrea Lonardi.
