A Brief Tour of Armenia in Four Wines

I’ve been excited about Armenian wines for a minute—ever since being lucky enough to befriend Anush O’Connor, creator of the GiniFest, a festival highlighting Armenian wine. It was the first place I got to taste the expanse of wine, spirits and food Armenia offers, and my palate has been primed for more ever since. Armenia has been at it for a long time. The land boasts ancient winemaking sites dating back to the Neolithic Era; the karst Areni-1 cave was discovered in 2011. It was full of clay structures for winemaking and dates back to about 4000 BCE, the oldest evidence of winemaking so far! Six thousand years ago places it at the end of the Neolithic Era, the era that boasted the invention of the wheel. Seriously, though. Can you believe that?! Winemaking was a priority at the same time as figuring out the wheel. THE WHEEL. Necessities! Even given that (in my humble opinion) wine gives you life, learn a little Armenian history, and even with wine on their side, it is miraculous they are still there, given centuries of strife. A few examples: -Of course, the more recent wars with Azerbaijan. -Circa WW1, the Ottoman Empire aimed to annihilate them—killing more than a million Armenians in their attempt. -Under Soviet Union rule, the government deemed them as the country for brandy (but not fine wine). Although, I’ve had some Armenian brandy that slapped so, that’s the golden lining? Also—the USSR wanted the brandy grown on flat lands, which left wine grapes like Areni on hills untouched. A few more facts: Armenia lies in the highlands, so elevation is a significant factor. Its cooling influence makes it possible for high-quality grapes at the country’s more southerly latitude. Also, the country is largely unaffected by phylloxera, so there are many own-rooted vines in the mix. Modern Armenia does seem to love more modern winemaking while embracing the ancient varieties—a happy medium leading to exceptionally unique wines. This has come with some foreign investment—the man, the legend, Paul Hobbs, sees the potential, bringing us to our first get-to-know-Armenia wine and first grape to know. The wine? 2018 Yacoubian-Hobbs Areni, Rind, Vayots Dzor , poured for me by Ehsan Mackani of Los Angeles’ Momed (read about the other rare wine he poured me here ). The grape? Areni, which is Armenia’s premier grape. It is perhaps as old as the cave! Areni is a red with true varietal expression. It is its own thing. No one tastes Pinot Noir and says it tastes like other things, but they do taste other things and note its similarities to Pinot Noir. Likewise, you could taste another wine and think, “This tastes like Areni." As opposed to thinking, “This Areni tastes like fill-in-the-blank.” It is not thick-skinned, so it is lighter in color. It frequently shows a black pepper character. I suppose it could be thought of as a Pinot and Syrah love child, but taste it yourself, and you will recognize it is just itself. As for the Hobbs-Yacoubian bottling, it is quite smooth with a peppery bite and a good bit of herbal punch: sage, bay, mint, remaining earthy with soft fine tannins and a most pleasant aftertaste. I also got into the 2018 Van Ardi Reserve Areni , which is super savory—in addition to an abundance of red fruit, there is a punch of pepper—green, black, and pink, and a smooth cocoa finish. Undercurrents of damp clay and pencil circulate through. It is bright and surprisingly light on its toes, and the tannins are smooth and unobtrusively integrated. With time, the nose grows a mocha note, speaking to both the roasted coffee bean notes and the cocoa. Onto some white grapes! Voskehat translates to golden berry, and from what I tasted (albeit they were blends), it does have vibes that bring ripe sunshine. Wait what? I realize ripe sunshine doesn’t exist as a thing, but that made sense to me as I drank the 2021 Zorah Voski , which is 50% Voskehat and 50% Garandmak. Garandmak translates to “sheep’s tail” and brings delicate fruit to the mix. The Zorah Voski is simply scrumptious, layered with tropical fruit—fresh pineapple and passion fruit vibes—with a lick of citrus, lemongrass and orange blossom. Maybe even the slightest whisper of lychee? Rich in its ways but lifted, like a pavlova—that combo of sweet, cloud-like and fruit-forward. There is the Khatouni grape, which brings crisp acid and florals! It partners with Voskehat in the venerable Keush Origins Sparkling Wine . I know this wine well. I’ve been sipping it for a few years and loved it so much I brought it into a “we are now sorta free of pandemic to let’s party in person BYOB” party for LA wine people I attended in late 2022. I knew everyone would be pulling out the big guns (and wowza did they), but I only had purse-sized pistol money, so I wanted to bring something super delicious and super cool that fit my budget. Keush it was! It is 60% Voskehat, 40% Khatouni and spends a minimum of 22 months on the lees. A brut at four g/L of sweetness, it is remarkably sharp and fresh with a strong stewed-sour-patch-kids-on-toast, in a good way, note. It is unique, toothsome, and savory, but it has a swatch of candied lemon running through it, finishing bitter but with a streak of sweet citrus. What a steal this is. This is really just the beginning, I think. The heartbeat of Armenia is strong, and I plan to keep my finger on its pulse. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Want to read more from Ellen? 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