About Author

By Dr George Robakidze


I am George Robakidze, a former Georgian diplomat with over 25 years of experience. Throughout my career, I travelled extensively across Europe, where I discovered the richness and diversity of its wine regions and developed a profound appreciation for wine culture and tradition.

Many of these journeys included visits to vineyards and wineries, where I had the chance to taste wines directly with producers and learn about the stories behind them. Over time, these experiences turned a personal interest into a lasting passion.

Through The Wine Diplomacy, I want to share my impressions, discoveries, and reflections on wines encountered across Europe — from renowned labels to small, exceptional producers that often remain hidden beyond their local regions. Drawing on my travels and visits to vineyards and wineries, I will also offer practical insights, personal recommendations, and occasional tips that may help readers discover interesting wines, better understand different wine regions, and enjoy the rich diversity of European wine culture.

This blog is not intended as a technical guide for professional sommeliers, but rather as a personal journey through wine — sharing experiences, stories from vineyards, and the pleasure of discovering remarkable bottles along the way.

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France in the Glass: A Journey Through French Wines

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  (Personal tasting notes — to be updated regularly) France is one of those wine countries that almost resists summary. Its vineyards are not merely extensive, they are civilisational. Bordeaux gave the world one language of structure and blending, Burgundy another of terroir and nuance, Champagne transformed sparkling wine into a category of prestige, while the Loire, Rhône, Alsace, Provence and the South each preserve their own distinct grammar of taste. The diversity is not theoretical. It is something one feels immediately in the glass. Official regional bodies still present France through that very diversity: Bordeaux through its classic red blends, Burgundy through Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, the Rhône through northern and southern contrasts, the Loire through freshness and precision, Champagne through Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Meunier, and Alsace through its aromatic whites. These notes, like my reflections on Georgian wines, are personal in spirit rather than encyclopae...
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  A personal journey through the vineyards of a remarkable continent Europe’s wine culture is not simply about what is in the glass. It is about landscapes, traditions, and the people who cultivate vineyards generation after generation. Over the years, my diplomatic career has given me the opportunity to travel extensively across the continent. Whenever possible, I tried to escape official meeting rooms and spend time where wine truly lives — in vineyards, cellars, and small family wineries. This short journey follows some of Europe’s great wine regions, beginning in the Caucasus and gradually moving westward across the continent. Georgia – where the journey begins For obvious reasons, my personal wine journey naturally begins in Georgia , a country whose winemaking traditions stretch back more than 8 000 years. Georgian wine culture is deeply rooted in history and remains closely connected to traditional techniques such as fermentation in qvevri , large clay vessels buried i...
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