Rkatsiteli

Rkatsiteli
Grape (Vitis)
Rkatsiteli in Viala & Vermorel
Color of berry skin	Blanc
Species	Vitis vinifera
Origin	Georgia

Rkatsiteli (Pronounced "rkah-tsee-tely"; Georgian რქაწითელი; literally "red stem") is a kind of grape used to produce white wine.

This ancient vinifera originates in Georgia and is one of the oldest grape varieties. In Georgia, clay vessels were found with seeds of Rkatsiteli grapes which date back to 3000 BC.

Rkatsiteli was popular in the Soviet Union prior to its fall and at one point was responsible for more the 18% of all Soviet wine production. There it was used to make everything from table wine to liqueurs to Sherry-like fortified wine. Prior to President Gorbachev's vine pull scheme, it was possibly the world's most widely planted white wine grape.

In Kakheti it was particularly known for its sweet dessert wines fashioned in the same manner as port wine. There were many attempts to create a sparkling wine from the grape but its naturally high alcohol levels prevented it from being much of a success. It is still preferred in Russia.

The grape is mostly planted in its ancestral home of Georgia though there are still sizable plantings in other Eastern European countries like Russia, Bulgaria, Moldova, Romania, Macedonia, Azerbaijan and Ukraine.