ISG in Georgia: Georgian wine in professional training

From 18 to 24 July 2026 the International Sommelier Guild (ISG) brought a delegation of wine professionals from six countries to Georgia. The visit took place at the invitation of, and was organized by, Georgia’s National Wine Agency, according to the ISG press release. The group was led by president Joseph Miller. It traveled through the regions of Kakheti, Imereti and Kartli, visiting large-scale wineries and family cellars. The final tasting was held in Tbilisi with 15 producers. For importers, restaurateurs and European sommeliers evaluating Georgian wine, the visit is a concrete signal: the country’s wine culture is steadily entering international training programs, not just folkloric narratives.

The ISG delegation’s visit to Georgia

The National Wine Agency handled the invitation and logistics of the initiative, reaching out to an organization that trains sommeliers in more than 40 countries. The delegation was led by ISG president Joseph Miller and included wine professionals from the United States, China, Mexico, Turkey, Brazil and Latvia.

The program focused on the territory. The visitors explored the three wine regions of Kakheti, Imereti and Kartli. They met with established wine producers and family-run cellars. In the latter, winemaking often follows more traditional paths. At every stop they tasted wines in both traditional and modern styles, meeting the growers in person.

The Agency had a stated goal: to show the diversity of Georgian wine. The audience was the people who promote it every day in restaurants and training classrooms in other countries. This is a relevant step for the European market. Those who teach wine in Chicago, Mexico City or Riga return home with firsthand experience. They do not return with a dossier on Georgian native grape varieties.

Tasting in Tbilisi and meeting the growers

At the end of the regional tour, a “Walk-around Tasting” was held in Tbilisi with the participation of 15 Georgian wine producers. In this format, delegates move freely among the tables. The format made it possible to compare, in a single venue, styles, grape varieties and winemaking approaches that differ greatly from one another.

For the producers, the event worked as a targeted showcase: the audience was not made up of generic consumers, but of trainers and sommeliers who can include Georgian wine on restaurant wine lists and in the educational programs of their countries. For the visitors, the tasting provided a picture of Georgia’s stylistic diversity that goes beyond the usual exported selection.

The ISG president’s assessments

For Joseph Miller, this was his second visit to Georgia, and each stay, in his words, brings new discoveries. His reading of the value of Georgian wine deserves attention because it avoids the most frequent shortcut.

The main strength of Georgian wine lies not only in the qvevri tradition, but in its unique native grape varieties, capable of offering abundant food pairings.

According to Miller, Georgia’s unique grape varieties generate great interest in international gastronomy, because they lend themselves to pairings with very different cuisines. It is an operational assessment, not a rhetorical one. A wine made from a native grape variety that pairs well with non-Georgian dishes has a better chance of staying on a restaurateur’s list. Miller added that the continuous development of quality will allow Georgia to further consolidate its position on the world wine market.

The ISG and Georgian wine in training

The International Sommelier Guild is one of the most authoritative organizations in wine education. It offers accredited programs for beginner and expert sommeliers, covering tasting, winemaking technology, service standards, management and food-and-wine pairing. Today it operates in more than 40 countries and runs its programs in more than 14 languages. Its certificates are recognized in the restaurant, hospitality and production sectors.

The most significant fact for those looking at Georgia is that Georgian wine already holds a stable place in the ISG’s study programs. Students learn the country’s winemaking history, which spans 8,000 years, the qvevri tradition and the cultural significance of Georgian wine. Including Georgia in the curriculum of an organization that certifies sommeliers in dozens of countries means guaranteeing that the next generation of professionals will know the qvevri method and the native grape varieties before they ever come across a bottle. Educational recognition is what turns curiosity about a wine into a market choice.

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• სომელიეთა საერთაშორისო გილდიის (ISG) სტუმრობა საქართველოში | vinoge.com