Mtsvane Bodbiskhevi '24

A white grape, an amber-wine tradition, and a very different way of thinking about texture. Pheasant’s Tears’ Mtsvane Bodbiskhevi 2024 is a Georgian orange wine made with whole clusters and aged in qvevri. The name Mtsvane means “green” in Georgian, but the orange-wine designation comes from how the grapes are handled, not from adding any fruit: white grapes spend time with their skins, bringing colour and tannin into the wine.

Qvevri are traditional earthenware vessels buried in the ground, a defining part of Georgian winemaking. Combined with skin contact, this approach puts the wine somewhere beyond the familiar divide between a crisp white and a tannic red. It’s a useful style to have at the table when the food is fragrant, earthy, or rich, and you want a white-grape wine with something more to say.

Try it with roast chicken, mushrooms, or aubergine with walnuts and herbs. For a cheese pairing, start with a firm sheep’s-milk cheese or an aged mountain cheese, alongside good bread and a handful of walnuts.