Bedoba Saperavi Reserve 2020
"Bedoba" translates roughly to "Day of Luck," and frankly, you’ll feel pretty fortunate once you pull the cork on this wine. It is from the Kakheti region, where the vines dig deep into black slate soils, producing a wine that is powerful, inky, and unapologetically bold. The grape here is Saperavi, one of the few varieties in the world with red flesh as well as red skin. On arrival at the winery, the grapes undergo a rigorous selection on a sorting table before whole bunches are placed into 2,500-litre qvevri to ferment with indigenous yeasts. Once alcoholic fermentation is complete, the qvevri are sealed to allow malolactic fermentation to take place. This usually finishes in December, after which the wine remains on skins and stems until March. Half of the wine is then transferred to new qvevri for 15 months’ ageing, while the remainder is aged in second-fill 500-litre French oak barrels for 10 months before being returned to qvevri for further refinement.The final blend is then bottled and aged for over a year in bottle prior to release. The Bedoba Saperavi Reserve is teeming with savoury complexity: think crushed wild bramble, cracked black pepper, and dried alpine herbs. On the palate, it strikes a perfect balance between power and elegance, with bold, spiced fruit flavours harmonising with a refined minerality and silky texture. The gentle influence of low-toast oak adds layers of subtle complexity enhanced by the long, structured finish. A wine that demands food and good company. It’s silky enough to drink on its own but has the backbone to stand up to the richest stews or a charred steak.
