
Guria's Extraordinary Terroir: a weekend in Western Georgia
(JQ walking Gurian terraces with Zurab Topuridze) Our past weekend of filming in the humid, sub-tropical West Georgian region of Guria was deeply revelatory. Along with his family, our friend Zurab Topuridze welcomed us to his village of Dablatsikhe with memorable hospitality. Over the course of two days, we were given an intimate view into their story, vineyard land, and cellar. The vine terraces pictured above are one of 5 that Zurab farms, all with different exposures an


Crossing flooded rivers to first footage
How true!! Our first week back in Tbilisi has been nothing short of phenomenal - catching up with every old friend has been a joy. No hospitality comes close to that of the Georgian's. In addition to picking up all the threads I'd left behind, we've also, in short order, set up bank accounts, confirmed a full film schedule through November which will take us across the country several times (as well as to historic locations in other countries through the region), acquired a


Safe in Tbilisi!
We're happy to report our safe arrival in Tbilisi! Enormous heartfelt thanks to our family of Chicago friends and colleagues whose unstinting patience and support made this journey possible. After a very pleasant day's layover in Munich, which eased the jetlag, we arrived Monday morning at 3am to the news that Tbilisi's previous day's heavy rains had caused severe flooding. The zoo was especially hard-hit; a large number of animals were drowned or washed away, and many esca


Gearing up for arrival!
We're gearing up and making final arrangements for our return to Georgia- arriving in Tbilisi in just a few short days! (A view of Tbilisi, from Mtatsminda Park) We'll be taking up digs in the soulful Sololaki neighborhood, located in the far right of the Tbilisi picture above. After a few days to settle in, we'll begin our film and trek in the western Gurian and central Imeretian wine regions. (Pergola-trained vines in Imereti) (Steel grapevines framing Tbilisi's Kashveti C