- Bruce Rich
- Environmental Forum
- September-October 2014
- p. 20
The land of present-day Georgia and adjacent areas is the center of origin of the cultivation of numerous fruits, vegetables, and grains, including einkorn wheat, chickpeas, and vines for winemaking, as well as one of the first places where animals were tamed for domestic use....Of the more than 4,000 grape varieties in the world, Georgia has 520, and in recent years it has become an epicenter of a resurgence in traditional winemaking, using varieties and fermentation techniques thought to date back 9,000 years....The links between Georgia’s cultural history and its globally outstanding agricultural legacy led UNESCO last year to officially designate Georgia’s winemaking tradition as part of the “Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.” This designation could be important in creating further economic demand around the world to sustain Georgian winemaking and agricultural biodiversity.
