Our first stop on our World Tour of Sparkling Wine is Armenia.
Did you know that Armenia is one of the oldest wine regions in the world and home to archeological remains of the oldest winery, dated at over 6000 years old?
Our first feature wine of this world tour is Keush Origins NV, a sparkling wine made from indigenous Armenian grapes using the “traditional method.”
Keush Origins NV (Non Vintage) is a blend of 60% Voskehat and 40% Khatouni. Voskehat is the signature white grape of Armenia and the name translates to “golden seed.” Armenia has over 400 indigenous grape varieties that have been cataloged so far.
The grapes for this wine are sourced from Khachik Village in the Vayots Dzor Province in Armenia. Vayots Dzor is located in Southeastern Armenia and is one of the best-known wine regions in the country and has the most wineries. This mountain province has predominantly limestone and volcanic soil and is free from phylloxera.
The vineyards this Keush is sourced from are farmed sustainably and the vines are un-grafted and between 60-100 years old. The vineyards are located up to 1750 meters or about 1 mile above sea level!
These are not only some of the highest elevation vineyards in the world, but some of the highest elevation ones in the Northern Hemisphere to produce sparkling wine using the traditional method.
Keush Origins is aged on the lees for a minimum of 22 months and with a dosage of 4g/l it is a Brut.
I found Keush to have notes of lemon, apple, and pear with tiny energetic bubbles.
This is my first wine from Armenia and I look forward to trying more. Keush is imported to the US by Storica Wines.
