Pheasant’s Tears Rkatsiteli Tibaani 2024

Pheasant’s Tears Rkatsiteli Tibaani 2024 comes from the Tibaani village in Georgia’s Kakheti region, one of the historic heartlands of Georgian wine. The winery, founded by American artist John Wurdeman and Georgian winemaker Gela Patalishvili, has become one of the defining names in Georgia’s natural wine revival. Their focus is on native grapes, traditional farming, and ancient cellar practices, especially fermentation in qvevri, large clay vessels buried underground that have been used in Georgia for thousands of years.

This bottling is made from 100% rkatsiteli grown in the hot, dry, sandstone and quartz soils of Tibaani. Unlike more oxidatively styled Georgian amber wines, the Tibaani cuvée is typically produced with about two weeks of skin contact in qvevri, giving it its characteristic depth and structure. The 2024 vintage follows the traditional approach: hand-harvested fruit, spontaneous fermentation with native yeasts, and extended maceration on skins before aging in qvevri for several months.

After fermentation, the wine rests in qvevri where it develops both texture and subtle oxidative nuance from its traditional environment. It is bottled without fining or filtration, with minimal or no added sulfur depending on the lot. This results in a wine that is naturally expressive but also variable and shaped strongly by vintage and cellar conditions, which is part of the philosophy at Pheasant’s Tears.

In the glass, Tibaani is typically more structured and savory than the Bodbiskhevi bottling, with layers of dried apricot, orange peel, honeyed citrus, tea leaf, and earthy spice. There is often a firm tannic grip from skin contact, balanced by bright acidity and a slightly wild, earthy edge. It is a wine that opens significantly with air and is often best with food, especially dishes with herbs, spice, or richer proteins like roasted poultry or lamb.