🥃 Churchkhela
A Georgian sweet: nuts on a string coated in thickened grape juice.
Churchkhela is a Georgian sweet made from grapes. Nuts, most often walnuts or hazelnuts, are threaded onto a string and dipped several times into thickened grape juice. The juice is cooked with flour until it becomes cream-like. After each dipping the string is left to dry, and a dense layer builds up.
Finished churchkhela looks like a long dark sausage or candle. It is cut into rounds and eaten as a dessert. The taste is sweet, with a nutty centre and a light tang of grape.
It is an example of grapes being used for more than a drink. Next to it stands pelamushi, a thick pudding made from the same juice. Variations exist in other countries: in Armenia, Cyprus and Greece similar sweets are made from must, and boiled must is known elsewhere too.
Churchkhela is part of Georgian wine as a culture. It is prepared in autumn, after the harvest, when winemakers have plenty of fresh juice.
How it connects to Wine
🥃 Churchkhela → kind of → 🥃 Grape products → kind of → 🍷 Wine
Links
- Part of
- 🥃 Grape products
- Where it is made
- 🗺️ Georgian wine, 🗺️ Armenian wine, 🗺️ Cypriot wine, 🗺️ Greek wine
- Similar and different
- 🥃 Pelamushi, 🥃 Grape must
Frequently asked questions
What is churchkhela?
A Georgian sweet: nuts on a string coated in thick grape juice.
What is churchkhela made of?
Nuts and grape juice cooked with flour.
Does churchkhela contain alcohol?
No, the juice is thickened, not fermented.
What to read next
- 🗺️ Greek wine — The country's wine and winemaking: regions, grape varieties, appellations.
- 🥃 Grape must — Freshly pressed grape juice with skins and seeds, from which wine is made.
- 🗺️ Cypriot wine — The country's wine and winemaking: regions, grapes and appellations.
- 🗺️ Armenian wine — The country's wine and winemaking: regions, grapes and appellations.
Similar
🥃 Moustalevria · 🥃 Ouzo · 🥃 Grape juice · 🥃 Pelamushi · 🥃 Grape seed oil · 🥃 Arak
⚠️ Wine contains alcohol: adults only, drink in moderation. Wine usually contains sulphites; egg white or milk proteins are sometimes used for fining — important for allergies and for vegans.