🍷 Satsnakheli
A Georgian wooden or stone trough for treading grapes.
A satsnakheli is the Georgian trough for crushing grapes. It is made of wood or carved from stone. It stands next to the cellar where the clay vessels called qvevri are buried. The grapes are first poured into the satsnakheli. Then the berries are trodden by foot. This is an old method: it does not crush the seeds or tear the skins as hard as a press does. The juice, together with the pulp, runs down a channel into the qvevri. For white wines in Georgia, the skins and stems often go into the vessel too. The object belongs to the set of traditional winemaking together with the qvevri, and qvevri winemaking is on UNESCO's list of intangible heritage. A satsnakheli can be seen in museums and on family vineyards, especially in Kakheti. It is not just a vessel but part of the autumn harvest, rtveli. Today many farms use modern crushers, but traditional troughs are kept for taste and ritual.
How it connects to Wine
🍷 Satsnakheli → then → 🍷 Qvevri ← packed in ← 🍷 Wine
Links
- Previous step
- 🍷 Grape treading
- Next step
- 🍷 Qvevri
- Part of
- 🍷 Grape treading
Frequently asked questions
What is a satsnakheli?
A Georgian wooden or stone trough in which grapes are trodden by foot.
Where does the juice from a satsnakheli go?
Down a channel into the qvevri, a clay vessel buried in the ground, where the wine ferments and matures.
Is the satsnakheli still used today?
Yes, on traditional farms, especially in Kakheti, though many have moved to modern crushers.