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A Turtle Coaster, A Free Wine Tasting & Armenia’s Wine History

September 05, 2025

In this week’s roundup: we came across an article on how archaeologists uncovered the world’s earliest complete winery in Armenia. Plus, we’ve got a free tasting event this Wednesday, September 10th from 5–8pm at Thirst Merchants with Jeff Porter! We’ll be pouring the wines of cult Franciacorta producer Nicola Gatta and we’ll even have a few printed copies of Jeff’s upcoming article on Gatta for you to take home.

We’ve also updated our stockists page on the site. Thank you to all the retailers and customers that have support us so far! If you’re a retailer interested in carrying The SWURL Guide to Wine Terms, you can find details here!

Why Armenia’s Wine Story Takes The Crown In The ‘Birthplace’ Debate

In 2007, Archaeologists uncovered the world’s earliest complete winery in Armenia (dating back 6,100 years old) and the story only continues from there. By the 4th century, monks had woven winemaking into Armenia’s culture after the country adopted Christianity (caravans once hauled its wines along the Silk Road). Then under Soviet rule from 1920 - 1991, it nearly severed that lineage by shifting production to brandy, but native grapes survived in family plots. Today, they’re fueling a revival that puts Armenia firmly in the running for the “birthplace of wine.”

Understanding the Many Identities of This Criolla Grape

Known as País, Mission, Criolla Chica, or Listán Prieto, depending on which country you’re in, this grape variety is a light red wonder that is winning over winemakers and sommeliers alike.

Bubble Trouble @ Thirst Wine Merchants with SWURL & Jeffrey Porter

In case you missed the intro: we’ve got an article by Jeff Porter, a profile of Italian winemaker Nicola Gatta, set to drop in the next two weeks. Ahead of its release, we’re hosting a free tasting this Wednesday at Thirst Wine Merchants from 5–8pm to showcase Gatta’s wines. We’ll also have a limited number of printed copies available early!

  • Date: Wednesday, September 10th

  • Time: 5pm - 8pm

  • Location: Thirst Wine Merchants, 11 Greene Ave, Brooklyn, New York

  • Additional details: See the Instagram post here!

“Definitely picking up on some strong salinity here.”

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