Traditions of Tbilisi
The capital of Georgia, home of the supra feast, polyphonic singing and wine made in clay jars.
Tbilisi is a city of sulphur baths, carved balconies and hillside churches in the Caucasus. Georgia has one of the oldest wine traditions in the world, with grapes fermented in buried clay vessels called qvevri. A Georgian feast, the supra, is led by a tamada, a toastmaster, and is as much about speech and song as food.
The supra and the song
At a supra, the tamada proposes toasts to peace, to the dead, to parents and to friends, and each is answered. Polyphonic singing, with three voices, is performed at the table and is recognised by UNESCO. Georgian dance, with its leaps and knee-turns, is a celebrated tradition. Orthodox feasts such as Easter and Svetitskhoveli day are widely marked.
At the table
Khachapuri, a cheese-filled bread, and khinkali, twisted dumplings eaten by hand, are classics. Churchkhela, a candle of nuts dipped in grape juice, is sold in markets. The table is covered with dishes of walnut sauces, pkhali, and fresh herbs. Wine is poured into a drinking horn on formal toasts.
Signature traditions of Tbilisi
Also part of it, and being written: Qvevri (The clay wine vessel.), Georgian polyphonic singing (The multi-part singing.), Khachapuri (The cheese bread.), Khinkali (The Georgian dumpling.).
A trail idea for Tbilisi
- Old Tbilisi sulfur baths Take a bath in the domed houses.
- Dezerter Bazaar Buy churchkhela and spices.
- Narikala Fortress See the city from above.
Written by the EveryParampara desk with AI assistance. Opening hours, markets and festival dates change; check locally before travelling. Customs differ from place to place and family to family. If this is your tradition and we have it wrong, tell us.
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Photo credits on this page
The small pictures above come from Wikimedia Commons under free licences. Some are cropped to fit.
- Tbilisoba: DDohler, CC BY 2.0, source
- Supra: Public domain Public domain false false This work is in the public dom, Public domain, source
- Independence Day: Kober, Public domain, source
- Soviet Occupation Day: Jeremy Teigen, CC BY 2.0, source
- Delphic Games of the modern era: Achilles Painter, Public domain, source