The First Wine on Earth: Uncorking Armenia with Diana Khandilyan
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What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
You're listening to Two Guys Talking Wine with Michael Pincus and Andre Proulx. Michael. Andre.
What are we doing? We're outside. We are outside again. It's 33 degrees. Isn't it glorious? I know you like the heat. I don't like this. Give me more. I don't like this amount of heat.
Listen, when you've experienced minus 57, you don't complain about plus 40.
I think you can complain about plus 40. No. We have a guest here. We do. It's something we know nothing about. That's a lot of things, Michael. Correct. But in the wine world, we know nothing about it. How about that?
Yeah. I mean, it's the sort of thing where, you know, I think we take it for granted a little bit how tiny Canada is, but also how new Canada is as a wine growing region. But, you know, I think it only makes sense that, you know, given the number of places and... the fortitude of grapevines that we shouldn't be surprised when we hear of another place that makes wine.
Well, it's an old place, though. It's an old place who's made wine. You know what? Let's just introduce our guest. Actually, let's let her introduce herself. Diana?
Yeah, last name is very hard to pronounce.
I wasn't going to try it. That's why I thought, all right, I'll let her do it.
Yeah, it's Randylianne. In Armenian, it's Diana Khandilyan.
I got it. Never would have picked it up. Khandilyan.
Oh, here you go. You're doing great. My U.S. friends told me that I will be Candyland because they cannot do it.
Listen, I have a last name with a silent L and a silent X, so I work hard to pronounce people's names.
Yeah. Yeah, I am Armenian, and today we will be talking about Armenian wines. And it's not another region, it's the first region that ever made wine.
Oh, so there you go. You're putting a hot take on the podcast right in the first place, though, because I'll bet you there's some Georgians that would probably disagree with you.
And we can talk about it for sure.
Okay. So, Diane, how do you find us? Because you approached us and you said, have you ever tried Armenian wine?
Yeah.
And I went, no. And you said, how would you like to learn about Armenian wine? And we were like, yeah.
Yeah, I listen to you guys because I am a geophysicist. I have a full-time job, but I have this big passion and it's about wine. I got certified as a sommelier on the WCET 3. And I kind of realized that it's not enough knowledge. So I'm listening to many, many different podcasts, reading books and doing this and doing that. And I'm a lot on the road because I have a project of mine. It's called Pour Across America. Not being poor across America, it's pouring.
It could be both.
No, no, no. Let's just keep pouring across America. And I go state by state and I discover wines in different states, places that nobody thinks about. Oh, well, neat. Okay. You guys keep me on the road.
We appreciate that. So what just the most interesting, before we get into Armenia, what is the most interesting state you've been into for wine that's not normal? Like, I mean, Oregon, Washington, California.
That's not normal. None of them are normal. I actually didn't go to Oregon, Washington, California yet.
Okay, got it.
Who is Diana Khandilyan and why is she talking about Armenian wine?
It will be at the end. All right.
My first delivery was probably for you guys more conventional, New York, Finger Lakes. My second delivery was Arizona.
Okay. How was the Arizona wines? Were they all right? Yeah, amazing. There's great stuff in Arizona.
Absolutely amazing. But as everywhere, right? There are many 1,500 wineries. You need to choose 15, and out of 15, maybe you find five wines.
Yeah.
Yes. But in Arizona, I had more than five. They were amazing.
Yes.
I just delivered Pennsylvania, which was absolutely amazing as well. Oh, interesting. Yeah. And I was just discovering Ohio, and I found four. four to five wineries that I want to purchase wine from.
Oh, interesting.
Good.
Okay.
So let's dive into Armenia. How do you come to represent Armenian wine besides being Armenian yourself?
Yeah. My representation is completely volunteer. I don't work for any winery. I don't work for any Armenian organization. I just, while I was studying wine, you know, we know in Armenia that we are the first country who made wine.
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Chapters
7 chapters
1
What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
0:06–3:36
2
Who is Diana Khandilyan and why is she talking about Armenian wine?
3:36–16:49
3
Where is Armenia located and what geographic features shape its vineyards?
16:49–25:07
4
What is the Areni‑1 cave discovery and why is it called the world’s oldest winery?
25:07–34:14
5
Which Armenian wineries and indigenous varieties are we tasting and how do they differ?
34:14–37:50
6
What is the Areni (Areni Noir) grape and how does altitude affect its character?
37:50–41:09
7
How did Soviet rule and the diaspora reshape Armenia’s modern wine industry?
41:09–49:17
Speakers
4 identifiedMore from Two Guys Talking Wine
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