Armenia adopted Christianity as the state religion in 301 AD — making it the first Christian nation — and from the beginning, wine was inseparable from its religious life. Monasteries across the country maintained vineyards and wine presses to supply communion wine and support their communities. At Tatev Monastery in Syunik, a 9th-century wine press survives to this day, while the Noravank monastery complex in Vayots Dzor stands at the mouth of the very gorge that leads to Areni-1 cave, connecting ancient ritual winemaking to living Christian tradition across six millennia.
2528Wine & Viticulture
