Areni Cave

Located 120km from Yerevan in Vayots Dzor province, at the mouth of the Noravank Gorge lies a cave which is an Early Bronze Age ritual site and settlement. Here the oldest winery in the world 6,100 year old  winery was discovered in 2007. The winery consists of fermentation vats, a wine press, storage jars, pottery sherds, large storage containers, many of which held well-preserved wheat, barley, and apricots, as well as other edible plants. In addition to these discoveries, grape seeds, remains of pressed grapes, prunes, walnuts, and desiccated vines were found. During 2007-2008 excavations the oldest leather shoe known in the world, the 5,500 year old shoe was discovered in the same cave. Later, in 2011 the discovery of a straw skirt dating to 3,900 years BC was reported. Therefore, if you want to travel through the immemorial times and be acquainted with the world famous artifacts, this journey waits for you. At the entrance to the village, right at the road on the left side a private small wine factory “Areni” is located, where you can visit to get acquainted with the winemaking process,have degustation of local wines and collect not only historical valuable memories, but also take with you the real “taste” of Armenian culture.