A Keipi or festivity Supra

Supra (feast)

A Supra is a traditional Georgian feast and an important part of Georgian social culture. There are two types of Supra: a festive supra , called a Keipi, and a sombre supra , called a Kelekhi that is always held after burials.- Etymology :In Georgian, "supra" means "table-cloth"...

 is a traditional banquet feast in Georgia

Georgia (country)

Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...

.

History

In ancient Georgia, a keipi would be held in the spring for all the village to attend. The woman of the village would ensure that the food was constantly replenished as a tamada

Tamada

A tamada is the toastmaster at a Georgian Supra or at a Russian wedding, corresponding to the symposiarch at the Greek symposion or the thyle at the Anglo-Saxon sumbel....

, or toastmaster, gives a toast

Toast (honor)

A toast is a ritual in which a drink is taken as an expression of honor or goodwill. The term may be applied to the person or thing so honored, the drink taken, or the verbal expression accompanying the drink. Thus, a person could be "the toast of the evening," for whom someone "proposes a toast"...

. Tradition would have that no one could touch their wine bowl until the toast was finished.

Rules and habits

In his book, Vintage: The Story of Wine, Hugh Johnson

Hugh Johnson (wine writer)

Hugh Johnson OBE is a British author and expert on wine. He is considered the world's best-selling wine writer.-Career:Johnson became a member of the Cambridge University Wine and Food Society while an undergraduate at King's College, Cambridge in the 1950s, while reading English...

 notes that at some keipi there may be 20 or more toasts, with spaces between to ensure that no one gets overly intoxicated since the constant threat of invasion called for everyone in the village to be sober enough to fight. He goes on to mention that "The Georgian custom is to drain the wine bowl, then throw away the last drops. They are the number of your enemies."

A tamada arranges breaks from time to time. The thing is that there are special toasts which according to the ritual should be accompanied by a song or a verse. Almost everyone in Georgia has a good ear to music and good voice. Songs have always accompanied the Georgians in joy and sorrow, in battle and labor. Old Georgian drinking−songs are melodious, polyphonic and rather complicated. Some of them don't need any accompaniment. The choir of men creates musical background. Modern drinking−songs are usually performed to the accompaniment of the guitar or the piano. Special drinking songs and wedding songs (if it is a wedding party) as well as chants full of humor, sung by guests during the course of the party contest. It may sound strange but sometimes even events of social, economic and political significance are discussed during the table talks, and some problems are solved peacefully. The atmosphere at the Georgian table is so friendly and candid that even the enemies are likely to make up.

If there is enough room at the party you make take part in folk dances. In these dances and at the table men ought to be gentlemen and try to be very polite and respect the ladies. Of course, no songs and dances accepted at “khelehi” (funeral banquets).

Further reading

• Darra Goldstein (1999), The Georgian Feast: The Vibrant Culture and Savory Food of the Republic of Georgia. University of California Press
  University of California Press
  University of California Press, also known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish books and papers for the faculty of the University of California, established 25 years earlier in 1868...
  
  , ISBN 0520219295.

See also

• traditional Georgian feast - Supra
  Supra (feast)
  A Supra is a traditional Georgian feast and an important part of Georgian social culture. There are two types of Supra: a festive supra , called a Keipi, and a sombre supra , called a Kelekhi that is always held after burials.- Etymology :In Georgian, "supra" means "table-cloth"...
  
  
• Georgian burial banquet - Kelekhi

External links

• GEORGIA TRAVEL, Wine drinking, tradition in Georgia
• Georgia: society, language and culture Georgian traditions;