International conference “Armenian highlands, the ancestral land of viticulture and winemaking”

An international conference entitled “Armenian Highlands: Ancestral Land of Viticulture and Winemaking – Wine as a Component of Intercultural Communication Across Disciplines” was held in Yerevan this week.

It was organized by the University of Lille, Yerevan State University, Matenadaran, the Wine History Museum of Armenia, and several institutions. The seminar was aimed at a comprehensive and versatile study of the Armenian highlands as the cradle of wine.

Hayk Gyulamiryan, director of the Wine History Museum of Armenia and member of the scientific committee, considers the scientific application of international experience and professional retrospection of the Armenian winemaking past important in developing modern Armenian winemaking.

“Organizational work for the conference started in 2023 when we met with one of the representatives of Lille University, Garik Galstyan. They proposed to hold a scientific conference on winemaking in Armenia. A number of French organizations also joined us in the preparatory work, the participation of each of which made the conference more complete”, says Gyulamiryan.

Various intercultural topics were discussed during thethree-day conference. Reports were heard at Yerevan State University, the Wine History Museum of Armenia and Matenadaran.

“We decided to spend the second day of the conference in the main hall of the Wine History Museum of Armenia, in the environment of unique viticulture and winemaking samples. The conference board members, speakers and guests not only toured the museum and collectively got acquainted with the history, culture and traditions of Armenian wine, but also presented their reports and speeches on the topic of Armenian winemaking and viticulture in the hall of the museum,” says Gyulamiryan.

The international conference was also implemented with the support of the French Embassy in Armenia and Yerevan Municipality.

“The official opening of the conference took place at the French Embassy in Armenia. The sessions of the conference were also hosted by Yerevan State University, and the official closing ceremony was entrusted to Matenadaran. The reports particularly emphasized the importance of wine as an element of intercultural communication at the intersection of sciences. scientists from a number of countries of the world gathered around this idea,” says Gyulamiryan.

The interdisciplinary conference covered a variety of topics related to Armenian wine identity, wine regions, international consumption markets, economic strategies, and wine tourism.

“This is the third international conference held at the Wine History Museum of Armenia. Following the example of the previous two, the testimony of this conference will also be printed in international authoritative periodicals, which will support the development of Armenian viticulture and winemaking on a scientific basis. Having always been on the side of scientific initiatives, Armenia Wine Company showed its support this time,” Gyulamiryan noted in his speech.