Autumn in Adjara — Mushrooms, Grapes & Chestnuts in the Highlands

Summer gets the attention in Adjara — the waterfalls at full flow, the wildflowers on Goderdzi Pass, long evenings on the terrace. But autumn in the Adjara highlands is its own season entirely, and for those who know the region, it might be the best one. Here is what the mountains around Keda offer as the weather turns. --- Mushroom Season — The Forests Come Alive As the first autumn rains arrive, the forests around Akutsa fill with mushrooms. This is not a curiosity for visitors — mushroom foraging is a serious tradition in mountain Adjara, passed down through generations, with families returning to the same patches of forest year after year, generation after generation knowing exactly where to look. The beech and chestnut forests that cover these hillsides produce a wide variety of edible mushrooms through the autumn months, typically from September into November depending on rainfall. Local families know which ones are safe, which season each type appears, and how to prepare them — usually simply, fried in butter, or added to eggs, or dried for the winter ahead. If you visit during mushroom season, ask about joining a foraging walk. It is one of the most direct ways to understand how mountain communities here still relate to the forest — not as scenery, but as a source of food that has sustained families for centuries. --- Grape and Fruit Harvest — The Valley Turns to Wine Autumn is harvest season across the Keda valley, and the timing overlaps with the grape harvest at the Keda Wine Factory — one of the best times of year to visit. The grapes grown in this mountain climate are different from Kakheti's lowland varieties, and watching (or joining) the harvest gives a much clearer picture of why Adjarian wine tastes the way it does. It is not only grapes. Autumn brings apples, pears, quince, and persimmon throughout the villages of Keda Municipality — fruit trees that have grown here for generations, often untended, often overlooked, and often extraordinary. Many of the desserts we make at Guest House Akutsa, including our qaisapa (dried plum dessert with walnut), depend on fruit preserved from this exact season. If you are here in autumn, ask about visiting the winery during harvest, or simply walk through the village — you will likely be offered fruit from someone's garden before you ask. --- Chestnut Season — An Adjarian Tradition Chestnut trees are woven into the identity of the Adjara highlands in a way that is easy to underestimate. For centuries, chestnuts were a staple food in mountain villages — roasted, boiled, ground into flour, stored through the winter when little else was available. The forests around Keda are still full of old chestnut trees, some of them centuries old. When the chestnuts fall in October and November, families still collect them — not as a novelty, but as a continuation of something practical that has never really stopped. Roasted chestnuts remain a common autumn food throughout the region, simple and unmistakably seasonal. If you visit during chestnut season, you will likely see them roasting somewhere — by a fire, in a pan, sold from a stand along the road to Makhuntseti. --- Why Autumn Is Worth the Visit The waterfalls are quieter in autumn, but they are still running. Goderdzi Pass turns gold before the snow arrives. The forests, deep green all summer, shift into colours that make the entire valley look different. And the food — the mushrooms, the fresh grapes, the roasted chestnuts — gives visitors a version of Adjara that few tourists ever see, because few visit outside of summer. At Guest House Akutsa, autumn is when the kitchen changes with the season — mushroom dishes when they are in the forest, fresh fruit desserts, chestnuts roasted in the evening. If you are planning a trip to Adjara and have flexibility in timing, autumn deserves serious consideration. --- Plan Your Autumn Visit Telegram: @raultsintsadze WhatsApp: +995577225289 Website: akutsaresosort.ge Guest House Akutsa — Village Akutsa, Keda Municipality, Adjara, Georgia 40km from Batumi