Georgian literary critic and writer Malkhaz Kharbedia has passed away, as reported by the literary and public magazine Arili.

Kharbedia was the founder and president of the Wine Club and served as the editor-in-chief of the magazines Hot Chocolate and Arili, as well as the newspaper Marani-Weekend. He was also a Level 3 certified wine professional with the Wine & Spirit Education Trust (WSET).

Throughout his career, Kharbedia received the prestigious Saba Literary Award three times. He won the award in 2007 for Best Literary Criticism, Essays, and Documentary Prose for his collection ‘Private Library.’ In 2015, he received the award again for Best Literary Criticism for ‘Text and Truth – Criticism, Literary Politics, Observations.’

In 2021, Arili was honoured with a Saba Award for its outstanding contribution to the development of literature.