It was sometime after the 20th solemn, lyrical toast—roughly around the same time the 12th or 15th or so liter of homemade wine made its way around the hodgepodge of tables lined end to end—that I lost track of... Well, just about everything. But that’s pretty much the point of a supra, the sprawling feast of friends, family, food and wine at the heart of Georgian culture.

I was at a winery in the Alazani Valley, the epicenter of viticulture in Georgia—the country, not the state. Friends were celebrating their first harvest and I’d been invited to taste the bounty—of grapes, of the wine they become, and of the many, many foods that accompany it all. Cheesy khachapuri. Platters of meats. Candied figs. Grilled breads. Mounded salads.

But those toasts! The tamada—essentially, the toastmaster—leads them, though everyone is expected to offer at least one. That day, our tamada was Giorgi Barisashvili, a wine horticulturist. The first toast always is about God and patriotism. Ten or so minutes later, another. This one always focuses on the reason for the gathering.

From there the topics get a bit more freewheeling, but usually cover family and ancestors next, then any guests, then mothers, wives and daughters, then friendship. A toast to love follows that, then a toast to the future, and always a toast to the tamada, thanking them for their service. These are punctuated by other toasts from other guests.

And each toast, of course, triggers a hearty gulp of wine.

Which is to say, supras are elaborate, loving, boozy affairs. So I say with some surprise that amidst all that food, wine and toasting, you wouldn’t expect the standout of the experience to be a simple salad. But that’s the joy of traveling to eat. The unexpected bites that keep you going back for more.

In addition to serving as tamada, Barisashvili also prepared kitri pomidvris, Georgia’s ubiquitous salad of cucumbers, tomatoes, onions and peppers, all deliciously dressed with a simple mash of walnuts and garlic. Honestly, it sounds too basic to be memorable. And before this experience, I honestly wasn’t much a fan of walnuts. Typically, too tannic for me.

But somehow, crushing the walnuts and garlic to a rustic paste creates a flavor so much deeper than the pairing suggests. That paste then mingles with the tangy-sweet juices of the tomatoes and the cooling cucumber water to create a dressing that is almost pesto-like in consistency. Some herbs and red pepper flakes added freshness and pops of heat.

It was so much more than just a salad. Just as a supra is so much more than just a meal.