Author: Michal Bauch

Netofa Winery beats the drum for wines of the old world. The name of their one of their labels, Domaine Netofa and the growing region written on the label, Basse Galilee, give a clue. There is a French connection here somewhere.

Of course when you meet the winemaker, Pierre Miodownik, all becomes clearer. He was born to parents of Polish origin. That explains the name. They came from Lublin and settled in France way before the Holocaust. They lived in the Languedoc in a place called Beziers. Now this is a big wine producing area which produces more wine than the whole of Australia together.

Here the young Pierre learnt his winemaking as an apprentice, ‘on the job’, by helping out at the wineries around him and he fueled his Zionism, by working on a kibbutz. Gradually, he was able to find a niche making much needed kosher wine at non-kosher wineries, but as he became more knowledgeable and experienced, it frustrated him that kosher wine was not better quality.

He received his opportunity when Baron Edmond de Rothschild (grandson of Hanadiv – The Known Benefactor), decided to make kosher wine. He needed a religious winemaker. Miodownik fit the bill. Together they made the first quality kosher wine in France in 1986.

Then, Royal Wine, the world’s largest importer & distributor of kosher wines, thought if he is good enough for Rothschild, then he is good enough for us. He had made wine which they had sold previously. For the next 28 years, Pierre Miodownik became the European winemaker for Royal Wine making kosher wines in France, Spain and Portugal. He helped make kosher cuvées at some fairly famous wineries including Bordeaux Chateaux Giscours, Léoville Poyferré, Pontet Canet and Taylors Port in Portugal.

After becoming the main figure of Kosher winemaking in Europe, he then decided to conquer Israel. Pierre combined his winemaking skills, with his Zionism and religion by founding a winery in Israel. He made aliyah with his wife Corinne and seven children. Knowing the most important thing in a winery is the vineyard, he first planted a vineyard in the Lower Galilee.

Netofa Winery has 120 dunams of vineyards which are lovingly grown with great expertise in the Ein Dor area, in the foothills of Mount Tabor in the Lower Galilee. The first vintage was 2009, and first complete vintage was 2010. They now already produce 75,000 bottles a year.

The winery has a dream team. Apart from Miodownik’s winemaking skills and French charm, the winery has a sharp, savvy wine knowledgeable CEO, Yair Tebboulle, who was born in Israel, but his father was from Bordeaux. Then there is Yitzhak Tor, a man of the soil, who has a lifetime experience in vineyards and Israeli agriculture.

Shahar Marmor is the viticulturist managing the Netofa vineyards. He is from one of the founding families of Tabor Village. He studied winemaking in Margaret River, Australia and is young, good looking with some experience at Carmel & Amphorae wineries. He is undoubtedly a great asset to Netofa, because he understands better than most, the difference between growing grapes and growing wine.

They make the wine at Or Haganuz Winery. There is nothing wrong with that. There are many negociant wineries and negociants who make their wine at another winery or at what is known as a ‘custom crush facility.’ As Or Haganuz has the quality equipment and the capacity, why not It certainly makes good sense financially.

The Israeli wine revolution was made with Bordeaux varieties. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Sauvignon Blanc were the first Israeli wines to be noticed for quality. However, today the worm is turning. Mediterranean varieties are in and Netofa is one of the new wineries leading the way.

Pierre Miodownik selected grapes which are Mediterranean in origin and considered more suitable for the Israeli climate. These include Syrah, Mourvèdre, Grenache, and Roussanne from the region where Pierre cut his winemaking teeth. To these he has added a touch of Spanish & Portuguese planting Tempranillo and Touriga Nacional.

He loves Chenin Blanc and this is where his main focus on whites. He had experience of this making wine in the Loire Valley. He likes this variety, its quality, the way it develops all the time and its ability to age. Chenin is the comeback kid of Israeli wine and there are few wineries that swear by it. Certainly it is something different from Sauvignon Blanc and Chardonnay all the time!

I drove north to Mitzpe Netofa to visit the winery, and instead was welcomed to one of the most luxurious wine rooms in the country. Firstly it is slightly secret and secluded. It may be found in a side entrance to a rather grand synagogue building, which already gives an expectation of quality. Netofa’s wines are good, but with divine assistance as well, they are even better!

You enter a heavy sliding door, unmarked from the outside and imagine you have gone into a gentleman’s cigar club in the West End of London. The room is plush and exudes quality. You are in a wine den, with low lighting. There is a chunky table surrounded by eight easy, plush leather armchairs. Sit in one of these, and you don’t want to move. Then there is a display of bottles with lighting and mirrors that gives a feeling of wow.

Here they hold workshops at different levels. These range from the most basic wine tasting to a picnic, with wine of course, where you can inhale the Galilee air and enjoy the beautiful views. Their wine room is certainly a comfortable place to taste wine. I would book just to sit in one of those chairs again!

The wines I tasted which are all kosher, are as follows:

Domaine Netofa White 2014
Unoaked Chenin Blanc with herbaceous notes. I got cut grass. It was harvested at the end of July to preserve the freshness and acidity. It is sharp, in a good way, refreshing and is a great advertisement for Chenin Blanc in Israel. I preferred it to the oak aged version.
Price: 65 shekels.

Latour Netofa White
A varietal Chenin Blanc aged for 8 months in old oak barrels. The wine has a straw color, a whiff of wet hay and melon. It has a good minerality with long length.

Price: 85 ILS

Netofa Tinto
A blend of Spanish and Portuguese varieties. The 40% Tempranillo and 60% Touriga Nacional combine with 10 months aging in large barrels. The wine is full of sweet, ripe fruit with a fat juicy flavor.
Price: 75 ILS

Domaine Netofa Red 2013
A blend of Syrah and Mourvedre aged seven months in barrel. The wine is fruit forward but not jammy, light to medium bodied, with a meaty mouth feel and a refreshing finish.
Price: 65 ILS

Latour Netofa Red 2012
An elegant blend of Syrah and Mourvedre aged for 13 months in French oak, 50% new. It has a delicate fruity nose, a great balance in the mouth with well integrated oak notes and a long finish. This was my favorite of the reds.
Price: 100 ILS

Netofa Tinto
A blend of Spanish and Portuguese varieties. The 40% Tempranillo and 60% Touriga Nacional combine with 10 months aging in large barrels. The wine is full of sweet, ripe fruit with a fat juicy flavor.
Price: 75 ILS

Netofa Dor
A limited edition production of Syrah aged for 15 months in barrel. This is a big wine. concentrated and oaky. If it must be said, slightly more new world in style, than the rest of the portfolio.
Price: 180 ILS

LBV Netofa
An outstanding port style wine made from 80% Touriga Nacional and 20% Tempranillo. It is a Late Bottle Vintage wine made in the classic port style. It is aged for four years in oak barrels. Sweet, rich and complex, full of ripe fruit but not lacking in an acidity which makes it far more drinkable than you would think. Very rare, but an experience. (There is a also less expensive Ruby port style wine which is also very good.)
350 ILS

One of the seminal events that marked the development of the kosher wine industry took place exactly thirty years ago. This was the production of the first Rothschild kosher Bordeaux wine. Until then most kosher wine in France was simple, inexpensive and more prized for its hechsher than its quality.

At this time a young Jewish guy called Pierre Miodownik, of Polish parents, was becoming frustrated at the lack of quality of the wine he drank and dreamed of producing quality kosher wine. He knew it was possible if he had the right opportunity. He lived in the Languedoc. It was scarcely a center of the Jewish community, nor was it then known as a place for quality wine.

Miodownik had slipped into wine because it was all around him. Languedoc was even then one of the largest producing wine regions. As a religious Jew, he became involved in making kosher cuvées to supply demand, but with no pretention to quality. He knew the wines were not great, and sought a way of doing better. This quiet, slightly diffident, unassuming Frenchman then got the opportunity of his life. He was put in contact with Baron Edmond de Rothschild himself.

Baron Edmond de Rothschild was the grandson of the Baron Edmond de Rothschild we revere so much in Israel. The grandfather founded Carmel Winery, built the two largest wineries in Israel at Rishon Le Zion and Zichron Ya’acov and planted vineyards all over Israel. In doing so he founded the modern Israeli wine industry.

His son James donated Rishon Le Zion and Zichron Ya’acov Cellars to Carmel Winery in 1957, thus ending the family involvement with Israeli wine, and founded the Yad Hanadiv Foundation.

However the family’s immense support of Israel continued. The grandson with the same name also benefited Israel by founding the Caesarea Rothschild Foundation. Furthermore, Yad Hanadiv helped to build the Knesset, the new Supreme Court Buildings, the Mishkenot Sha’ananim Music Center and a current project is the National Library. The contributions are endless.

Baron Edmond the younger, was a part owner of Château Lafite Rothschild. His cousins, stemming from the English branch of the family, owned Château Mouton Rothschild. These are two of the great Bordeaux Châteaux, purchased by the family in 1868 and 1853 respectively.

When Baron Edmond decided also to enter wine, he had an opportunity to buy Chateau Margaux, another of the great French wineries, but instead decided to be a wine pioneer and to create. He went for Cru Bourgeois instead of Premier Cru Classé and purchased Château Clarke in the more unfashionable, comparatively unknown region of Listrac in the Medoc, Bordeaux. He invested a fortune in Château Clarke. The estate was modernized, the vines replanted, and the wines improved no end. He succeeded in bringing this region, and that of Moulis, to the attention of wine lovers.

When the shy Miodownik met the Baron, he was nervous, but the Baron could not have been nicer or more welcoming. He told him about his grandfather’s commitment to Israeli wine and the Rothschild’s ongoing contributions to the Jewish community. He told him he felt almost an obligation to continue the support of the Jewish community by producing kosher wine.

This was the opportunity young Pierre sought. The Baron empowered him and told him to do it, whatever it took.

So they produced a wine called Barons Edmond de Rothschild Haut Medoc from the 1986 vintage. It was not inexpensive, carried the Rothschild name and was from Bordeaux. It was watershed wine in the niche world of kosher. After this it became more fashionable for famous Châteaux in France to produce kosher wine. However though many of those who have dabbled in kosher wine do not make it every year, the Rothschild wine continues to be made, year in, year out, not missing a vintage.

Pierre Miodownik went on to become the most revered kosher winemaker in Europe, and Baron Rothschild continued to produce high quality, fine wines in the general wine world through his wine company, which was called Companie Vinicole Baron Edmond de Rothschild (CVBER).

The CVBER today owns the Bordeaux Châteaux in the up and coming regions of Listrac and Moulis. Châteaux Clarke (Listrac) and Château Malmaison (Moulis) were purchased in 1973, followed by Château Peyre-Lebade in 1979.

After Baron Edmond passed away in 1997, his son Baron Benjamin and wife Baroness Ariane continued the growth of the company with a joint venture in South Africa with Anton Rupert (Rupert & Rothschild) in 1997 and in Argentina with Laurent Dassault (Flechas de los Andes) in 1999.

They then returned to Bordeaux to purchase Château des Laurets in Puisseguin-St. Emilion. This was followed by the founding of Macan in Rioja, a joint venture with Vega Sicilia, the greatest name in Spanish wine, and Rimapere in 2012, in partnership with Craggy Range in Marlborough New Zealand.

CVBER is a well-run company with a fascinating list of wineries, each producing some very high quality, authentic regional wines, which remain true to their origins and local terroir. Despite their immense contribution to Israel and to Israeli wine, unfortunately they have not yet made the leap to having a joint venture or partnership with an Israeli winery. However they list some serious wines for serious wine people, which are well worth seeking out.

The latest initiative has been a joint venture between the three great Rothschild wine houses in production of a high quality Champagne called Champagne Barons de Rothschild. This includes a kosher cuvée.

CVBER continue to remain loyal to Baron Edmond de Rothschild’s wish to make quality kosher wine. To make a kosher wine in a non-kosher winery can be costly in terms of time and money. Quite frankly it can be a nuisance to an efficient winery. Yet to her credit, Hélène Combabessouse, the Commercial Director of CVBER, who must be frantically busy all the year round, can be found at most of the large annual kosher tastings whether in London, New York or Tel Aviv. She faithfully presents the kosher portfolio, with patience, a smile and a certain French elegance. It really does show a real commitment to the Jewish community and kosher wine, that CVBER have continued to serve this niche market for the last thirty years.

The kosher wines produced by Compagnie Vinicole Baron Edmond de Rothschild are distributed by Royal Wine and Kedem Europe. The wines I tasted were as follows:

Champagne Barons de Rothschild NV
A kosher cuvée was made of the new champagne…..and this really is a fine result. It has some good toastiness on the nose, with a touch of brioche, a creamy acidity and a very refreshing finish. Without doubt this is one of the best kosher sparkling wines out there.

Les Lauriers Des Barons Edmond Benjamin Rothschild Rosé 2014
Made 100% from Merlot. It has an onion skin pink color, with very delicate berry aromas balanced with a sharp and refreshing acidity. An ideal aperitif.

Les Lauriers Des Domaines Edmond de Rothschild 2013
This wine is mainly Merlot balanced by Cabernet Franc and a little Cabernet Sauvignon. The wine is deep red in color, with ripe plum and black berry on the nose with soft tannins and effect of oak aging nicely integrated.

Barons Edmond Benjamin de Rothschild Haut Médoc 2013
The Rothschild Haut-Médoc is made 65% from Merlot and 35% from Cabernet Sauvignon. It is really the second wine of their three estates Clarke, Malmaison and Peyre-Lebade. Medium to full bodied with good black berry and blackcurrant notes, quite soft in the mouth with a pleasing finish.

Flechas De Los Andes Gran Malbec 2013
This is my favorite. A 100% Malbec which is full of up front fruit, with a mouth filling flavor, vanilla notes from the oak and a long satisfying finish. A great mouthful of wine.

There are the four products that really symbolize the culinary revolution in Israel more than any others. These are bread, wine, cheese and olive oil.

The festival of Shavuot gives us the opportunity to enjoy all four together. It is amongst other things a harvest festival celebrating the first fruits and the grain harvest. As it is a tradition to eat dairy products, what could be more appropriate to enjoy a selection of Israeli cheeses, a hunk of bread, with olive oil drizzled on it of course, washed down with some Israeli wines.

Once there was only a choice of white cheese, yellow cheese or salty cheese in Israeli supermarkets. Quality wines were few and far between. Olive oil was something one bought in a soft drink bottle in local Arab villages. Bread was called Achid, a rather basic version of black bread.

In the early 1980’s a few small dairies were founded which specialized in producing handmade goats’ cheese. Barkanit in the Jezreel Valley, Ein Kammonim in the Lower Galilee and Shay Seltser in the Jerusalem Hills were the pioneers that started the gourmet, boutique cheese revolution.

The wine revolution started with the Golan Heights Winery, also in the eighties, and the whole industry responded by moving to quality. The gourmet bread revolution started with Lechem Erez, (‘Erez Bread’) on the initiative of the famous Chef, Erez Komarovsky in the nineties. Then, Zeta from the Lower Galilee, Halutza from the Negev, both now large producers, and Eger from the Mount Carmel area, heralded a revival of quality Israeli olive oil.

Today there are no lack of specialist dairies, boutique wineries, regional olive presses and artisan bakeries that have sprung up all over Israel. The large producers and major brands have also responded, so production of cheese, wine, bread and olive oil in Israel today, is unrecognizable from even fifteen years ago.

There is a connection between these products that runs like a thread from Ancient Israel to modern times. The famous Persian poet Omar Khayyam summed it up correctly writing romantically about: “A flask of Wine, a Loaf of Bread – and Thou.” Go to Tuscany today and they will say that the holy trinity of Wine, Bread & Olive Oil is the basis of the Mediterranean diet.

However this all began in the Bible, when Wine, Bread & Olive Oil were the three mainstays of the economy. Wheat, Vines & Olive Oil were amongst the Seven Species blessed in Ancient Israel. When the spies sent by Moses returned after scouting out the Promised Land, they returned with a large bunch of grapes to illustrate that this was a land …”flowing with Milk and Honey.” This image of two men carrying a large bunch of grapes on a pole between them is preserved appropriately in the logos of both Carmel Winery and The Israel Tourist Board.

So I recommend that this Shavuot represents an opportunity to celebrate the flowering of gourmet Israel with these four most fundamental regional and historical products.

The world of cheese is probably more varied even than the world of wine. President De Gaulle said about France, “How can I manage a country with so many cheeses” It is a complicated world to learn, but there are basic guidelines for matching cheese & wines, which may be followed:

Red wines do not go with soft, fatty, creamy, salty or smelly cheeses.
Often dry white or even sweet wines will far better combinations.
Try and match the acidity of the wine and cheese.
Try & contrast the saltiness of the cheese.

To simplify the issue, most cheeses can be placed in the following categories:

Hard Cheeses
A hard cheese which is firm, and not aged too much, will go well with a medium to full bodied red wine. Cheddar and Parmesan are classic examples of fine red wine cheeses. However if the cheese is older and more pungent, the wine needs to be more mature and less tannic to avoid a clash. For this you will need older vintages.

Soft Cheeses
This is the hardest category to find a match. A creamy, fatty cheese will make most reds seem like water. The fat in the cheese will neutralize the tannin. Alternatively an oaky and tannic red wine will taste slightly metallic when these cheeses are ripe and runny. A pasteurized Brie or Camembert would best be served by a lightly oaked Chardonnay with good acidity. If you prefer a red wine, then one which is soft, full of fruit and with no astringency will be adequate.

Blue Cheese
Salt accentuates tannin so the myth that red wine goes with all cheeses is shown to be most false when a red wine is matched with a blue cheese. A sweet dessert wine or fortified wine, are far better matches. The salt and sweetness contrast to enhance both cheese and wine.

Goats Cheese
This category produces Israel’s finest cheeses. They have a strong character but can go with either white or red wines. The classic combination for a young goats’ cheese is a varietal Sauvignon Blanc. An aged goats’ cheese can be matched successfully with a mature well-structured but not tannic red.

Cooked Cheese
Cooked cheese goes better with white wine. A cheese sauce, like Mornay, will usually be matched well with an oaky Chardonnay, the weight of the sauce being matched by the intensity of oak. For a Fondue, a Sauvignon Blanc is recommended.

For a quiche, I recommend an unoaked chardonnay. A Pizza is best served with a fruity rosé.

Cheesecake
Finally with a rich New York cheesecake, there is nothing better than a fortified Muscat.

Sorry to disappoint red wine lovers, but as you can see, white wines are generally far better accompaniment to cheeses and dairy products than red wines. The reality does not chime with the popular image of blocks of cheese and carafes of red wine.

There are trends that indicate a return of interest in white wines. Certainly the quality and variety has improved no end. Many wineries are now making some really fine whites with typicity and authenticity, which was lacking not so many years ago.

Don’t forget that white wines are far more versatile to match with food than reds. They are also far more suitable for our hot climate than red wines. Who wants to sit on the balcony at home drinking a 15% alcohol, oak aged red wine on a hot summers evening, when a crisp dry white is also an option

So this Shavuot can also be a time to appreciate Israel’s quality white wines. It is a festival that does not only provide an excuse for an annual cheese and wine tasting, but it can also be a celebration of the four products which connect modern gourmet Israel with our Biblical roots. A glass of wine, a slice of cheese, a hunk of bread, a drizzle of oil….and thou.

Israeli wine has always had a special place in its surrounding society. It has had the same relevance and prominence from the days of Ancient Israel in Biblical times, until now in modern Israel. In ancient times wine was a major industry and vines, grapes and wine were frequently used as imagery that people could relate to. Just read the Bible.

In modern times, wine still plays a crucial role. The settling of the country, the planting of vineyards and production of wine has helped develop the country. Time and again the farming villages or settlements have set the political tone. Wine was at the forefront at every stage of Israel’s history.

The vineyards planted in the 1880’s are an example. The idea of working the land and making it your own was adopted by the Labor Zionism movement. The fact that David Ben Gurion, Israel’s first Prime Minister worked at the Rishon Le Zion Cellars and Levi Eshkol, Israel’s third Prime Minister, managed the vineyards, only underlined the importance of wine as a symbol of the new Israel. When Theodore Herzl, the founder of Zionism, visited Israel in 1898 he was taken to see the Carmel Winery as an active example of the Zionist dream come true. Carmel developed and maintained a new Israeli wine industry through all the problems of building the state.

Wine was prominent enough an issue, to attract the intervention of politicians. When Joseph Seltzer from Hungary wanted to found a winery in 1952, he did so, on the site of a disused perfume factory in Binyamina. There were disputes about the approvals given and only when David Ben Gurion, by then Prime Minister, became involved was the issue solved and Eliaz Winery, now renamed Binyamina, was formed.

Political intervention was also apparent in the development of the Golan Heights Winery. The Wine Growers Cooperative was against it and they had a person of influence in the right position to lead the opposition. Pessah Grupper was the Minister of Agriculture, as well as being a veteran member of the Wine Growers Cooperative, and later the chairman. This time the future of the new winery was preserved only due the strong intervention of Ariel Sharon, then the Minister of Trade & Industry. He managed to secure the approvals to push through the move to its permanent premises in Katzrin.

Sometimes it was wine that put a region on the map. The positive attributes of settlement pioneering, Israeli agriculture and advanced technology combined in the Golan Heights Winery. The Golan area came to be very much associated with the success of its wines. Its Yarden wines gained international acclaim. Wine became the most visual export from the Golan Heights and undoubtedly contributed to the fact that this area, new to Israel after the 1967 war, was swiftly adopted by the Israeli consensus.

The area known as the Territories, (aka the West Bank by lefties or Judea and Samaria by rightists), was more politically fraught. I prefer to call it from a wine region point of view, the Central Mountains. Companies opening businesses there received favorable rates and inducements and Barkan Winery was founded there. Eventually the issue of the Territories became an issue. Barkan moved to a new winery in Hulda, became Israel’s largest exporter and close to the largest winery in Israel.

In the last ten to 15 years, there are a number of new wineries that have opened in the Central Mountains. It is in their interest to show the Israeli settler as placid farmer types planting vineyards and growing wine. Again, wine is at the center of the political issues of the day, but they are using wine and wine tourism in exactly the same way as Carmel Winery and the Golan Heights Winery were used to settle the country and the Golan before them.

Those with an anti-Israel agenda like the BDS, and the relabeling proposals of the European countries are doomed to fail if their objectives are to cause financial damage. Most Israeli wine is sold in Israel and most of what is sold abroad is channeled to the Jewish market. The late legendary wine critic, Daniel Rogov, put it very succinctly: “There are domestic and overseas customers who simply won’t buy the wine because it comes from the occupied West Bank.” He went on: “In contrast there are many others who will look out those wines precisely because they come from there.” Sales will not be affected. Maybe the bad press will even boost sales.

The main damage is one of image yet wine remains Israel’s most presentable product which represents the land, agriculture, technology and Israel’s creative energy. However bashing of Israel through wine is certainly not new. I remember the crisis when I represented Yarden and the London store Selfridges succumbed to pro- Palestinian protesters outside the store and delisted the wine. That was over fifteen years ago. Meetings were held with the management and the wine was reinstated. The similar issues with the Sweden’s Systembolaget and more recently the German store KaDeWe, also involved the Golan Heights Winery.

Only the most fervent, anti-Israel campaigners categorize the Golan Heights as politically problematic and yet it is included in all the propaganda as being part of the Occupied Territories. When people rage about the Territories and include the Golan Heights, their whole argument is undermined. Likewise it is a massive failure of Israel diplomacy that the Golan Heights still has this mark of Cain on it.

After all, the Golan has been annexed to Israel, there are no Palestinians there and the adjoining country is Syria, which is in the process of disintegration. Who do the critics want Israel to hand the Golan back to The hypocrisy of it all! It is not even in any western country’s interest that the Golan should go back to any of the existing players, but the blanket approach continues.

Many see everything in Israel as political, but at least wine gives you a glimmer of hope to present the most acceptable face of Israel. You don’t always receive the welcome I did when presenting wine to Polish sommeliers when one asked me: “Why should we sell Israeli wine when you murder Palestinian children.” They don’t teach you to answer to that in wine school! However wine is one of Israel’s finest quality exports and arguably Israel’s finest ambassador. Reactions like that are rare, especially in Poland where I have many wine connections.

Wine has certainly made me a lot of friends. The people I have met with a glass in hand include right wing settlers from the territories, left wing pacifists from Tel Aviv, ultra orthodox Haredim, Israeli Arabs, Palestinian Christians, not to mention winemakers from Lebanon and Turkey. We have absolutely nothing in common, apart from an interest in wine. So I see wine as a bridge and unifier rather than something divisive. I wish people here would drink more wine than coffee, and then perhaps it would be a calmer place!

Most people in the wine trade believe wine should be separated from politics. You don’t need a flag to grow grapes and wine should be judged on quality. In other words it should be above the fray. The wine from a vineyard in Alsace did not change because it was from France or Germany. It was still the same terroir regardless of the country.

After 130 years of pioneering, it is still wineries and vineyards that are in the center of the Israel discourse. Only recently a prominent right wing politician described those Israelis that did not buy or write about wine from the Territories as enemies of the State and agents of Palestinian propaganda. Others see a difference between Eretz Israel and the State of Israel and refuse to touch a bottle from there. And that is a debate within Israel.

Every restaurant and individual must be allowed to make the decision to buy or not based on personal opinion, as with every consumer product. The freedom of what to buy without harassment is a basic right. Live and Let Live. It is only a drink made from grapes after all! Thankfully, there are enough quality Israeli wineries of every type, from every corner of the country, to provide a great deal of choice, whatever your political persuasion or religious affiliation. However I do not believe in boycotts on principle and believe they drastically weaken the arguments of those that propose them.

Wine continues to be an attraction for the full spectrum of political views, covering every corner of the country, whether disputed or undisputed. So it seems those that want to glorify or vilify Israel, from outside or within, will continue to do so, using wine as the medium.

Ring the bell! Israel now has its first ever Master of Wine and it is a truly amazing achievement. There are only 129 living MW’s in the world today from outside the United Kingdom and there are only four from the Eastern Mediterranean basin. Our own Eran Pick has now joined this distinguished elite.

A Master of Wine is part of the most prestigious wine community in the world. Anyone, who has the letters MW after his name, commands instant respect.

Think how many wine professionals there are that we all look up to, whether winemakers, critics, buyers and wine educators. Well, out of all those respected, talented people, there is only one in Israel who is entitled to truthfully refer to himself as an MW.

I have been many years in this business, but always hold the MW’s with enormous respect, even a little awe. I never thought I would see the day when we would have an Israeli MW and thought it even more unlikely that a winemaker would have the time and the exposure to wines other than their own, to succeed.

Make no mistake, it is a phenomenal achievement, but Eran Pick is a phenomenon.

He is a father of three young children, winemaker of Tzora Vineyards which he combines with being CEO of the winery. He is also the breed of winemaker who makes wine in the vineyards. As such he is a wine grower, beautifully described by the French word ‘Vigneron.’

The grower’s world is the size of his vineyard. He is intimate with his vines. His focus may be on an individual vine or a particular bunch of grapes. The world is his vineyard and the vines are his children. He meticulously plans what each vine is going to be when it grows up. The grower will nurture, cajole and encourage that vine, to be the best bottle of wine that there can be.

Then the winemaker, part artist, part scientist, receives the precious fruit, which he will endeavor to transform into a fine quality, authentic wine, which reflects the special and unique terroir and character of his vines.

To be a CEO requires a breadth of vision. You need to manage, be a strategist and the wine grower and winemaker don’t always get their way.

Not sure if it is easier or more difficult when these tasks are all handled by one person! How does Pick find the time to do all this, look after his young family and study to be an MW Obviously he has 30 hours in his day, when most of us make do with 24!

Eran Pick was born in Kfar Saba, and lives in Tel Aviv. He always wanted to be an architect but a bottle of German Riesling from the Mosel Valley opened a window in his mind.

He started off like so many with a wine appreciation course with Barry Saslove and a growing interest in wine encouraged a change of direction. He completed his B.S. degree in Viticulture and Enology with Highest Honors at the University of California at Davis. He travelled, with ears and eyes open to work in Barossa, Bordeaux, Napa and Sonoma. He joined Tzora Vineyards in 2006.

He is tall, quietly modest with a slightly old world English charm about him. His humor is very British too. Subtle, dry, not picked up by everyone, but always bang on the nail.

The world of wine is currently mourning the premature death of Paul Pontallier, the winemaker of Château Margaux. One of my proudest moments in wine was representing the Golan Heights Winery at the New York Wine Experience in 1999. This was the first time an Israeli winery was ever invited to the most exclusive wine event in the world.

I stood alone representing Israel. I looked around and saw only famous wineries. Virtually next to me was Paul Pontallier himself, pouring the wines of Château Margaux. I felt I had intruded into a private symposium (Greek wine tasting) for the wine Gods.

Paul Pontaillier, who will be sadly missed, was a role model. Quite apart from what he achieved, I am thinking more of his character. The self-sufficiency. The quiet modesty. The steely, inner self confidence that was not always visible to the outsider. The perfectionism. The curiosity. The ability to take calculated risks. The absolute professionalism. Paul Bascaules, his assistant was quoted as saying: “What I learnt from him was doubt and humility. He said many times if you don’t doubt, you don’t learn.”

Paul Pontallier’s passing was announced when I was writing this article and I make no apology, that this is an article about Eran Pick. I don’t want to diminish Pontallier’s memory in any way and Eran Pick is at a comparatively earlier stage in his winemaking career, but it suddenly occurred to me that in trying to describe Pick, I came up with these exact same phrases. I can pay Eran Pick no higher compliment.

He is quiet, a listener, who believes in his way, but soaks up information and is not afraid of taking risks. He is fascinated by all stages of winemaking. The building blocks and the process interest him as much as the final result.

Caro Maurer MW pointed out that from the first moment “his talent, his dedication, his ambition” were obvious, but she went on: “.. but…it was his sincerity which made him stand out. I assume it was a result of weighing self-doubts and self-confidence.”

I am always writing that wine is a product of a person and place. This is never more true than of Tzora Vineyards. The winery was founded in 1993 by the Kibbutznik, the much loved Ronnie James. He was a self-taught grower who tended vines. He wanted to create a winery rather than selling his precious grapes to the large wineries. He was a man of the soil, salt of the earth, with a warm smile, a ready laugh and an engaging personality. Probably the opposite of Eran Pick, apart from one characteristic, he was determined to explore the terroir of his vineyards.

James was a pioneer of the idea of wine being representative of place. His world view and character gained many friends throughout Israel. He was not to know, that arguably his most inspired decision was bringing Eran to be the winemaker in 2006, and when James sadly passed away, Pick took over.

The winery has since gone onwards and upwards, making high quality wines that reflect the specific terroir. The names of the wines give the game away: Judean Hills – the region, Shoresh – the vineyard and Misty Hills – a plot in the vineyard. It is all about place.

It is not an exaggeration to say that Tzora is at the same time one of the fastest improving wineries in Israel as well as being one of the finest wineries in Israel.

The team is professional as can be. Dor James, son of Ronnie, is fittingly the valued vineyard manager and the icon Jean-Claude Berrouet, of Petrus fame, is consultant. However Eran Pick MW, the Master Vigneron, is in charge. He is the conductor and plays the lead instruments.

The Tzora wines I tasted were as follows:

Judean Hills Blanc 2014
A blend of mainly Chardonnay and a little Sauvignon Blanc. The nose is more Chardonnay and the Sauvignon comes through in the mouth and finish. The wine has a creamy tropical fruit nose, a pleasing fatness and flavor in the mouth cut by the excellent acidity.
PRICE: 100 ILS

Judean Hills Red 2014
This is a best buy. Always performs. Made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Petit Verdot and Merlot. The nose is slightly rustic, with red fruits to the fore. There is a touch of leather on the palate, a sour red fruit finish and the wine is beautifully balanced. Flavorful and refreshing, yet restrained. A great food wine.
PRICE: 100 ILS

Shoresh Blanc 2014
The only varietal in the Tzora portfolio. It is made from Sauvignon Blanc. Many Israeli sauvignons flatter to deceive with a dancing nose and lack substance in the mouth. This wine is the opposite. There are aromas of tropical fruit, citrus flowers with a flinty, minerally mouth feel and the aromas last all the way to the long finish. PRICE: 140 ILS

Shoresh 2014
A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Petit Verdot. It has a combination of black fruit and spice with a hint of greenness, soft tannins and good acidity giving the wine a long balanced finish. It has good structure. It is still a baby and needs a little more bottle age.
PRICE: 140 ILS

Misty Hills 2013
Misty Hills is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah grown in a particular plot sometimes shrouded in mists. Hence the name. I love the weight and grip of this wine. It has great up front fruit, delicate not jammy, with spicy and herbal notes, well integrated oak flavors and an almost refreshing finish. Elegant, showing depth and finesse.
PRICE: 240 ILS

There is also a dessert wine called Or made from Gewurztraminer. It is extremely limited production. Very well regarded, but I have not tasted it. It is on my list….

Passover comes around again. To me it is the main wine event of the year. A family get-together, with too much food and a lot of wine. The Seder is set up like a real Roman

banquet, and so are the wines.

Many relate the Arba Kossot, the four cups of wine, to G-d’s four expressions about how the Exodus would come about: “ I will bring out……deliver… redeem…take….” However I am told in the Mishnah, the drinking of four cups, is mentioned as fitting in with different stages of a meal, as in any banquet.

This fits in with my theory. The wine connection has its historical roots in the Greek Symposium, which was a glorified wine tasting, and the Roman banquet, in which food & wine were celebrated without restraint! The first glass is the aperitif. The second glass is with the starters and continues with the fish course. The third glass is also with the meat course and the fourth glass is after the meal.

There are no rules as to which wine to choose, so my advice is follow your own customs and buy what you yourself like, without becoming over wrought if it is the correct choice or not. Customs differ depending on the family minhag. Some people will start with sparkling or a light semi sparkling (frizzante) wine. Many use a sweet Kiddush wine for the first glass, because of tradition or because guests will be drinking on an empty stomach. Families with children may insist on grape juice. Whilst there are some who will reserve only the very finest wine for the first cup, considering the first blessing the most important. They will follow this with a dry or semi dry white wine, then a red wine and finish with a sweet dessert wine and a great deal of singing.

As for question of whether to buy white or red, there is always a view to support your opinion. Some will only use red wines believing they are more appropriate. Others may use whites, because red wines remind them of the blood libel. There is no right or wrong, just personal preferences.

I recommend for the usual large family gathering, that usually makes do with Kiddush wine and grape juice, to buy instead Moscato, Carignano or Red Muscat wines. You will find them under the labels like Buzz, Hermon, Dalton, Selected and Teperberg. These are usually low alcohol semi sweet, and slightly sparkling. They are perfect for young families and for those who drink wine as a necessity, but do not really like it. You will discover that everyone likes Moscato. Serve them cold from the fridge. These are the best Jewish wines invented for many years. They tick all the boxes.

If there is a little wine pride in your family and you appreciate a bargain, the best buy area in supermarkets is the ‘three for a hundred shekels’ sector. These are the best QPR (quality per price) wines in the market and they will be on promotion before Passover. You may even find a better offer than that.

I am referring to brands like Barkan Reserve, Carmel Private Collection, Golan Heights Hermon, Recanati Yasmin, Segal Merom Galil, Tabor Har and Teperberg Impression. My favorites in this section are the Private Collection Shiraz and Mt. Hermon Red amongst the reds. As for dry whites, the Har Chardonnay and Yasmin White give great value for their buck. If you want semi dry, you can’t beat both the Har and Impression Gewurztraminer.

Next stop for the wine loving family is the 50 to 100 shekels category. Here the wine shops offer the best range. All the large wineries have wines in this category. What is a surprise is that many smaller boutique wineries are these days also offering wines less than 100 shekels. The wine shops are a treasure trove for the wine lover looking for something different or new. You will have fun browsing and do not hesitate to ask for assistance from the staff, who should be wine knowledgeable.

I certainly believe this is a time for patriotism. I will usually only drink Israeli wines at Passover, and think this should be so if the Seder is in Jerusalem, London, Paris or New York. I believe not only that Israeli wines are the finest kosher wines in the world and but that they also provide more variety in different styles and at varying price points than anywhere else. Some believe that Chateau Something at a cut price, offers better value, because it may be from France. I disagree.

For those who constantly moan Israeli wines are too expensive, when you visit the supermarkets and wine stores in the weeks before Passover, you will find special prices, deals and promotions abound. There will be an enormous choice of wines at very attractive prices. It is a buyer’s paradise. Most of the talk about pricing is because the media, wine critics and special tastings all center around trophy or medal winning wines. However these may be the wines people talk about. They are not always the wines people actually drink!

I am always being asked what I drink and what my choice is. It is our family tradition to hold a special tasting on Seder night, based on a theme. A month before Passover, my children are asking, “well what are we going to drink this year.” They don’t ask about the food!

Two of my children and I, work in the wine trade and between us, we are proud to represent four different wineries. It is a common question: “So who wins the battle of what to drink in your household every Shabbat” The usual answer is nobody, because when we are together, we invariably taste something new.

This Passover though, we are staying close to home. Each family member who works in wine, will be asked to bring their best red and white wine to our Seder. Responsibilities have been divided up. I will bring both the Carmel Limited Edition and Admon Vineyard Chardonnay from Carmel Winery, and also the Yatir Forest and Viognier from Yatir Winery. My son, David will bring the Tabor Limited Edition and Shahar (a Riesling) from Tabor Winery and my daughter, Rachel will bring the Kerem Moshe and Montefiore White from Montefiore Winery. The reds are similar, either Cabernet Sauvignon or Bordeaux style blends based on Cabernet Sauvignon. The whites could not be more different.

This will be our first Seder without my much missed wife, who passed away before her time. She loved port. So as a special concession against my Israel only rule, we will also be opening a Taylor’s 1980 Vintage Port. It is particularly appropriate, because this was the year we met.

Whatever your poison, remember the mitzvah in the Mishnah is that even the poorest in Israel must be given not less than four cups of wine to drink. The quality, style and cost of wine is not important. Buy within your means to allow everyone to partake in this particular mitzvah. It is obviously not economically sound to pay for expensive wines with an enormous family, where only a few souls will appreciate it. On the other hand, we have to drink, so buy something you like. The beauty of Passover is that Jews all over the world, whether religious, traditional or secular will celebrating the Seder with four glasses of wine. Let’s wish everyone a Kosher & Happy Passover …and LeHaim!

Wine has brought me in touch with many worlds. Firstly, most obviously, is the world of Agriculture. Wine is an agricultural product. The place where the vineyards are situated and the way the vines are grown, is crucial to the quality of the final wine. In the trade we talk about growing wine, not grapes. You can’t make good wine from bad grapes.

Then there is the Science and Art of winemaking. Each winemaker veers either towards one or the other. Some wines are made more technically and others are made with artistic freedom but in the end it is a combination of both that makes winemaking so fascinating.

The wine trade is known as the world’s second oldest profession, so it also puts you in touch with History. (This is a family newspaper, so we won’t go into the oldest profession!) The story of our sliver of land from the earliest Biblical times until today, may effortlessly be told through the story of wine. Thucydides wrote that man became civilized when he began to cultivate the vine. Californian wine icon Robert Mondavi used to quote Petronius’ statement that ‘Wine is life.’ It is true that it permeates through everything.

With history comes Archaeology. In the Eastern Mediterranean where wine culture was born, there are ongoing archaeological finds to support the evidence of the long history. Findings of cellar caves, amphorae and goblets, let alone all the numerous wine presses, paint the picture that wine is as old as history itself.

Gastronomy is also a world I have entered thanks to wine. There is a holy trinity of wine, people and food. Wine is not made to be tasted alone, but to accompany food with friends and family. If one of the legs of this three legged stool is missing, then it is just not the same experience. The stool collapses.

With appreciation of fine wine, comes the appreciation of good food. Together, you reach the mathematical impossibility of one plus one equals three. One enhances the other, but neither is a whole without its partners. Pity the poor person, who goes from formal tasting to tasting, as many wine lovers do. They think they are experiencing wine, but they are missing the point.

Then, last but not least, there is the world of Religion. Wine is of fundamental important to both Judaism and Christianity. As Jews, every Sabbath and every festival holiday is sanctified by a glass of wine. At Purim we are entreated to drink a great deal, at Passover we have to drink four glasses, Shavuot is a time for a cheese and wine party and Succot is really the wine harvest festival. Need I go on. For Christians, the Communion centers on this exalted beverage. Wine is one of the building blocks of Western Judeo-Christian society.

When Israeli wine grows up, it wants to market itself as an Eastern Mediterranean wine in the wider wine world. It should be sold alongside the wines of Greece, Cyprus, Turkey and Lebanon on the shelves and wine lists. Jews may buy it because it is Israeli. Christians may be interested because it is from the Holy Land. The wine anorak will be interested because to them it is a new, slightly exotic wine country. The sommelier will take a look because he may see Israel as the quality producer of the Eastern Mediterranean wine region. However kosher The k word is barely mentioned because it is too much associated with the image and quality of sweet sacramental Kiddush wines.

We should be humble. Until recently even tiny Cyprus produced more wine than Israel. We are not as important as we sometimes think. There is something like thirty five countries making more wine annually than Israel. Gallo of Sonoma, the largest winery in the world’s ‘boutique winery’, makes more wine than the whole of Israel put together. There is even one single vineyard in Monterey, California that yields more tons at harvest all the vineyards of Israel.

We look enviously at New Zealand wine. They are a relatively small country, which succeeded in making quality wines, creating a quality image, whilst maintaining the highest average price for wine sold in the UK and USA. Israel is chronically bad at selling itself. In this aspect, the failures in foreign policy and diplomacy are no different. One prominent politician once said ‘we don’t need hasbara because our story is so good.’ How wrong he was.

We are far away from doing a New Zealand. Even Lebanon and Turkey have generic bodies marketing their wine brand overseas. Israel Apart from the short lived Handcrafted Wines of Israel that I founded and managed thirteen years ago, there is nothing. It is each winery for itself and Brand Israel suffers.

The largest 12 wineries have well over 90% of the wine market and they all produce kosher wines. However most of the small boutique, domestic and garagiste wineries are not kosher. Therefore we have the paradox: most Israeli wine is kosher but the majority of Israeli wineries are not.

I for one am proud to produce kosher wine that Jews everywhere can drink, and it would be crazy from a marketing point of view to make wine that over 20% of your captive audience can’t touch. So for combined reasons of religious belief, a feeling of Klal Israel and economic expediency, making kosher wines is in vogue. Even some top quality small wineries like Flam, Tulip and Vitkin, that previously produced non-kosher wines, have reverted to becoming kosher. Furthermore, Pelter founded a new sister winery called Matar to enter this market.

All this is helped by the fact that the quality of Israel’s kosher wines is so good. After all we want to be good Jews AND make quality wine! Well, Israeli wine, that ‘happens also to be kosher’, is good enough to score 94 points in Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate, to gain four stars in Hugh Johnson’s Pocket Wine book, to win the Decanter International Trophy or the award of Best Winery at Vin Italy.

However, we need to understand there is massive over production throughout the world. More serious wine producing countries than Israel are struggling to sell their wines. Supply swamps demand. Over 90% of wines sold, retail at under $10 a bottle. Most Israeli wines sold in export are over $10 bottle! It is well-nigh impossible for Israel to really compete in the mass market because of high price and small quantities.

It is therefore a great benefit that kosher Israeli wineries have the kosher market. Who else will drink all these wines from the vineyards we keep planting, as though the market is certain and selling wine is the easiest thing in the world. If you look at it like this, the kosher wine market is not only a benefit, it is also a blessing and necessity!

The kosher wine laws are the oldest in the world. The agricultural laws (Orla, Shmitta etc) are from the Bible, as is the prohibition against using wines used for idol worship, and the other laws building a fence around wine come from the Babylonian exile 2,500 years ago. There is a whole range of Jewish religious laws with respect to wine, but they are spread out all over the place. It is hard to know where to begin. That is until now.

A new book is shortly to be published which will be of interest both to the Talmid Chacham and to the wine lover drinking kosher wines. It is by Rabbi Daniel Yaakov Travis and is called Wine and Wisdom.

His introduction explains the benefits of the book better than I can. He writes: : “Wine connoisseurs have developed a taste for fine wines….I encourage them to take their expertise one step further and to add the halachos of wine drinking to their repertoire of knowledge……In depth knowledge of the halachos of wine reframes the entire wine drinking experience. …… I am confident that anyone who appreciates fine wine will find this sefer enhances the spiritual joy of wine drinking.”

I could not put it better myself. The book is fascinating and beautifully illustrated. Wine and Wisdom is published by Feldheim in the USA at a price of $24.95. It will cost 79 shekels in Israel.

The history of Israeli wine may be told through three grape varieties, which were dominant during different periods. The first was Alicante Grenache, before 1948, then Carignan after the founding of the State of Israel and now, Cabernet Sauvignon in the 2000’s.

When the settlers of the First Aliyah planted grapes, the experts chose varieties from the South of France because of similarities of climate. In fact it Alicante was the dominant variety until the 1960’s. Now it is being revived here using its more familiar name, Grenache.

The next dominant grape was Carignan, which has been ever present since the 1870’s when it was planted at Mikve Israel. It was appreciated because of the high yields it could deliver and its flexibility. It could be used to make red grape juice, Kiddush wine or red table wines.

Without doubt, wine drinkers have drunk far more Carignan than they are aware of. I remember Daniel Rogov z”l, saying of a prominent winery’s so called Cabernet Sauvignon, “that was the finest Carignan I have tasted!” In the 2000’s this variety was revived and reborn thanks to the efforts of Vitkin and Carmel wineries and lately, Recanati too.

However today, the number one variety in Israel is the regal Cabernet Sauvignon. Baron Edmond de Rothschild insisted on bringing it to Israel in the 1880’s, but it took 100 years to catch on. The Carmel Special Reserve 1976 and Yarden Cabernet Sauvignons of 1984 and 1985 showed the wisdom of the Baron’s decision, and the quality revolution began. These days there is enough Cabernet planted, that if it says Cabernet Sauvignon on the label of even the inexpensive wines, then it is likely to be correct.

Israel is not known for one particular variety in the same way as California is known for Zinfandel, Argentina for Malbec and New Zealand for Sauvignon Blanc. Nor has Israeli ever had real indigenous varieties, or so we thought. That was before Dr Shibi Drori’s groundbreaking research to isolate and identify indigenous grape varieties in Israel. So far they have found 120 local varieties, of which twenty may be suitable for winemaking.

At the same time, there have been some fascinating new wines released recently, each from local varieties. The Cremisan Hamdani Jandali white blend and Cremisan Dabouki entered the market a few years ago and they were followed more recently by the Recanati Marawi. If these are added to the Segal Argaman, it is clear we better become used to some new names.

The Cremisan Monastery, which has been making wine since 1885, was the first to come out with a wines from local varieties. Their blend of Hamdali and Jandali was an unusually good wine in the white Rhone style. These are two varieties that are grown primarily in Bethlehem and Hebron by Arab growers. Over eighty five percent of the Palestinian vineyards are situated in the Bethlehem and Hebron areas.

I remember once visiting Hebron and thinking I was in Spain, with vineyards everywhere, though they are used only for table grapes, syrup or raisins. The Hamdani and Jandali were developed over time as table grapes. They are tasty which is why they survived when wine grapes were grubbed up.

The Jandali is the more aromatic with flowery aromas, but lacks a middle palate. The Hamdani has citrusy, lime and grapefruit aromas with a lengthier finish. It has more depth, the ability to stand up to barrel aging and better potential. They show well together in a blend.

In the 19th century, the Shor and Teperberg wineries in the Old City of Jerusalem used these varieties to make wine. The grapes were delivered to the Old City on donkeys. A 16th century scholar, Rabbi Menahem di Lonzano, mentioned them as varieties of wine in Jerusalem. Some even say there is a mention of them in the Talmud, dating back to 220 AD. Whatever the folklore, these are old varieties that were used to make wines long before any problems between Israelis and Palestinians came to the fore.

The Recanati Marawi 2014 was launched a few months ago. Marawi is a synonym for Hamdani. Simply, around Jerusalem and Bethlehem the variety is known as Hamdani and when in the past it was grown in the Judean foothills and southern coastal plain it was known as Marawi.

The berries are large, grown at 900 meters elevation on what is known as a Hebron style pergola. They are dry farmed, with no irrigation. The wine was barrel fermented in old, used barrels and aged sur lies (on its lees.) Only 2,500 bottles were produced.

The wine has lemony, honey, peach aromas a certain mineral texture, but despite their efforts, it is somewhat lacking in acidity. However it was without question the most interesting new wine of 2015 and attracted the interest of the international media, including CNN and the New York Times.

Amar Kardosh, once export manager of Cremisan, was quoted as saying: “As usual in Israel, they declare that falafel, tehina, tabouleh, hummus and now Jandali grapes are Israeli …..these are Palestinian grapes grown in Palestinian vineyards.” A Holy Land indigenous grape, Palestinian grower and Israeli winemaker is the reality, and I see it as a beautiful cooperation.

There can be no such complaints about Dabouki which has been grown from the Mount Carmel region, down to the Judean plain for centuries. There are also vineyards in Bethelem and Hebron. The Dabouki variety is said to have originated in Armenia. It means ‘sweetness’ in Arabic.

It was mainly used for distillation of brandy and local Arak producers, like El Namroud, still use it for producing their base wine before distillation and the addition of anise. Similarly the Lebanese variety Obeideh was far more associated with Arak than wine, until Chateau Musar used it in a white blend.

Now, Avi Feldstein has made a varietal Dabouki from fifty year old vines in the Mount Carmel area. He has aged the wine on its lees in tank, stirring them periodically (bâtonnage in French), in order to improve flavors and complexity. Cremisan Monastery also produce a Dabouki from Bethlehem vineyards. The wines tend to have a floral tropical nose, a medium body, a broad mouth feel, rather like a fat Chardonnay and a rounded finish. The Feldstein version is enticing. I finished my glass without realizing.

Local red grapes are not so successful. Cremisan Winery sell a Cremisan Balady from an indigenous variety. It certainly is not at the standard of the white varieties. The red is light, thin with a pronounced acidity. However in the research conducted by Shibi Drori, there are some potential red varieties with names like Balouti and Zeitani that offer more hope for the future. As it is, the most Israeli red wine variety that you are likely to meet is Argaman.

Argaman, which means deep purple in Aramaic, was a grape created by Professor Roy Spiegel at the Volcani Institute of Agriculture. It was the result of a cross between Carignan, the work horse grape of Israel, with the Portuguese variety Souzoa. It was created in 1972, experimented with in the eighties and planted commercially in the early nineties.

The first wines were notable for their color but had little sophistication. The grape was planted in the hot coastal regions, mainly in the Judean Shefela, and used primarily for blends.

In 1999 a winemaker who liked challenges, saw unfulfilled potential in this variety. This was Avi Feldstein, then of Segal Wines. He planted Argaman in the Upper Galilee at the Dovev vineyard, at an altitude of over 700 meters above sea level. He saw himself as a viticultural Professor Higgins, who could coax something from this Eliza Doolittle variety, overcoming the genetical make up with the right care in the vineyard and winery.

By correct pruning, skilled canopy management and drastically reducing yields, he ended up with far better fruit than was produced in the hot coastal plain. Recognizing a lack of tannin in the grapes, he fermented them on Merlot skins.

The result was an excellent wine which was deep colored, with ripe red berry fruit. It was rich and plummy on the palate with a well weighted, even balanced finish. The Segal Rechasim Argaman 2007, even won a major gold medal in one of France’s main competitions. As such, the much maligned grape was able to take a bow.

Avi Feldstein is now independent but is still fascinated by Argaman. He is now making it from Givat Nili vineyards. He is still the creative experimenter, this time drying the grapes to increase the concentration.

So wine lovers, be on the lookout for some authentic Levantine wines from local varieties. Wines like Marawi, Dabouki, Hamdani Jandali and Argaman are well worth seeking out and tasting for interest and education. Who knows they might herald a new dawn for Israeli wine. One day, producing wine from Israeli varieties that have been here hundreds of years, may even become the norm!

Wine people are slightly color blind. We talk about red grapes which are really blue-black and white grapes which are greeny-yellow. We have white wines that aren’t really white. Now there is a new category: Orange wines, which are not really orange.

Confusingly, these are not fruit wines made from your finest Jaffa oranges or wine cocktails mixed with orange juice. Nor are they rosés or pink blush wines, which tend to take an orange hue as they oxidize and age. The term refers to white wines made like red wines and the color of the resulting wines is more amber than orange, but the name has stuck.

Traditionally, generalizing of course, white wines are pulp led wines, with the flesh of the grape providing the fruitiness and acidity. White wines are usually made without the grape skins, apart from the occasional fleeting skin contact. On the other hand, red wines are skin led wines, with the skin of the grapes providing the color and character we associate with red wines. Orange wines break the stereotype.

Orange wines are macerated with the grape skins and fermented in a similar way to red wines, which results in wines with their special amber, auburn color. This comes mainly from the grape skins but also from the oxidization process. Think of the color of brandy.

The wines can scarcely be called fruity like a usual white or red wine. They may have notes of soft fruits and honey flavors but these are usually subdued. However the wines themselves are full bodied, assertive with a bold structure. They are intense and quite tannic with a minerally texture. Invariably they have an attractive sour apple finish, similar to a scrumpy cider or the sour twist you get at the end of a Lambic fruit beer.

Orange wines are really niche wines for wine anoraks, who will look for them because they are different and authentic. Those brought up on a strict regime of fruit forward reds, and refreshing whites will turn their noses up at orange wines, as something that seems ‘off’ because it does not fit into the typecast.

Paradoxically there is a strong chance that the non-wine expert, with no interest in orange wines per se, will like them. This is because the wines are not sour like white wines or astringent like reds, so they are tasty, full flavored, unthreatening alternatives.

The new trend for orange wines brewed in the minds of the few idealistic winemakers in search of authenticity in the late 1990’s. The main region for orange winemaking is Friuli-Venezia Giulia in north east Italy. There, winemakers like the legendary Josko Gravner and Stanislao Radikon, who were seeking retro and innovation at the same time, decided to make an orange wine. They wanted to rebel against modern winemaking techniques. The purpose was to be original, go back to basics and to unlock the potential of the local thick skinned variety, Ribolla Gialla. They threw away the winemaking school books, ignored technology and decided to make wine as naturally as possible, with no additives, taking inspiration from how wine was once made, in days gone by.

Over the border in Slovenia they had made wines in this style for years, primarily because wines made in this way had greater longevity.

Both gained inspiration from the Georgians who for thousands of years have made wines in Kvevri, large clay vessels, which are topped up with wine and all the trimmings including skins, seeds and of course wild, not cultured yeasts. Then they are sealed, buried in the ground and left to slowly ferment over a long period of time letting nature rather than interventionist winemaking, to do its work.

In the 2000’s, one particular Israeli winemaker had the intellectual curiosity to make his own forage in the world of white wines made like reds. At that time, he had not heard of attempts of others, but he had the querying mind to overturn tables and seek his own truth.

Yaacov Oryah was born in New York into a religious family. He was the youngest of six children, and came to Israel when he was five years old and lived in Bnei Brak. He now has five children of his own.

His parents were originally from Belgium and Hungary, which may have been the hidden roots of his wine appreciation that was to become apparent later. However it was only after serving in the army, that he first met table wines. Whilst travelling in California he came across Bartenura and Israeli wines and for the first time realized there was a wine world beyond traditional Kiddush wines.

He was a qualified engineer, but a door opened in his mind. He did the Barry Saslove Wine Appreciation course and got the wine bug pretty bad. In 2004 he studied winemaking the Soreq Winery Winemaking School and took the Tel Hai College Cellar Master Course.

In 2006 he opened his own Asif Winery. Ever the innovator, he first intended it to be a negociant winery. This means buying wine from elsewhere, and then shaping it and blending it at his facility.

Then, he decided to focus on white wine.  He thought whites with their lower alcohols, better acidity and greater variety, were of more interest than reds: More challenging to make, better with food and more suitable for our climate. As such he was a pioneer.

At Asif Winery, Oryah being religious, made wine strictly according to Halacha, but the wine did not have a Kashrut Hechsher. Then, under new ownership, the name changed to Midbar, Oryah continued to work his magic and then moved on.

His fascination with the skins of white grapes began then. He could not understand why if all the flavor of red wines came from the skins, why winemakers dispensed with the skins of white grapes. His curiosity pushed him to make an experimental Asif Colombard and an Asif Gewurztraminer in 2007 as his first Orange wines.  Then the Asif Viognier 2008 was released with the words ‘Adam and Adama’ on the label (man and earth) and Midbar Orange 44 2010 (a blend of Chenin Blanc, Chardonnay and Viognier) followed onto the market. They are great wines (note the present tense) and totally original. An acquired taste to some, and a valuable addition to the rich tapestry of wine to others.  Bringing orange to blue and white if you like! Each wine had different nuances dictated by the grape variety. For instance the Colombard has a more pronounced acidity and the Gewurztraminer still maintains the blowsy Gewurz nose.

Today, Yaacov Oryah is the winemaker for Psagot Winery and doing a great job. Privately though, Oryah is still like the little boy getting his first bunsen burner in a chemistry class. He is desperate to play, challenge conventions and has an uncontrollable urge to be experimental. This is not for commercial ends, just for the joy of doing something new, or understanding how it all works better. I call him the winemaking intellectual. He has now come out with his own Yaacov Oryah wine under the Alpha Omega label. Think about it, who else but an intellectual would call his wine Alpha Omega?

I tasted the 2014 Alpha Omega  made from Roussanne, Viognier and Semillon grapes fermented dry, with skins and all. The Roussanne provides a herbal backdrop, the Viognier the delicate fruit and fatness and the Semillon a lime and textural quality. I detected a slightly sherried nose, a lavender and white flower aroma, with a hint of smoked sausage and a rusty texture. The acidity was enough to make the wine fresh…and it had the sour apple finish I like so much. It is a wine to seek out as only a few bottles have been produced, but then to lay down for a number of years. It will gain greater layers of complexity with bottle age.

He has also produced the nearest to a Hunter Valley Semillon that we have had in Israel. Stainless steel fermented, unaged in oak, but with six years bottle aging, the wine is the best Semillon we have yet had here. That is also under the Yaacov Oryah label.

He is fascinating to talk to, whilst being modest, quiet and humble, though he does have an infectious giggle. However we are fortunate to benefit from his questioning mind and patience to try new things over a period of years. Apart from anything else, he is the person who has brought orange into the Israeli wine vocabulary.

Throughout history, Jews have made wine at home out of necessity. They needed wine so they could sanctify festivals and the Sabbath. Jewish and kosher wine was really a cottage industry throughout the ages. Wine was made in buckets and bathtubs, or any receptacle that was available, from anything from local table grapes to raisins.

In the 20th century kosher wine became big business, as did Kashrut supervision. Manischevitz, Kedem and Mogen Dovid in America, Palwin in Britain and Carmel from Israel became large brands which gained loyalty and a following from Jews wanting to make Kiddush and say the blessings, wherever they were.

In the 1960’s Carmel introduced the concept of dry kosher table wines and in the 1980’s Hagafen and Herzog from California and the Golan Heights Winery continued the development, with the objective of making the best quality wine possible ‘that just happened also to be kosher’. Since then, there has been a kosher revolution. Today, almost every wine producing country makes kosher wines, often in association with Royal Wine Corp., which internationalized quality kosher wine production. Furthermore kosher wines have won trophies in the most major wine tasting competitions and high scores from the leading critics, proving that the word kosher is not a bar to great wine.

Considering the developments in the last thirty years, it is particularly strange that in Europe, with all the kosher wine being produced, that Jewish owned wineries are rare and wineries owned by religious Jews are virtually non-existent. Most of the wine in Europe is made at existing non-kosher wineries, where a kosher crew is imported, a mashgiach (religious supervisor) takes control, batches are isolated under lock and key and the wine is made under strict supervision. Only recently I wrote that Terra di Seta was the only Tuscan winery dedicated 100% to kosher wines. So it gladdened my heart to find another: a promising start-up of a new winery initiative, owned by a religious Jew, also in the beautiful setting of Tuscany.

There, Eli Gauthier and his wife, Lara, have founded the winery of their dreams. Eli has French roots and his wife is from an Italian country family. They are both much travelled. Eli grew up near Paris, but has lived in California, England and Jerusalem. He even spent time as an intern in the Jerusalem Post, using is French language skills! Lara has been in Florence, Istanbul, London and Jerusalem. Yet they have settled in Tuscany. Tuscany is heaven on earth, so I can understand why!

Eli found wine almost by accident. He studied Hebrew and Israeli studies in London and decided to work for Kedem Europe in the evenings conducting tastings. Kedem is the main kosher importer and distributor in the UK, representing numerous Israeli wineries and kosher wines from all over the world. So it was a great way to enter the world of wine!

He then moved to Strasbourg and worked in a biodynamic winery, which was not kosher. There he developed his passion and sensitivity to the countryside and understood the importance of the vineyard and the idea of growing wine and not just grapes. As result of the life changing experience, he studied viticulture and winemaking in France and it was then he started to long for his own winery.

Lara’s family is Italian, with holdings in in the beautiful village of Casciona Alta in the heart of Tuscany. Now most kosher wine in Italy has been less good than the wines from Spain and France and certainly not at the standard of kosher wines from California or Israel. Eli and Lara knew an opportunity when they saw it and decided to open a winery in Tuscany. They decided on Tuscany because his wife was from there, there were family owned buildings they could use and her family had the necessary contacts in agricultural circles. It was a no brainer.

In the end, the new winery was situated in the exact place where his wife’s grandfather, Giuliano, had made wine and olive oil in years gone by. As a tribute, they named the winery Cantina Giuliano. (The word Cantina means cellar.)

It was important to Eli to make an artisanal wine in touch with nature. He loves the idea of producing what you eat and being at one with the countryside. He does not like consumerism or bulk produced wines. This world view is very much integrated with his Judaism too. Therefore, the necessary equipment was purchased to make small scale lot, hand crafted wines.

He explains: “We are not businessmen first, we are winemakers offering a product true to our region to Jews who may be tired of drinking standardized industrial and unfortunately soul less wines.”

The first wine was called Chianti Primize from the 2014 vintage. Primize refers to the first fruits or bikurim. The stylish label shows Lara’s father, Giustino, carrying a large container of wine for a picnic.

The backbone of the wine is Sangiovese, which is the main grape of Tuscany. This variety provides the aromas and acidity sought after in Tuscan wines. He added a little Merlot to give flesh and roundness, and a local variety called Ciliegiolo to provide color. He sources the fruit from vineyards on a high south-southwest facing hill, not far from the winery, near a town called Peccioli.

His raison d’être is to make an elegant wine, aromatic and good with food. I found their first effort eminently more satisfying than most of the Italian kosher wines I have tasted to date. It has good herbal and cherry notes, with a hint of ripe berries, is soft in the mouth and has a well-balanced finish. A very promising first wine, but no winery should be judged from one wine from only one vintage. It will be interesting to see how the winery develops in the coming years.

In the first year they made 12,000 bottles. There are plans to grow the winery to about 20-25,000 bottles with five different wines, including a white and a rosé.

In fact Casciano Alta is not far from Livorno, a coastal port town which bustles with energy. Eli says it ‘reminds me of Israel with a Tuscan twist.’ Of course, Livorno is the town where my family came from and Moses Montefiore was born there. It is from there that the Gauthiers are able to purchase kosher meat. Before the Second World War, a third of the total population was Jewish. Today, only a small Jewish population remains, but it is an active community, with a minyan each day.

Eli Gauthier has an easy going, friendly personality and a slightly romantic nature. However he is also not afraid of hard work and has the drive to fulfill his dreams. These days he spends six months at the winery in Tuscany and six months in Strasbourg where he studies full time in a Beit Midrash. He says making wine allows him to be close to nature and feel the divine presence around him. Wine is a combination of nature and the human religious supervision. In short his winemaking reinforces his Judaism and vice versa.

He loves to cook and has the same passion for food that he has for wine. He is working on a tasting room with a small kitchen to offer kosher Tuscan food made from vegetables they have grown in their orchards and their own olive oil. It sounds like it will be a must visit venue.

I was interested to know the style of wines he likes. He told me his preference is for white wines from Alsace and crus Beaujolais reds. As far as Israel is concerned, he likes Domaine Netofa because of their focus on Mediterranean varieties and finesse. He also admires the way Tzora Vineyards make elegant wines from the classic European varieties. Best of all is Capcanes, from the Monsant region of Spain, especially the Flor de Flor.

Eli and Lara would like to illustrate that it is possible to be religious, be a good Jew, work with nature and avoid the rat race. Theirs is a story of wine, vineyards, nature and Judaism. They are making dreams come true under the Tuscan sun.

Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery and regularly writes about wine for both Israeli and international publications.

Avi Feldstein, poet, philosopher, barman, grew up in Tel Aviv, from Romanian roots and read Literature and Philosophy at Tel Aviv University. He started as a tour guide. When I first came to Israel he was the bars expert specializing in spirits. The company he worked for, Segal, were then the main importers, bringing in brands like Martini, Jameson and Glenmorangie. By absorbing the material and immersing himself in the drinks world, he learnt enough to become the main expert in the country.

He acted as brand manager and spirit ambassador for the brands Segal imported, and was the main educator not only on product knowledge but also on how to be a professional barman. He also wrote for the Hadashot newspaper. Yet, with age, maturity and an expanding of horizons, Feldstein gradually moved from spirits and bars to vineyards and wine.

It is a known route. One of my sons was one of the best barman or mixologists in Israel. All the time I told him, that eventually he would get the wine bug because that world was seductive with even greater depth and more complexities. Sure enough, he is now working in wine. I too started elsewhere in the drinks business. I began my career in beer, studied wine & spirits and drifted into a career in wine.

Feldstein became development manager of Segal Wines and reached beyond his brief. Segal was a family firm. They were not the best winery of the day, but they were very innovative and pioneering with regard to importing wines and marketing.  Their labels were the first in Israel to feature famous artists.

Feldstein with his new brief was restless. He was certain Segal could make better wines, if they controlled the fruit in the vineyards. However the winery at that time had a culture separating the vineyard and winery. Remember we are talking over twenty years ago. The feeling was ‘Let the vineyard grow its grapes and the winery make its wine. The vineyard manager and winemaker have different jobs. Let them get on with it.’

Avi Feldstein thought otherwise. With no scientific or viticultural background, without taking soil samples and data from weather stations, he decided the Upper Galilee was the place where Segal could make the great leap forward. He describes how when touring the prospective vineyard, he fell asleep under a tree. He woke up early evening and it was cold. He thought ‘eureka’, this is the place for a vineyard.

Now the Feldstein decision was not just based on an intuitive gut feeling. He had toured and interacted with the wineries Segal represented, which included icons such as Mondavi, Mouton Rothschild and Penfolds. He was curious, and absorbed information like a sponge. This gave him the confidence to challenge the existing order.

Zvi Segal, the patriarch of Segal Wines, was outraged, saying if Feldstein did not think the wines were good enough, then he could leave. Feldstein stood his ground and the vineyards were planted. The Dishon and Dovev vineyards were to define the new quality of Segal Wines.

A success story has many fathers, and many wineries were starting to think of new developments in the Upper Galilee, but Feldstein was amongst the very first. This started a trend of wineries situated in the center of the country planting vineyards in the Upper Galilee.

In the late 1990’s, Avi Feldstein followed this by becoming the winemaker. So the initiator of the vineyard, became the person to receive the grapes a few years later. He was totally self-taught, which is contrary to the more usual route of gaining winemaking qualifications. As Feldstein reminded me, it was not so long ago that people did not learn in universities, but took apprenticeships, studied in libraries and learned from on the job, practical experience.

It may not be politically correct to say it, but I believe the finest Segal wines were made by Avi Feldstein. They certainly were not at that level before he arrived.

There are four wines that I most associate with Feldstein. Firstly, the Segal Unfiltered Cabernet Sauvignon, which he took over and improved instantly. The quality and look of this wine was the first wine that showed the new quality of Segal, where the innovative presentation was matched by the quality of the wines. This is still the prestige wine of the company.

Then there were the single vineyard wines, from the Dishon and Dovev vineyards in the Upper Galilee. These are today branded Rechasim. The wines were planted, grown, nurtured and turned into quality wines by the same creative hands.

Finally there was the inexpensive, house wine of the company which was a simple wine with the words ‘Shel Segal’(Segal’s Wines) handwritten on a plain label. Another bit of marketing brilliance from Zvi Segal. When the company was bought by Barkan, even then the second largest winery in the country, the ‘Shel Segal’ Regular Red became one of the best selling wines in the country.

Feldstein is most associated with the Argaman grape, which was developed in the 1980’s and planted in the 1990’s. This was a cross between Carignan, the work horse grape of Israel and Souzoa, the Portuguese variety. The idea was to create a good blending grape, with excellent color.

In a master stroke, Feldstein planted it in his precious high altitude, Dovev vineyard. Previously Argaman had been uninspiring in the warmer coastal regions. The result was an impressive award winning wine, including a gold medal in France, and he justifiably received the nickname Mr. Argaman for his efforts.

Avi Feldstein is an instinctive winemaker with a touch of creative genius. He is not bound by any rule book and makes wine according to an educated gut feeling, gained from observation, listening and experimentation. He has a feel for the vines and an understanding of what is needed to turn the humble grapes into quality wine.

For instance, when he made his famous Argaman, he decided to ferment it over the skins of Merlot grapes in order to provide extra tannins. Currently, he is still experimenting with Argaman, drying the grapes in order to provide more concentration of flavor. He is also making a Dabouki, a genuine indigenous white variety.  The wine is in stainless steel, but stored on its lees where he practices bâtonnage (stirring the dead yeasts periodically) to enhance complexity. None of these techniques are original, but he knows how to adapt and implement them to suit his needs.

He has now left the Barkan Segal empire and is concentrating on his own small, handcrafted boutique winery. Why bother making Argaman and Dabouki? Because it challenges him and he would get bored if things were too easy.  He also works with Grenache, Mourvèdre and Syrah, along with the more usual classic varieties. He receives grapes from the Zichron Ya’acov area, Gush Etzion and the Upper Galilee in his temporary winery set up in an agricultural facility near Hod Hasharon.

These wines are worth watching out for. They will be good quality, original and without doubt every decision will explained by a personal story, and anyway, where else will you taste a quality Argaman and an Israeli made Dabouki?

 Many chefs make follow exact recipes whilst others will adapt according to the best ingredients of the day. Some barman are slaves to the old recipe books for named cocktails, whilst the new mixologist makes it up as he goes along, taking into account the customer’s wishes and what he has around him. There are winemakers who play safe, making wine by numbers, and those like Avi that add a personal twist. Let’s call it creative individuality.

What is the difference between Avi Feldstein the mass market winemaker producing hundreds of thousands of bottles for Segal and the Avi Feldstein making a few thousand bottles in his own miniscule winery? He has a great answer: ‘Feldstein Unfiltered!’ That is exactly what I want to see. Handcrafted wines, with a sense of place and the thumbprint of an individual. This is why I will be seeking out his wines with great interest.

Wine is a unique product, representing both Judaism and Eretz Israel like nothing else and its relevance spans our long history. Think how important vines, vineyards and wine were in Biblical times and what a great ambassador of modern Israel wine is today.

From the time Noah planted the first vineyard, wine has been a symbol of both Israel and Judaism, and this has spanned the ages. When the Biblical spies wanted to show Moses that the Promised Land was a land of milk and honey, they chose to show it with a large bunch of grapes.

Wine was so important to King David that he had separate officials to look after his vineyards and cellar. Maybe these were the first viticulturist and sommelier

Isaiah knew what it was all about. His remarkable Song of a Vineyard shows how much they understood about winegrowing. Maybe the cup bearer in the Joseph story was the first sommelier, but the first Jewish sommelier was Nehemiah, who was the cupbearer to the King of Persia. He was sent back to rebuild Jerusalem but he also revived Judean winemaking.

Rashi, aka Rabbi Shlomo Itzaki, was a winemaker. Perhaps the most famous Jewish winemaker until the Golan Heights Winery’s Victor Schoenfeld! For me he symbolized the connection Jews would have with production, distribution or sales of alcoholic beverages throughout the second millennium.

Maimonides was the first Jewish wine connoisseur. He insisted wine should be red, not diluted with water, or sweetened with sugar and with no off tastes or aromas. And so it goes on. Wine has been a constant thread through our history.

When we arrive at the 19th century, we find the production of kosher wine was not a business but a domestic industry. Families made their own kosher wine at home. Initially it was just for nearest of kin, maybe for friends or even for a small community.

Wine in Eastern Europe was at its most simple. It was made at home in a bucket or bath tub using raisins, water and with spices added. In America, they made wine with grapes, but the simplicity and the bucket were the same. Certainly the wine tasted better than the raisin wine from the old country.

In Ottoman Israel and North Africa, they used local table grape varieties. The earliest wineries were tiny, domestic affairs which would make some of our current boutique wineries look big. We remember two of the many from Jerusalem, the Shor family and Teperberg, simply because they had staying power. They are still around.

Wine was then not sold in bottles but in casks. There were no bottles with labels on. A bottle was something used to bring a wine from the cask to the table.

There were no brands, no kashrut certificates and no Rabbinical supervision. You bought from someone you knew, or drank your own homemade wine. Contrast the kosher winemaker with the shochet (ritual slaughterer). The shochet needed animals to slaughter and a place to do it. He would need intensive training and an infrastructure to check what was being done was correct. So a regulated format existed, but kosher wine was left in the home.

The founding of the Concord grape was significant. It was disease free and cold resistant and produced sweet jammy fruit with a foxy or musky smell that people liked. It was cheap and local. It became popular primarily for the production of jams and grape juice, but it was adopted by East Coast Jews for wine. As it rarely ripened in New York State, the wines were too sour and sugar was added to make them palatable.

One should not spoil a good story by the truth, but there were other reasons why the wine ended sweet. Firstly the technology was such that fermentations would rarely run to the end producing dry wines. They would get stuck leaving a residual sweetness. Secondly, sugar was usually added to keep the enemies of wine at bay. It was a first class preservative.

Finally as luck would have it, most drinkers drank sweet wines as a matter of choice. Being Jewish had nothing to do with it. Over the years the laws of evolution had encouraged the eating of sweet things. The caveman learnt to look for sweet berries which were tasty and gave calories and energy, whereas if they were sour, it was a warning and they were avoided.

The sweet addiction continues with some people today, but in the 19th century, most people drank sweet wines through choice. The popular wines included Port, Madeira, Sherry and Sauternes. Even Champagne was famous until quite late on only as a sweet sparkling wine.

It also should not be forgotten that up to the 1960’s, most wine even in the brave new world of Australia and America was sweet. The wines would have been muscat types or cheap versions of fortified wines.

The first Kosher winery in the United States belonged to a Mr. Dreyfuss in California but Schapiro was the iconic New York winery founded in 1899. It was the first winery to put Concord to the fore as the new kosher wine grape. Their wine was advertised as “so thick, you could cut it with a knife.”

Then Carmel Wine Co. arrived in New York in 1898 urging: “Support the Jewish Colonies” and “Drink the only genuine Palestine wines”. Interesting how the language has changed over the years! Shapiro and Carmel were the first kosher wines that became national and international brands respectively.

Astonishingly, the first supervision of kosher wine in the United States was not until 1925 and prosecutions took place when there was fraud.

Then the big brands came into play, flaunting Concord of course. Mogen Dovid was developed in Chicago, “wine your grandmother would like.” Monarch Wines from Brokklyn used a brand famous & successful in the Jewish food world, Manischewitz. Old timers may remember Sammy Davis crooning “Man O Manischewitz”. These became massive wine brands which extended way past the Jewish communities. Today Manischewitz is owned by Constellation Brands, Mogen Dovid by The Wine Group, two of the largest wine companies in the world.

Then Kedem was formed, a winery owned by the Herzog family. During World War II, the Nazis seized their Herzog Winery in Czeckoslovakia, but having survived that, the family then had to flee the communists.

The American market was dominated by three massive brands: Manischewitz, Kedem, and Mogen Dovid and Israel was dominated by Carmel. Behind these brands, a new kosher wine industry was formed talking wines from the bucket to the tank, from the home to the winery. It was a new Jewish wine world. I call it the Concord revolution. The kosher wine industry grew to be big business.

In the winemaking Sephardi world, symbolized by Morocco and later France, the Jewish community drank dry wines, because that was what was being drunk around them. However, in the Ashkenazi world, kosher wine was sweet and nostalgic.

In the late 20th century, Carmel Winery and Royal Wine (parent company of Kedem) started to produce dry wines and led a trend to dry kosher wines in America and Israel respectively. At the same time they were pushed by new small pioneering wineries like Hagafen in Californian and the Golan Heights Winery seeking absolute quality while following kosher guidelines.

The new all-embracing variety was the Cabernet Sauvignon. The same Cabernet that made Bordeaux great was transplanted to every wine producing country, also arrived in kosher wines. Suddenly kosher wine was being made with the same grapes as the finest wines, by winemakers who studied at the leading wine schools, using all the latest technology and the most modern equipment. Concord helped formalize the industry and the kosher Cabernet revolution brought kosher wines to new levels of quality.

When Yarden wines won major trophies in European competitions in the 1980’sand Herzog wines scored more than 90 points in the American wine magazines in the 1990’s, kosher wine had jumped a chasm of quality into the modern wine world. True recognition at the highest level would arrive at the beginning of the 2000’s. The kosher wine consumer was now able to taste and schmooze about wine like everyone else. For the first time the long history of Jewish winemaking was matched by the quality of its wines.

Wander around the beautiful vineyards of Israel, and you will hear someone say proudly: ‘now…this is the Tuscany of Israel.’ They may be referring to the plunging mountains and running streams of the Upper Galilee or the terraced vineyards fitting the contoured valleys of the Jerusalem Hills. It could be the sparser more Biblical looking vineyards of the Central Mountains, or even the miracle of green vineyards sprouting in the desert. All beautiful in different ways, but the comparison is always with Tuscany.

The reason is that the famous region in central Italy has become the overriding symbol of all that is beautiful in a wine growing area and the ultimate in wine tourism.

Tuscany’s charms are well-known and its reputation is wholly justified. There you will see vineyards, olive groves and handsome lines of tall cypress trees intermingling in the Tuscan landscape. Funnily enough, that sounds a little like Israel. In the back ground will be rolling hills punctuated by oak woods or even forests, shrouded in morning mists. There will be those beautiful stone walls and attractive villages and towns, usually with an impressive medieval watch tower. Add to that the food and wine. It is certainly heaven on earth.

The Tuscan diet is based on bread, wine and olive oil. That sounds familiar too. Think how many times grain, wine and olive oil are mentioned together in the Bible. They were the staples of the Ancient Israelites too. Psalm 104:15 also brackets them together..’ wine to make glad the heart of man, and oil to make his face shining, and bread giving strength to his heart.’ Wine and olive oil are partners throughout the Mediterranean, never more so than in Tuscany.

However Tuscany is mainly known by its Chianti wines and the Sangiovese grape variety. Here the similarities end. Sangiovese (‘the blood of Jove’) is at its best in Tuscany and most unique in Chianti. There, the wines will have less depth of color to what we are used to. They will be more angular, less fruity and jammy, with prominent tannins and a rasping, refreshing acidity. More cranberry or pomegranate juice, than Ribena. The astringent, sometimes tart Sangiovese goes well with the broader olive oil flavors.

Lately some Tuscans are trying to make their Chiantis more international and globally acceptable, by blending Sangiovese with Cabernet or Merlot and ageing them in small new oak barrels, but others are trying to preserve the authentic Sangiovese taste, with its imperfections. They are perfect food wines but less memorable as competition show off wines that draw attention in the one off tasting.

The Italians have a healthy regard for a wine’s place at the meal. It is always ‘food and wine’, never wine and food. The wine is secondary and has a supporting role. It is an intrinsic part of the meal and knows its place. It is not put on a pedestal as happens elsewhere. We have so much to learn about wine culture. Italy is always a great place to start.

There is more to Tuscany than Chianti. Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Noble di Montepulciano and Super Tuscans like Sassicaia, Solaia and Tignanello also come from this region, with its long history. We think Carmel Winery is an old winery, making wine for over 125 years. Well the famous Tuscan houses of Antinori and Frescobaldi started in the wine trade in the 14th century!

No doubt Italy is one of the greatest wine producing countries, but curiously Italian kosher wines have never really hit the jackpot. I always have the impression that producers there are making commercial kosher wines rather than making the best wine possible that happens to be kosher. This may be semantics perhaps, but there is a difference.

I know Italians make the Bartenura Moscato, which is just about the largest selling kosher brand in the world outside the infamous but big selling Kiddush wine brands, but other kosher table wines don’t excite. Maybe it is the size of the Jewish community, but it does not bother Spain, where Capcanes and Elvi make outstanding kosher wines.

Wine is a troika of three things and I call them the three P’s. The Person, the Place and the Product. There is the wine itself, the place where it was grown and made and the individual that made it. Many of the Italian kosher wines are basically private labels. This means the wine you see is more associated with the importer or distributor that sells it, rather than with any particular winemaker or winery. They have a brand name, and some of them are good, but the people and place aspect is missing. This is a pity because this is what adds context to a wine, and it is what differentiates wine from coca cola.

There is hope. There is a small, quality dedicated winery called Terra di Seta, not far from Siena in the Castelnuovo Berardenga region, whose objective is to make quality, authentic Chianti Classico wines, that ‘just happen’ also to be kosher.

Chianti Classico is the heart of Tuscany and the heart of Italian wine. It is a regulated wine region which is situated between Florence and Siena, two places that reek of the history of art and wine. The difference between Chianti Classico asnd Chianti is purely geographical, though the locals fiercely protect the uniqueness of the Classico region as being superior to the wider geographical region. For proof look for the black rooster which is displayed on the label or capsule to denote an authentic Chianti Classico wine.

Terra di Seta is owned by Daniele Della Seta and his wife, Maria Pellegrini. The Della Setas are an ancient Jewish family that came from Rome. The Pellegrinis are a Tuscan family with three generations of experience in wine. They run a beautiful estate. The word Terra means land or earth and Seta, the family name, means silk. This is a wine which is all about people and place.

In 2001 the family bought the winery building and vineyards. They refurbished the winery, and in 2008 decided to dedicate all their production to kosher wine. Their winemaker is the respected Enrico Paternoster.

Daniele proudly claims his objective is to make high quality Chianti Classico wine, which is also kosher. It is the only winery dedicated 100% to kosher wine in Tuscany.

They have 15 hectares of vineyards, (150 dunams), which are more than 500 meters above sea level. The original vineyards they inherited were 35 to 40 years old, but they have been gradually replacing them since 2002. They only use their own grapes and make about 40,000 bottles of which eighty percent is sold in export.

They also produce olive oil and honey. Their estate is organic. That is to say their vineyard is organically grown. I always think that organic or self-sustainable vineyards go well with kosher wine. The concepts complement each other and I wish more Israeli vineyards chose the self-sustainable or organic route.

Terra di Seta is not only flying the flag of Chianti Classico, but also Italian kosher wines. The wines represent a region and a wine style that is more local than international. These are wines with a soul and a sense of place. I will be watching their progress with interest.

The wines I tasted were as follows:

Toscana Rosso, Terra di Seta 2012

I liked this. Very Sangiovese. Pale colored red, with a tinge of orange brown. A little thin with red cherry fruit, a touch of sourness and spice and very good acidity. A wine to drink chilled. Fun wine, good value.

Price: NIS 70

Chianti Classico, Terra di Seta 2009

This in the modern way has a 5% boost of Cabernet Sauvignon. It has the classic Sangiovese sour cherry nose with aromas of plums, ripe berries but was perhaps less knitted together than the other samples I tasted. I certainly look forward to the next vintage.

Price: NIS 110

Chianti Classico Riserva, Terra di Seta 2010

Fuller bodied version. Aromas of sour black cherries, a Mediterranean herbal character with a whiff of white pepper and spice against a backdrop of sweetish oak. A well-balanced wine, which adheres well to the standards expected, by traditional lovers of Sangiovese. Firstly enticing, then satisfying and finally, refreshing.

Price: NIS 170

In 2004 restaurateur Jacques Capsouto started on a journey that brought him to Israel, to plant vines and create one of Israel’s newest wineries.

He came to for a wedding and took time to visit a few Israeli wineries. He talked to winemakers, walked the vineyards and tasted the wines. He was surprised at the quality and put a number of Israeli wines on the wine list of his Tribeca restaurant in Manhattan. He said he did it for business reasons only, “because they were good.“

Then it was extremely rare for a non-kosher restaurant to select a number of wines from Israel and it took someone of the conviction of Jacques Capsouto to make the effort and back it up. He challenged his customers to try the wines, telling them “If you do not like the wines, you don’t need to pay for them.”

He explained “Israeli wine does not have the attack of fruitiness that the new world has but doesn’t have the subtlety that the European wine has. You have a nice middle ground between the two.”

In 2006 he was invited back as a guest to IsraWinExpo and a new dream came into mind. His mother Eva had always said to him “do something for Israel.” So he decided not only to become an ambassador for Israeli wines but to make his own.

Capsouto was born in Egypt to parents who came from Turkey. He moved to France with his family aged and lived in Lyon for four years and then the family moved again to the United States, where he made his home.

In Manhattan he founded the Capsouto Freres Restaurant with his brothers, which he ran for over thirty years. The restaurant helped put Tribeca on the map. For thirty years they maintained the exacting standards in the most competitive restaurant city in the world. It is difficult enough to find a quality restaurant in Israel that has lasted 10 years!

Then came two hammer blows. Firstly his brother Albert, a constant and crucial partner in the business tragically passed away well before his time. Then came Hurricane Sandy. A life’s work was destroyed in a single storm. The restaurant was flooded, fixtures destroyed and the restaurant closed. Capsouto dusted himself down and focused on achieving his new ambition.

He scoured the land looking to plant a vineyard “not on the Golan, too problematic, but in the Galilee, as near to the Lebanese border as possible.” He could have done it the easy way, buying grapes, but no, Jacques Capsouto wanted to do things properly.

In the end he chose a site in the Western Galilee, near Pekin, “a place” he says proudly, “where Jews, Christians, Muslims and Druse peacefully co-exist.” There are surprising few vineyards or wineries in the Western Galilee.

It is not easy for a Hebrew speaking Israeli to cope with the infamous Israeli bureaucracy. Well Jacques was neither a resident here, nor did he speak the language, but he was very determined.

He badgered everyone he knew for help and believe me, Jacques Capsouto knows how to be a nudge! He particularly plays tribute today to Gaby Sadan of Shvo Vineyards, Shalom Blayer, ex CEO of the Golan Heights Winery and Micha Vardia, winemaker of Galil Mountain, amongst those that helped him

His vineyard is in a horseshoe, north facing, 700 meters above sea level, with a 90 meter difference between the highest and lowest part. It was planted in 2010 and Capsouto was there, sleeves rolled up, living the wine experience to the full.

Capsouto is convinced that Israel is a Mediterranean country and as such should plant Mediterranean grape varieties. He also believes Israel should make blends in the Southern Rhone style, “less fruit forward and less like California”.

So he planted Rhone varietals Syrah, Mourvedre, Grenache Noir, Cinsault, Counoise, (a little known variety in the Chateauneuf du Pape blend), as his red grapes. The whites he planted were Grenache Blanc, Roussanne, Marsanne & Clairette. He has brought Cinsault and Clairette back to Israel and Counoise was never here before.

He believes with the fervor of a missionary that though these are not indigenous varieties to Israel, the origin is likely to have been Lebanon, the Eastern Mediterranean or Middle East. He tells me they were brought to France and Spain by the trading Phoenicians over 2,500 years ago.

He employed one of Israel’s leading viticulturists, Pini Sarig and the famous Jean-Luc Columbo as a consultant. Where is he from From the Rhone of course! As a winemaking he chose the promising and talented Eran Israeli, who teaches winemaking at the Ohalo School in Katzrin. A traditionalist to the end, he ensures the grapes are handpicked and he only used oak barrels three and four years old. No new oak for him.

I tried to meet him on two occasions in September. He couldn’t because they were harvesting. So apparently the debonair restauranteur is still very hands on. He wanted to be there, like he was in the restaurant every night, instead of delegating. Suddenly you understand why Capsouto Freres was at the top in the shark infected waters of the restaurant business for so long.

Finally after his long marathon, he was recently able to show me his bottles from the 2014 harvest. The first thing I notice is the labels. The names are in French and the look is absolutely Southern Rhone. The winery is called Jacques Capsouto Vignobles and the brand is Cotes de Galilee Village.

If you are in any doubt, he then goes through wine by wine: ‘The white is like a Chateauneauf du Pape White and the young red is like a Cote du Rhone Village. The Grand Vin like Chateauneuf du Pape.” We get the picture Jacques. The Rhone Valley has firmly settled in the hills of the Western Galilee!

At 70 years of age, when most people are looking for the easy life, he has completed the first stage. As we say in the wine business: ‘It is easy to plant grapes and it is not so hard to make wine. What is difficult is to sell them!’

Jacques Capsouto never married. He said “I suppose I was married to the restaurant for thirty two years. As for these wines….they are my Grandchildren”. Now, I am a very proud grandfather. When I became one, I suddenly understood the reason why I had children. I have no doubt Jacques Capsouto will get similar pleasure from his Grandchildren.

He says to me in his thick French accent, with the usual Capsouto bravado: “I think I have done a good job” …and then pauses, suddenly less certain, seeking affirmation he adds “…no” Yes Jacques, good job! Done with style, panache, and a dollop of French chic.

When I first wrote about Jacques Capsouto I called him The Wine Zionist. Tasting the fulfillment of all his work, I am reminded of Herzl’s quote: “if you will it, it is no dream.” He will like the comparison.

The wines I  tasted were as follows. Each commemorates a member of his family. Eva his mother, Marco his father and Samuel his brother and grandfather. The Grand Vin Blanc, not tasted, will be named after his other brother, Albert. They are Kosher.

Cuvee Eva Rose, Cotes de Galilee Village, Jacques Capsouto Vignobles  2014
A rose blend made from 58% Cinsault, with 22% Grenache and 20% Mourvedre. The palest possible shade of salmon pink. Very delicate and light with the faintest strawberry fruit and a searing acidity. Refreshing. Price: NIS 80

Cuvee Eva Blanc, Cotes de Galilee Village, Jacques Capsouto Vignobles  2014
A medium bodied white wine blend made from 60% Grenache Blanc, 19% Roussanne, 14 % Clairette and 7% Marsanne. Subdued nose, slightly herbal, good complexity with nice mouth feel and a long finish. Interesting, different and very good quality. Price: NIS 95

Cuvee Samuel Rouge, Cotes de Galilee Village, Jacques Capsouto Vignobles  2014
A red blend of 40% Mourvedre, 31% Grenache Noir, 26% Counoise and 3% Syrah. An aroma of ripe berries and plums. Chewy and meaty. Full of flavor, but with an elegant finish. I loved it.
NIS 115

Cuvee Marco Grand Vin Rouge, Cotes de Galilee Village, Jacques Capsouto Vignobles  2014
Not yet released. Wait until the Spring 2016, but it is rich, concentrated but still closed. I think it is going to be very good, but it needs time. For the record it is a blend of Grenache, Mourvedre and Syrah.

Sparkling wine is the wine of fashion and celebration. Whether on New Year’s Eve or at a wedding, it remains the classic wine to make a toast with. It is also a symbol of success and happiness. Just look at the winner of a Formula One race. It is always Champagne he opens at the end of a race, never any other wine.

Champagne is the byword for quality in sparkling wines. It is made in the Champagne region in northern France in the most expensive, time consuming way. That is that the second fermentation, which provides the bubbles, occurs in the actual bottle which will eventually be sold. It can be bone dry, crisp with mouth puckering acidity or rich with a bready, yeasty aroma. If it is image you want, then champagne is the only answer.

For years wine with bubbles in was a winemaking fault. The idea of putting the bubbles there on purpose by a secondary fermentation was invented, believe it or not, by an Englishmen, Christopher Merrit in the late 17th century.

Folklore says that it was the blind monk, Dom Perignon, who invented it, running and shouting : “Come quickly, I think I am drinking stars!” He perfected the method of production, but as a consolation for the story not being true, his name lives on in one of the best known luxury champagnes in the world.

As soon as the bubbles were reliably preserved in bottle, champagne became the great prestigious pick me up it has continued to be until today.

The only problem then, was that it was sweet, even very sweet. The sweetest cuvées were produced for the Russians. The British had the driest, but even they were semi dry to medium in sweetness.

It was only in the mid-19th century that the Champagne House, Perrier Jouet rather gingerly produced the first dry champagne and it took some time before it was accepted, but the word champagne still held its magic.

Champagne made by the Champagne Method, is now more correctly known as the Classic or Traditional Method, is no longer confined only to Champagne. Today many countries produce wine in this way. For instance California, Australia and New Zealand have flavorful sparkling wines that rival Champagne for quality. The best sparkling wines are produced in cooler climates and it will certainly be a surprise to many that England today has some very high quality sparkling wines. The soils of south east England and Champagne are similar.

The first Israeli Classic Method sparkling wines were made by Carmel. However it was before its time, expensive sparkling wines were not popular and it was labor intensive to produce. Eventually they stopped and returned to lesser expensive sparkling wines, producing by the Charmat Method or what I call the Coca Cola method.

In the Charmat process the second fermentation takes place in a tank and is then bottled under pressure. In the Coca Cola method there is simply an injection of CO2 gas into to the wine. However, there are still some old pupitres (wine racks for riddling) to be found at Carmel’s wineries to provide evidence of their pioneering effort.

In the 1990’s the Golan Heights Winery started producing classic method sparkling wines using a more modern production line and their Yarden Blanc de Blancs in particular was swiftly recognized as a world class wine, winning major trophies..

The language of sparkling wines can be confusing. ‘Brut’ refers to a dry or very dry wine. The word Sec or Extra Dry refers to an off dry wine. Demi Sec is semi dry to semi sweet and Rich is sometimes used to denote sweet.

A Blanc de Blancs is a sparkling wine made 100% from white grapes, usually Chardonnay. It will be lighter with a more delicate aroma than the others. Blancs de Noirs is a sparkling wine made only from black grapes, usually Pinot Noir or Pinot Meunier. It will be more full bodied with some berry notes in the aroma. The three grapes together make up the traditional Champagne blend.

There are other sparkling wines particularly popular in Israel. Cava is Spain’s national sparkling wine, which is made in the Catalonian region. It provides quality, and is made in the traditional way, but at a cheaper price than the French version.

Cava is in fact so popular that it has become the slang in Israel for any sparkling wine.

Prosecco is the latest rising star. This is a light, soft, fruity and slightly creamy sparkling wine made in the Veneto region of Italy. It is usually a little cheaper than Cava, and so is attractive for those buying on price.

Asti Spumante from North West Italy has a frothy grapey sweetness and is a fully fledged sparkling wine. For those who like a more delicate fizz, try the lightly sparkling Moscato d’Asti.

Lambrusco is a semi sparkling wine, with a slight fizz. These are known as frizzante in Italian. It may be red or white and in any style from dry to semi sweet. The sweet ones are glugging wines, but the drier wines can be bracing and refreshing.

Sparkling wine is the classic aperitif and goes with all mezze, hors d’oeuvres, fish dishes, sushi and poultry. In fact champagne goes with anything and everything and there is nothing wrong with drinking it throughout a meal. It is even a good way to end a meal after the dessert wine, providing a clean, fresh finish.

The versatility of sparkling wine, is best summed up by Lily Bollinger, the legendary owner of the Bollinger Champagne House. This memorable quote, I have framed in my office:

I only drink champagne when I’m happy and when I’m sad. Sometimes I drink it when I’m alone. When I have company I consider it obligatory. I trifle with it if I’m not in a hurry and drink it when I am, otherwise I never touch the stuff, unless I am thirsty.” Serve your sparkling wine ice cold. Put it in the fridge for a few hours, or even in the freezer for a short time, as long as you do not forget it.

Opening sparkling wine should be done with the utmost care. The cork can become a dangerous missile because of the pressure in the bottle, which equals that of a tire in a double decker bus. Hold the bottle at 45 °, being careful to ensure it is not pointing at anyone. Gently undo the wire on top of the cork, always maintaining a finger on top of the cork as a precaution. Hold the cork in one hand and bottle in the other and turn the bottle, whilst easing the cork and it should come out with a light swoosh, or an erotic sigh, rather than a big pop.

Champagne glasses historically were the flat saucer glasses apparently shaped on Marie Antoinette’s breast. Now these are considered more suitable for cocktails or ice cream. More in favor are the tulip or flute glasses which concentrate the aromas and maintain the steady flow of bubbles. Actually any white wine glass is more than adequate. Israel produces a full range of sparkling wines from the lightly sparkling Moscatos to the finest Classic Method wines. For those who wish to drink blue and white instead of imported wine, these are some good quality options. .

Yarden’s sparkling wines (Blanc de Blancs and Rosé) are the best, Pelter’s is the rarest and Gamla’s is also top quality, but is less expensive than both. Carmel Private Collection, Tabor and Teperberg produce very good mid-priced sparkling wines, which are good value. Then there are fun sparkling wines like Pninim, Moscato and Carignano which are always popular.

Whatever your poison, there is a sparkling wine at every price and in every style.

Cheers! Le Haim!

Binyamina and Zichron Ya’acov are two winery towns on the southern slopes of Mount Carmel, that have witnessed a 130 years of our modern wine history. It was here that Baron Edmond de Rothschild built a modern Israeli wine industry, first by planting vineyards and then by building a large winery. Binyamina is named after Edmond de Rothschild’s Hebrew name and Zichron Ya’acov, after his father, Jacob.

Today the area represents the most traditional, compact wine route in Israel, easily accessible from central Israel. A train journey to Binyamina Station can put you in the heart of the region. Within close proximity, there are wineries founded in the 1890’s, 1950’s, 1980’s and 2000’s. These include Carmel, Binyamina and Tishbi which are amongst the largest wineries in Israel and Margalit and Bar Maor which are some of the finest boutique wineries.

It is a great wine region to visit also because distances are relatively close between wineries and there are vineyards are all around, in Shefaya, the Hanadiv Valley and in Binyamina towards Givat Ada.

Kobi Arens is a son of Binyamina. He is a tall charismatic man, with blue eyes and a receding hairline. To me he looks like a dead ringer for Prince William. Imagine he is the slightly sturdier, elder brother. He has blue eyes and a warm, engaging smile. He was born and bred a farmer. The clue is when you shake hands. His hands are a farmer’s hands; large and well used.

His grandfather, Michael Arens from Riga in Latvia, was sent by his parents to Berlin to study to be a doctor, enough to fulfill the wishes of any Jewish mother. However, Arens had other ideas. He believed that working the land was crucial to building the State of Israel, so he left the course in the middle and went to Toulouse in France to study agriculture.

He made Aliyah in 1939 and in 1944 the family bought land to the east of Binyamina, towards Givat Ada. Gradually the Binyamina agricultural village became a town and expanded to absorb the new Arens holdings. It was classic agricultural entrepreneurship of the time. The fruit orchards, vineyards and olive groves were built on the family property. You walk out of the family house and their fields are spread before you.

As a child Kobi Arens, the third generation, remembers sitting on the trailer that carried the grapes to the Zichron Ya’acov winery. The tractors would line up the hill to the entrance to the winery. As a 16 year old teenager, Kobi would rush home from school to drive the last tractor of the day to the winery.

He was someone really born in a vineyard. The secrets of the vine and vineyards, was something he absorbed with his mother’s milk. Instead of accompanying his father to the big football game, he would be out walking the vineyards, orchards or groves with him.

The wine buzz came later. His wife was an air stewardess with El Al and they got the opportunity to visit California. Here in the first wine epiphany of his life, he was blown away by Napa Valley, the home of California’s wine industry, where viticulture, winemaking, wine culture and wine tourism were all intertwined.

Eight years later, he went on a study viticulture tour to Australia with a group of growers. When he arrived at Adelaide University, there was the second epiphany. He visited the university plant nursery, and saw the new winery for students. He met with the professor responsible for the oenology school and was immediately seduced into doing a post graduate winemaking program.

He returned to Australia with his wife and two young children, spent the time and did the work and added winemaking knowledge to his vineyard experience.

He returned and joined Carmel’s Zichron Ya’acov Winery in 2004 with the immense responsibility of making wine at Israel’s largest winery. He then became responsible for their new Upper Galilee winery at Ramat Dalton (today known as Kayoumi Winery) and for the premium vineyards in the Galilee and Golan Heights.

After six years, he returned to work in the family farm. He had previously made his own wine for fun, but in 2010 he starting his own winery. (www.arens.co.il)

For him, growing fruit for wine is not a matter of observing from afar and speaking to a vineyard worker a few times every year. For the grower winemaker, everything that happens, every storm or burst of sunshine is intimate and personal. It affects him and his vines, one and the same. For his mission is not just to grow grapes, but to grow wine, and not any wine, but his wine, in his place.

I often need to remind myself that wine is an agricultural product. Once I hosted a big shot from the United States. We visited 13 wineries in three days, one after the other. I thought smugly that I had done a pretty good job. On the way back to the airport my guest punctured my self-satisfaction by saying: “you know we visited thirteen wineries…but not one vineyard!”

Of course, the vineyard is part of it. The person and the place are what gives wine uniqueness, character, and what makes it different from Coca Cola.

So many Israeli wineries use vineyards far from the winery and there are very few genuine estate wineries. However the Arens Winery produces wines that reek of person and place.

I remember once seeing Kobi Arens hosting a tour of Galilee vineyards, and I thought then, that he had the presence, intelligence and communication skills to be a great teacher. It is therefore wholly appropriate that he is also the winemaker for the Shefaya Winery, where students from the residential youth village learn the rudiments of wine growing and the wine making process.

His wines are a reflection of his raison d’être. He works with varieties suitable for the area and is committed to making the most of his terroir. He likes blends believing this the winemaker’s true art. His wines are fruit led, but elegant and he recoils from high alcohol, concentrated fruit bombs.

He also makes a fantastic olive oil made from high density planted groves. The varieties used are the Koroneiki and Arbequina, which are from Greece and Spain respectively. It is one of the finest boutique olive oils here, definitely better for drizzling on salads or for grilling fish, rather than for use in frying.

He is not trying to make the best wine in the world, but is trying to make a local wine. He is an experienced grower, talented winemaker and a salt of the earth guy. He only makes 3,000 bottles, but they are authentic expression of the person, his vineyards and of the Binyamina terroir.

The wines, (not kosher) and olive oil I tasted are as follows:

Arens Estate Red 2010
A blend of 66% Syrah, 17% Petit Verdot, 12% Carignan & 5% Mourvedre. Ripe berry fruit, chewy mouth feel, complimentary oak notes in the background. It has soft tannins and great balancing acidity. In the end, it is actually a refreshing wine in what I call the new Israeli Mediterranean style. Recommended.

Arens Estate Red 2011
A blend of 44% Syrah, 32% Mourvedre & 24% Petit Verdot. This is a sharper, more angular wine. Less openly fruity, more austere. It needs more time than the others, possibly even decanting.

Arens Estate Red 2012 (not yet released)
A blend of 55% Syrah, 17% Mourvedre, 16% Carignan & 12% Petit Verdot. Fruit forward compote of ripe plums and berries, meaty flavors but leading to elegance with a refreshing finish. Similar quality to the 2010.

Arens Mourvedre 2012 (not yet released)
Mourvedre is best in blends, but this has an elegant blueberry nose, a rubber, burnt match character and a pleasing refined finish. I think Mourvedre produces texture and tannin rather than automatically recognizable aromas, but this is one of the better Israeli versions I have tasted.

Arens Olive Oil, Extra Virgin, Cold Pressed
It has a herbal grassy aroma, is spicy and flavorful in the mouth with a hint of an attractive bitterness on the finish. It is worth a visit only to top up with olive oil!

Most Jewish festivals have a wine or wine style associated with them and sometimes the calendar dictates what I write about. When arriving at Hannuka, it was a difficult decision. Do I write about hearty red wines because we are in the winter months, or dry white wines, which will go far better with the fried foods of the festival, like latkes. Instead, I have chosen to write about the product, which is at the center of the Hannuka story. I am referring to olive oil.

I believe it is appropriate for olive oil to appear in a wine article because they are partners and go together like Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire or Humus and Tehina. They grow together as olive trees and vines in the same climate and conditions, are cultivated in olive groves and vineyards in the same growing regions and appear on the table together as olive oil and wine. Wherever the soil is poor throughout the Mediterranean basin, and nothing else grows, vines and olive trees have always been planted. This is true of all the Mediterranean countries. The humble olive and grape produce super enhanced products, wine and olive oil, which people in ancient times thought were gifts from the Gods.

Olive oil and wine go back to the beginnings of the Jewish people in Israel. Deuteronomy refers to a land of olive oil and wine. Thucydides wrote that the dawn of civilization was when man began to cultivate the olive tree and vine. Today, they together they are the best expression of the Mediterranean diet, and are symbols of the new quality Israeli cuisine. They are the essence of both ancient and modern Israel.

I never forget when I was a young wine buyer in England, a famous Italian winery wanted to give a gift. I was rather hoping for one of the winery’s better wines, but instead was surprised to receive a bottle of their finest olive oil. Only later when I came to Israel and began to appreciate the wonders of olive oil, did I truly appreciate what a special and personal gift it was. I learnt that the pride in a handcrafted olive oil was no less than in a great wine.

The olive was first cultivated in the Levant and Crete virtually simultaneously. From its roots in the areas of Syria, Israel & Lebanon, olive cultivation spread to Turkey, Arabia, North Africa and Spain. The Hebrew word for olive is Zayit, which is similar and the obvious root to the Aramaic Zaita, Arabic Zait, Armenian Dzita, North African Zeit and Spanish & Portuguese Azeite. Those countries using the word olive, trace their roots to Greece, not to the Levant.

The olive tree grew wild in the natural forests of ancient Israel. Olive oil, like wine, was an important commodity for trade & export. There is evidence that olive oil from Canaan was exported to Egypt and Greece over 4,000 years ago. In ancient Israel, olive oil was used for food, cooking, medicine, illumination, cleanliness, cosmetics and for anointing kings or priests during their consecration.

Archaeologists have found a wealth of information from ancient oil presses, storage jars and weights found throughout the country. It is in Israel that the earliest mortars for crushing olives and the oldest surviving vestiges of olive wood were discovered. In the Lower Galilee, they recently found residue of olive oil in clay pots dating back a mere 8,000 years!

The most complete olive oil production center was at Ekron, the Philistine capital, where 114 large olive oil presses were excavated, clearly indicating the size of the olive oil industry in ancient times.

In the Israel of today there are place names evoking the importance of the olive: Beit Zayit, Har Zayitim – The Mount of Olives and Garden of Gethsemane (Gat Shemen – an oil press) are the most famous of these. Even the emblem of the modern state of Israel depicts a menora (an oil lamp candelabra), which in ancient times was lit using olive oil as fuel, with a relief of an olive branch and leaves on both sides.

The Israeli Arab population has always grown olives for food and oil, but in the last 25 years with the development of Israeli food & wine culture, there has been enormous growth in the interest & quality of Israeli olive oil. Today the olive industry really symbolizes Israel because every community, whether Jews, Arabs, Druse or Circassians, are involved in the cultivation of olives.

Israel has a Mediterranean climate, so much of the country is suitable for the cultivation of olive trees. Olive groves cover Israel from the mountains of the Galilee to Revivim & Neot Smadar in the Negev and from the coast in the west to the hills of the east.

The biggest concentration of olive groves still lies in the Galilee, northern Israel. The Lower & Western Galilee are arguably the most famous areas for olive production. However the valleys surrounding Mount Carmel, the Sharon Plain, the Golan Heights, Judean Hills and central Negev are all now sites for the production of quality olive oil.

Unlike wine, where most of the grape varieties are international, even global, the olive varieties are more indigenous. The Souri, which is sometimes referred to as the Suri or Syrian olive, is the main local variety, particularly popular in the Galilee. It is one of the oldest varieties in the world – thought to have originated in the Lebanese town of Sur (Tyre). It is a small, oval olive producing an aromatic, piquant olive oil, which is green, peppery with a hint of honey.

Barnea is a variety developed in Israel by Professor Shimon Lavie. It has become an international variety planted in Australia & Argentina. This small, oblong olive is easy to grow, providing good yields and can be planted densely. It produces a sweeter, delicate olive oil with a light fruity taste and an aroma of mown hay.

The Nabali Baladi originated in Nablus. The improved Baladi, known as Mohsan, was introduced to Israel from the Arabs of Judea & Samaria after 1967. A larger olive than the Souri, it is easier to cultivate, and gives good yields. It is more neutral than the Souri & Barnea.

Apart from these, there a host of international varieties are also grown in Israel. These include Manzanilla and Picual from Spain, Novo & Leccino from Italy, Fishulin from France and Kalamata from Greece, and many others.

Strict quality controls are maintained by the Israel Olives Board. Only olive oils which pass their stringent tests are able use the special sticker for ‘Quality Approved Israeli Olive Oil’.

Olive oils are tasted in a similar way to wine. The reverence is the same and the vocabulary is similar. The vagaries of the climate, choice of variety and date of harvesting can affect the final product, just like wine and olive oil should be stored in a cool dark place, which is how wine should be stored.

Olive oil is so central to the Mediterranean diet that it is no surprise that it should strongly feature in an Eastern Mediterranean country like Israel. Israelis love to cook with olive oil. A fresh fish is likely to be grilled with only fresh herbs & olive oil added. In the quality restaurants, olive oil is used to enhance carpacchio or simply drizzled onto bread. A small dish of olive oil may appear on the table in place of butter. At home it will be enjoyed with hummus or labane. Pita bread dipped in olive oil and za’ater, the herb of Israel, is a popular breakfast in the region.

On salads, Israelis will add olive oil, lemon juice & parsley, instead of the traditional European salad dressing of oil & vinegar. Whereas in the southern Mediterranean the custom is to use olives in the cooking, in the eastern Mediterranean, olives are presented as a starter or as part of a mezze served on a number of small plates in the center of the table. In its love of olive oil & olives, Israel is no different from other countries in the Eastern Mediterranean, like Greece & Turkey.

Israseli olive oils are considered to be more aromatic, characterful & strongly flavored than the more delicate European olive oils. I recommend this Hanuka you pay homage to this elixir by lighting you Hannukia with olive oil for a more authentic festival experience. Of course, with a glass of wine nearby!

Farewell to Rishon Le Zion Wine Cellars. This summer after 125 years of continuous use, the historic winery will close its doors. It was Israel’s first commercial winery and for most of that time it was Israel’s largest winery

The story of the winery was the Zionist dream come true. It operated in three different centuries, the 19th, 20th and 21st, under the Turks, the British and the State of Israel. It represents both the story of Israel and the story of Israeli wine.

The first modern experimental vineyards were planted in Rishon Le Zion in 1882. This was the year that Baron Edmond de Rothschild sent an agronomist to survey the land and decided to build the water tower that can still be seen in the park across from the winery. After visiting, he decided to build wineries and plant vineyards and create an Israel wine industry.

When the foundations of the new winery were set in 1889, the Sultan was concerned about the amount of building materials entering the site. (Remember this was the Ottoman Empire.) He demanded building stop immediately. He feared the Jews were building a fortress. Some diplomatic smooth talking and a gift in the right direction allowed the building to continue.

The accounts books of the period are on display at Carmel’s sister winery, Zichron Ya’acov Cellars. They are written in French (this was before Hebrew became the accepted language.) In it there is an entry entitled baksheesh, with a list of the bribes given. In those days they were recorded. Today they come in unmarked envelopes.

During the first vintage in August 1890, all the wine turned to vinegar. The French agronomists did not appreciate how hot it is in August. So the second year they imported an ice machine from Egypt, and put blocks of ice in the large fermenting barrels to bring down the temperature. The next year they made do with spiral pipes which they put inside barrels and pumped cold water through them. Both of these measures were only moderately successful.

So in 1893, Rothschild realized he had no alternative but to build the deep underground cellars to keep the temperatures cooler. He built six cellars at Rishon, each fifty meters long and the task was finished in 1896. The cost of building Rishon Cellars was 6 million francs. This was more than it cost the Rothschild family to buy Château Lafite, the famous Bordeaux winery.

However, Rishon Le Zion Wine Cellars was a state of the art winery and very large even in world terms. The winemaker was from Bordeaux, the cuttings from Château Lafite and the viticulturists were France’s finest. The first ever telephone used in Israel was at Rishon. It enabled the manager of the winery to speak with his cellar workers. Also the first time electricity was ever used was at the winery.

David Ben Gurion, Israel’s first prime minister, worked at Rishon Le Zion Cellars in 1907. It is said he led the first strike there and he may have even been fired in the end. Even then as a young man he was very competitive. He bet his fellow workers that he could tread the grapes longer than they could. He did it for three consecutive days and won his bet, but the smell of fermenting wine made him feel so nauseous, he was not able to enjoy wine for years afterwards.

The name of Rishon Le Zion, or ‘Richon’ spelt the French way, Carmel and Palwin were the first brands of the company. However in the early days, Rishon would appear more prominently on the label than the other two.

The first wine to gain recognition was the Carmel No. 1, which won gold medals at the prestigious Paris Exhibition of 1900. In those days wines were identified by numbers. It was the first Israeli wine to win a major award.

Levi Eshkol, Israel’s third prime minister, managed the vineyards surrounding the cellars in 1915. Early photos show vineyards, not houses, up to the walls of the winery. It was like a true French Château! Unfortunately, money was more important than aesthetics and real estate was more profitable than vineyards. The vineyards were grubbed up and houses replaced them. It was the close proximity of the residential area which was one of the pressures that caused the winery to close. However the last vineyard did not leave Rishon until well into the 1970’s.

In 1934 Israel’s first brewery was opened adjacent to the winery. It was called Palestine Beer Breweries. Its first brand was Nesher (Eagle) which still exists. Israel’s best selling beer Goldstar was first made at Rishon in 1950.

There was a wall between the brewery and winery and workers used to barter before Shabbat “give me a bottle of bottle of wine and I will give a couple of beers.” Folklore says the winemaker and brew master used to meet after work, and drink until the early hours!

Of course, the only people drinking beer then, were the British. When they left, beer sales plummeted and the brewery closed in 1960. All that is left is the eagle embossed in the stone step at the entrance to what was the Brewery offices, and then became Carmel’s Accounts Department.

Only in 1957 did James Rothschild, the son of Baron Edmond, donate Rishon Cellars to Carmel SCV, the parent company. Thus the Rothschild involvement with Rishon lasted from 1882 to 1957. James Rothschild also donated the money to build the Knesset and started a foundation called Yad Hanadiv, which still supports Israel.

The winery always ordered some limousin oak barrels for maturing its brandy, which was far more popular in those days. Wine was then traditionally aged in large old oak barrels. However in 1976, the winemaker, Freddie Stiller, decided to take some of the small oak barrels from his brandy program and age his wine it. The result was the legendary Carmel Special Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon 1976. It was the first Israeli wine aged in small oak barrels and Israel’s first wine of international quality. It was a remarkable wine that lived for twenty years and was a forerunner of the quality revolution to follow.

As mentioned, Rishon was always very associated with brandy. It had four beautiful old copper pot stills provided with German reparation money after the founding of the state. It was housed in the spirit tower, where a continuous still was also situated. The Extra Fine Brandy was one of the first brands of the winery, when they began to distill excess grapes in 1898. The famous 777 brandy was originally branded as Rishon 777.

In 1998 the Carmel 100 Brandy won the outstanding award of Best Brandy Worldwide in the prestigious International Wine and Spirits Competition in London. This was a brandy that was aged in oak barrels in the legendary brandy cellar, with its original wooden slatted roof that in places allowed the rain to leak through. Here the aromas of the angel’s share (brandy lost to evaporation) will be remembered by all who entered this paradise.

Back in 1887 Baron Rothschild demanded that the farming villages plant Bordeaux varieties because he wanted to make a really fine wine. Most of his agronomists were against it, but the Baron’s wish prevailed. The grape varieties were planted, but the experiment ultimately failed, because of complaints by the growers, vineyard disease and there was no demand for expensive wine.

However in 2006 Carmel launched its first Carmel Limited Edition. The historic Rishon winery building is illustrated on the label. This was a prestige wine blended at Rishon which was made from the five main Bordeaux grape varieties. It took over 100 years, but the launch of this wine, which received a score of 91 points from Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate, meant that Baron Edmond de Rothschild’s vision for a Bordeaux style wine finally came true.

The last regular harvest was in 2010 and by 2011, the Zichron Ya’acov Cellars had been totally refurbished and was equipped to receive the grapes that previously arrived at Rishon. In 2013 Carmel Winery was bought by a consortium of international and Israeli investors, headed by Kedma Capital. The new owners decided to close Rishon Cellars finally and to build a new state of the art winery at Alon Tabor in the Galilee to bring the winery into the 21st century.

The last product out of Rishon is a prestigious new high quality brandy called Rishon XO. It was blended from brandies from 15 to 30 years old, matured in Rishon’s brandy cellar. Only a couple of thousand bottles were produced. It will be worth sipping this and contemplating the history of a place full of content, stories and folklore, that will always forever remain a central part in the history of Israeli wine.

Fortunately the old winery buildings and cellars will be preserved. Hopefully the memories will keep the cellars alive.

When the Baron Edmond de Rothschild’s French agronomists planted grapes here in the early 1880’s, they recommended varieties from the South of France which they assumed would grow well here because of similarities of climate. Carignan, Grenache and Mourvèdre were all planted in those pioneering days.

In 1887 Baron Edmond de Rothschild went against the advice of his agronomists and insisted on planting Bordeaux varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Malbec. He even sent cuttings from Château Lafite in Bordeaux. This was the start of the debate whether to use Bordeaux or Mediterranean varieties. It is still going on today.

Initially, the Mediterranean varieties won out and went on to become the dominant varieties for the next 90 years. This was epitomized by Carignan which became the mainstay of Israeli wine. However the most planted grape between the 1940’s and 1960’s was Grenache. For that period there was even more Grenache planted than the ever present Carignan.

However the only wine the Grenache really became known for was its legendary Rosé. When Carmel launched Israel’s first varietal wines, (a varietal is a wine named after the dominant grape variety), there was a Sauvignon Blanc (dry white), a Semillon (semi dry white), a Cabernet Sauvignon (red) and… a Grenache Rosé.

The Carmel Grenache Rosé though, was reasonably dark colored (like a bottle of red wine diluted with a glass of water) and it was semi dry bordering on medium, in terms of sweetness. Yet it was fantastically popular, bringing many new drinkers to wine. Sandwiched in between Carmel Hock and Selected Emerald Riesling, it was Israel’s largest selling wine and was at its peak in the seventies and eighties.

Then, came the new world wine revolution initiated by the Golan Heights Winery. They chose Bordeaux varieties rather than Mediterranean. Hence Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Sauvignon Blanc received more focus.

Gradually Grenache disappeared from the Israeli wine scene, and the rosé style of wine it was associated with, became thoroughly out of fashion. That is until today. Rosé is back and so is Grenache.

The finest Israeli wines today still use Bordeaux varieties in blends with Cabernet Sauvignon as the dominant variety. However, there is now a discernible trend back to Mediterranean varieties. The pioneers of this change have been Carmel and Recanati of the larger wineries and Chateau Golan, Lewinsohn, Sea Horse, Shvo Vineyards and Vitkin of the smaller wineries. Each decided to focus on varieties that were maybe less fashionable 10 years ago, but today they are leading a new path in Israel.

Winemakers noticed in the bad vintages, when the dreaded hamsin (hot winds) reigns supreme, that certain varieties coped better with the high temperatures than others. They realized what those original agronomists understood. Israel is an Eastern Mediterranean country and that maybe Mediterranean varieties would be suitable here.

Only in the late 1990’s was Shiraz (aka Syrah) planted for the first time. It was noted that the variety grew successfully everywhere in Israel. Wines like Carmel Kayoumi Shiraz, Clos de Gat Sycra Syrah and Yarden Yonatan Syrah have already received international recognition. Some believe the variety will challenge Cabernet Sauvignon in future.

Now others are coming back. These include Grenache and Mourvèdre, and there are new varieties here, like Marselan, a cross between Grenache and Cabernet Sauvignon.

Grenache is one of the most planted varieties on the planet. It is known as Garnacha Tinta in Spain, Cannonau in Sardinia and Grenache Noir in France. In Israel first time round, it was known as Alicante Grenache, which confused everyone because there was another grape variety called Alicante Bouschet. Almost everywhere else, it is known simply as Grenache.

It appears in Spain and all over southern France. It is a variety at its best as the most prominent grape variety in the famous Châteauneuf du Pape blend in the Southern Rhone, and in Priorat in the Catalonia region of Spain. It is also often part of the Rioja blend, where it plays a less distinguished role. The variety has also come to notice in California and Australia, particularly in the Barossa Valley. They sometimes make impressive varietal Grenaches there.

It is at its best in a hot climate, when planted in bush vines close to the soil. It blossoms when the vines are older. Grenache’s main weaknesses are a lack of color and acidity and a potential for too high alcohol. This is why it is usually used as a blender. In a blend, its deficiencies can be covered up and its qualities come to the fore. So more often than not, it will be blended with Tempranillo in Spain, and Syrah in France.

The wine is likely to be paler than most red wines, sometimes gaining a rusty red hue. There will be an attractive aroma, of raspberries and strawberries and a certain ripe sweetness. It has been referred to as the hot climate Pinot Noir. You can understand why it is always popular for the production of rosé. The Tavel Rosé in the Rhone and other Rosés in the south of France are as likely as not to be made from Grenache.

It is also successful as the variety for some of the delicious fortified wines of Roussillon. The danger has always been in the trend to use Grenache has a workhorse grape, where it is uninspiring. However with careful selection, a little age, old vines and low yield Grenache produces something less fruit forward, but meatier and spicier and altogether more complex.

To sample Grenache in Israel today, look for a wine called Geshem produced by Chateau Golan. The ‘G’ represents the Grenache. The Shvo Vineyards Red has Grenache in the blend and Sea Horse Winery has Grenache as a component in a few of their wines.

There is also a new rosé produced by Yatir Winery made primarily from Grenache. It is considerably paler, more elegant, drier and more complex than its forebear. However all these are from young vines and the road is long.

As far as good Grenache from older vines is concerned, may I direct you to the Capcanes winery, which is known as Celler de Capcanes. It is situated in Monsant, which surrounds Priorat. It is only 20 miles from the Mediterranean Sea and not so far from Barcelona. Their Peraj Petita Rosa is a fine example of a Grenache Rosé.

The Peraj Petita (60% Grenache) and Peraj Ha’abib (35% Grenache) are great value wines for their quality and they show Grenache’s contribution in a blend. They are produced from vineyards which are babies at more than 50 years old.

Finally there is the Flor del Flor de Primavera. This is a 100% Grenache from vineyards ranging from 85 to 105 years old! Drinking these wines is a pleasure and an education.

These Capcanes wines mentioned are great examples of Grenache and they are kosher too. They may be found in the major kosher wine markets around the world, and in Israel too. Worth seeking out.

So Grenache is back. Many wineries are planting it. That is an investment for the future. We will see the benefits as the vineyards age and the vine trunks become thicker and more gnarled. Wine is the perfect antidote for the ‘I want it now’ generation. Let’s wait for another 25 years to see how it turns out!

The Israel wine industry was really built in the coastal area of Israel, where most of the initial vineyards were planted. Basically vineyards where planted where it was most practical, instead of where the wine potential was best. It was easier for the farmers of the new villages, to plant vineyards near their homes, groves, fields and animals, and that was what they did. So the southern Mount Carmel and the central Judean Plain was where Rothschild’s growers grew their vines. This was more or less the case for 100 years.

When I made aliyah to Israel twenty five years ago, the only place said to make quality wines was the plateau of the Golan Heights. The story goes that when Professor Cornelius Ough from the University of California at Davis visited Israel in 1972, he observed the successful apple industry there and immediately pinpointed the Golan as being suitable for quality wine grapes. The vineyards were first planted in 1976 and when the Golan Heights Winery was formed in 1983, it put the Golan on the wine map as a quality wine producing area

there and immediately pinpointed the Golan as being suitable for quality wine grapes. The vineyards were first planted in 1976 and when the Golan Heights Winery was formed in 1983, it put the Golan on the wine map as a quality wine producing area.vinyards

The high altitude, up to 1,200 meters above sea level, volcanic soil and basalt stone made it the only serious wine producing area in the country. Those who then worked in the wine industry and wine media implied it was the only possible quality wine region in Israel. The success of the Yarden brand in international competitions helped fuel the superlative image.

It was not until the mid to late 1990’s that the Upper Galilee was also added to the quality equation as far as Israeli wine was concerned. Dalton was the first winery established there in 1993 in partnership with an established vineyard. Avi Feldstein, then winemaker of Segal Wines (before it was purchased by Barkan), was one of the first individuals give focus to the quality potential the Upper Galilee. Soon it was realized that the Upper Galilee with its gravelly and terra rossa soils, dense forests, high stony peaks and plunging streams, was particularly good for red wines.

Of course there had been clues previously. The Carmel Special Reserve 1979 was the first quality wine produced from Galilee vineyards. More significantly, the wine that put the Golan Heights Winery on the map was its Yarden Cabernet Sauvignon. Yet one of the finest components of this wine came from the Ramat Naftali vineyard in the Upper Galilee!

In no time, wineries from all over Israel were sourcing their best fruit from the Upper Galilee. Examples were Carmel & Barkan amongst the large wineries, and Recanati, Margalit and Flam amongst the others. By the beginning of the 2000’s, those talking about quality wine regions in Israel began to mention the Golan Heights and Upper Galilee in the same breath.

Another wine region to become noticed was the Judean Hills & Foothills. The pioneer here was Tzora Vineyards founded in 1993 and the legendary grower winemaker, the late and much missed Roni James. He was determined to create wines which reflected the local terroir. Castel Grand Vin was the first wine to have the Judean Hills (Haut Judée) written on its labels as a statement of pride in the appellation. Up to then, only the Golan wines were identified by growing region.

When you take stock now of the awards and high scores from critics at the highest level, it is clear that the Judean Hills does not suffer in the quality stakes in comparison with the Golan and the Galilee. Witness the success of Castel, Clos de Gat, Tzora and others. Apparently the Judean Hills is also one of our best quality regions!

Next the Negev came to the fore. The wine presses at Avdat and Shivta provide evidence of a large wine industry in ancient times and recently the Negev has also come alive again. Carmel was the pioneer in 1988 planting its Ramat Arad Vineyard. The first Negev wine in modern times was their Ramat Arad Merlot 1992.

The Sde Boker Winery first began to make wine on a tiny scale in 1998. When Yatir Winery was formed at Tel Arad it became the first winery situated in an area surrounded by Bedouin and camels. Its Sauvignon Blanc and initial Merlot were from the Ramat Arad vineyard, but eventually they focused on their Yatir Forest vineyards, which lie more in the southern tip of the Judean Hills, than the Negev.

However vineyards planted elsewhere began to make the desert bloom. Barkan and Tishbi in particular started using pioneering vineyards at Mitzpe Ramon and Sde Boker. I still get excited when I travel south and see a green vineyard in the midst of a brown, desolate desert. Next time you fly to Eilat, look out of the window. The patches of green vineyards would make David Ben Gurion proud.

Now with Midbar Winery, situated at Arad and Ramat Negev Winery (Kadesh Barnea), straddling the Negev, and numerous boutique and domestic wineries in between, fine wine has returned to keep the wine presses of Shivta and Avdat company.

The major coming area of the last few years is what I call the Central Mountains. In the beginning there was the Gush Etzion Winery founded in 1998. Arguably one wine lit the fuse that showed the potential here. It was the Har Bracha (Mount Bracha) single vineyard Merlot, produced by Carmel from the 2002 vintage. Since then a new wine region has sprung up with new vineyards planted on these shallow soiled, high altitude limestone hills. Wines, vines and wineries may today be found from Har Bracha in the north to Hebron in the south.

As far as the coastal vineyards are concerned, there is nothing left at Rishon Le Zion, where the first experimental vineyards where planted in 1882. Apparently, real estate has proved more profitable than viticulture. The early photos of Rishon Cellars show what might have been. There are vineyards surrounding the winery, just like a French Chateau. There were even vineyards in the town until the 1970’s. However nothing remains.

So I was especially interested to see that Zichron Ya’acov & Mount Carmel were making a comeback. This was historically were it all began, but never considered the finest region quality wise. I was recently taken by Yair Margalit, one of the icon figures of Israeli wine, to see his new vineyards in Zichron. He has chosen this area to plant his impressive new vineyard to take his winery into the 21st century. What a shot in the arm for the most traditional wine region in Israel!

Finally, whereas the Western Galilee has always nurtured wonderful olive groves, it has never gone into the vineyard business like the Upper Galilee (Merom Hagalil and Kedesh Valley) or the Lower Galilee (Kfar Tabor). However, today the promising Stern Winery and impressive Kishor Winery are breathing wine life into the Western Galilee too. Both are well worth a visit.

So the message is that not only Am Yisrael Hai but also Cremai Yisrael Hai – the vineyards of Israel are alive and thriving, and woe betide anyone who tries to claim a pocket of Israel as the only place where quality wine can be. How wrong we were, twenty five years ago. The Biblical Prophet Amos said: “I will restore the people Israel….They will plant vineyards and drink their wine.” Now, over 2,700 years later, we can firmly announce that this was a prophecy that came true!

We often tell prospective wine lovers, ‘Know the grape and you will know the wine.’ We then recommend they first learn about the seven classic varieties, (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling), before progressing to others.

These days, to know the varieties is not enough, because generic blends are becoming more popular. At wine tastings you will be told: ‘this is a Bordeaux style blend’ or ‘a Mediterranean style blend,’ with very little explanation.

Most wineries seem to have a wine they describe as a Bordeaux blend. Its most basic form is Cabernet Sauvignon blended with Merlot. The muscular Cabernet with the softer Merlot is a natural marriage and this is the most popular blend in wine.

The more traditional Bordeaux blend is one using the five main grape varieties of Bordeaux. This mainly includes Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and to a lesser extent, Petit Verdot and Malbec.

The idea of making a blend in the first place, is to show off the qualities of various varieties whilst at the same time diminishing the deficiencies. All this is in the search for greater balance and complexity. The wine expert Steven Spurrier, immortalized in the film ‘Bottle Shock’, once described a Bordeaux red as being an ideal blend, because ‘the Cabernet Sauvignon provides firmness, the Cabernet Franc fragrance, the Merlot flesh, the Malbec spice and the Petit Verdot grip.

The idea of this blend, like any other, is to be better than the sum of its parts. Or to put more numerically, one plus one equals three.

Incidentally, different wineries have different ‘Bordeaux blends.’ For instance, Yarden Katzrin is a blend of just Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. The Yatir Forest is made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot and Merlot. The Castel Grand Vin and Carmel Limited Edition are blends of all five varieties. The only common denominator with these Israeli Bordeaux style blends is that Cabernet Sauvignon seems to be the dominant variety.

Interestingly in Israel, the relatively unknown Petit Verdot is becoming more and more influential in blends, sometimes featuring more than Merlot. The reason is that Petit Verdot, (‘the little green one’), often does not ripen in Bordeaux and it is now used less there, but there are no ripening problems here under the Israeli sun. Also the Cabernet Franc is usually a cooler climate variety. However in Israel, the extra ripeness achieved here can offset and balance the green, herbaceous character that not everyone likes. Both are finding a place here.

For the last 25 years the Bordeaux varieties and Bordeaux style blends have been symbols of the new ‘best in Israel.’ Lately though, there is now a discernible trend back to Mediterranean varieties, which is where we began over 130 years ago.

Winemakers noticed in the bad vintages, when the hamsin hot winds reign supreme, that certain varieties cope better with the high temperatures than others. They have realized that Israel is an Eastern Mediterranean country and that maybe Mediterranean varieties would be suitable here. This was something Baron Edmond de Rothschild’s agronomists knew in the 1880’s.

Furthermore, there is ongoing pressure from wine people everywhere, eager to know if there was an Israeli identity, style or grape variety. Customers are tired of endless Cabernet Sauvignons and Merlots which though good, are also available from Chile, Australia and everywhere else. Israeli wine producers are asked all the time “where is Israel’s individuality” and “what is Israel’s speciality”

No individual Mediterranean variety has yet taken off to such an extent that the answer to the question is obvious. Shiraz, Carignan and Petite Sirah have their followers. However, something called ‘the Mediterranean blend’ has. It is the new trend here.

The Mediterranean blend is a wine made with any number of Mediterranean varieties. The red wine grape varieties may be Carignan, Grenache, Marselan, Mourvèdre , Petite Sirah and last but certainly not least, Shiraz or Syrah.

These Med blends are edgy, less fruit forward, less jammy, less immediately accessible in the glass but no less complex. The wines have ripe fruit and spicy aromas, often with a meaty taste and a chewy, leathery texture.

The southern Rhone Valley is host to the most famous Mediterranean blend, Chateauneuf du Pape. This is the big Daddy of Mediterranean blends with up to thirteen varieties in the final wine. Languedoc Roussillon in France and Priorat in Spain are other regions where the med red blend thrives.

I suppose the whole category is symbolized by the classic trio of Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre. The Grenache supplies the perfume and bulk, the Syrah fruit and spice and the Mourvèdre texture and tannin. The Australians sharper on marketing than most, were the first to write this as GSM on the label, and it has stuck.

As far as Israel is concerned, Syrah is new here in the last 20 years. Mourvèdre was here when they first planted Mediterranean varieties in the 1880’s, but did not stay, whilst Grenache is an old friend, just returning.

The wineries leading the way with Mediterranean blends are Chateau Golan from the Golan Heights with their Geshem (a play on the initials GSM) and Sea Horse in the Judean Hills.

Carmel Mediterranean is a blend of six varieties, mainly Shiraz, Carignan and Petite Sirah, not quite up to the number of Chateauneuf du Pape, but on the way! The other leaders of the move to Mediterranean wines are Shvo Vineyards, with a GSM blend plus Barbera, and Lewinsohn Red, a blend of Syrah, Carignan and Petite Sirah.

This brings about the question: What is better, a blend or a varietal wine (made from a single variety) Many people are accustomed to thinking that blends are cheap. This is surely because the cheapest wine in most wineries is often a blend of all the leftovers. It is usually found in a dumpy bottle on the lowest shelf of the supermarket or alternatively it may be the wine that meets you on the table at a function, with a label you have never seen before.

However a blend may also be the pinnacle of the winemaker’s art. The winemaker, taking the place of the chef, will take ‘a little bit of this and a little bit of that’, to enhance the final product. This will entail selecting and separating fruit from individual plots in the vineyard or only using specifically chosen barrels after rigorous tastings, in order to create a jigsaw of tastes and flavors that is the height of complexity.

I suppose a varietal wine is like cooking an ingredient on its own. The taste and flavor is purer and more predictable. A wine from a single grape variety essentially expresses the characteristics of that grape. Cabernet Sauvignon will smell and taste like Cabernet Sauvignon. A blend though is similar to cooking a number of ingredients together. It may be more representative of the terroir, than any one variety. A varietal will be more angular, a blend broader.

I don’t want to mislead anyone by describing things in such black and white terms. In Israel, a varietal needs a minimum of 85% of the dominant varietal. So it may be called Cabernet Sauvignon, but 15% may be other varieties. So many varietals are in fact blends!

However if you wanted to know, which is better, the blend or varietal There is no answer. Some of the most inexpensive wines are blends, as are some of the most expensive wines in the world. And exactly the same may be said about varietal wines.

Of course there are numerous permutations. For instance the prizewinning Recanati Special Reserve is a blend of Bordeaux varieties and Mediterranean varieties, but that is fodder for another article. In the meantime the Bordeaux blend and Mediterranean blend have a high profile and will continue to battle for our affections in the years to come.

It was not so long ago, that the less expensive wines in Israel were made from a long list of grape varieties, which were known overseas, but had a ghastly reputation here. I am thinking of dry wines made from Colombard (aka French Colombard), semi dry wines made from Semillon or Chenin Blanc, rosés made from Grenache, reds from Carignan and Petite Sirah, not forgetting sweet wines from Muscat.

These varieties came to symbolize the old Israel where whites were often yellowing and oxidized on the shelves. Wines that were meant to be semi dry were most likely semi sweet. As for the reds, they tended to be astringent and lacking fruit. There was barely a semblance of varietal character in any of them.

When the wine revolution started in the 1980’s, these were pretty much everywhere, but they were initially superseded by the likes of Sauvignon Blanc, Emerald Riesling, and Cabernet Sauvignon and they were later joined by Chardonnay, Gewurztraminer, Merlot and Shiraz.

As the new grape varieties took over, the older grape varieties became less fashionable. Wine lovers in Israel would shy away from them as if they alone were responsible for the bad old days.

Fast forward to the 2000’s and we now have enough Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot planted so even the cheapest wines can be made with these varieties. With the new confidence gained from internationally trained winemakers making very good wines over a number of years, there has been a wonderful, praiseworthy trend of returning to the traditional varieties.

Looking at the same variety with new eyes, winemakers saw the potential to make a wine that is different to the new norm. Either by using older vines or by planting new clones, these varieties now symbolize something of interest to the wine lover and connoisseur. After all, who wants to drink Cabernet, Merlot and Chardonnay all the time

For example Carignan, the backbone of Israeli wine for 130 years and once a marker of mediocrity, was revived by Asaf Paz of Vitkin Winery using older vines and greatly reduced yields. Petite Sirah was given a place showing its quality and individuality by Lior Lacser at Carmel Winery.

A minerally single vineyard Semillon was launched by Naama Sorkin of Dalton Winery. Sam Soroka decided to harness the natural acidity and flowery aroma of Colombard by producing a great value, refreshing varietal wine at Mony Winery. Grenache is another returnee. The late and much missed Tzina Avidan of Avidan Winery and Uri Hetz of Chateau Golan were the pioneers, and this is a variety with a long way to go here.

Even the humble Muscat has been revived, because of the success of a different style of wine using Muscat grapes, called Moscato. It is all the rage. The pioneer was Victor Schoenfeld of the Golan Heights Winery with Golan Moscato from the Muscat Canneli grape. Now ‘Moscato Madness’ has arrived in Israel and versions can be found under brand names Buzz, Hermon, Selected and Teperberg.

However the latest arrival, or should I say returnee, is Chenin Blanc (pronounced Shenin). This variety will be remembered in the early 1990’s for producing semi dry wines, but it played a second fiddle to Emerald Riesling in those days. Emerald Riesling had no international pedigree, apart from dubious beginnings in California, whereas Chenin Blanc was well regarded, but trends are a funny thing. Emerald Riesling was not only the new thing in Israel, but the largest selling wine. Interest in Chenin Blanc fizzled out, and Chenin Blanc on the label became almost undesirable.

Chenin Blanc really reaches greatness in only one particular region, the Loire Valley in France. The main things to say in its favor are that the variety always has a very good acidity and it is incredibly versatile giving the winemaker many options. Along with the German Riesling, it makes wines of every style from bone dry to unctuous sweet and even sparkling. It is also used for fortified wines.

Unlike the Riesling, its calling card is not immediately obvious. In dry steely wines, talk will be notes of green apple and flint. Sometimes it will appear to be not so different from Sauvignon Blanc, but without the in your face aromatics. In light, semi-dry versions the description will trip to floral notes and riper versions in hotter climates will inevitably be more associated with tropical fruit. The great, luscious dessert wines will be rich honeyed wines with hints of honeysuckle, which will age for ever.

The most famous Chenin Blancs are Savennieres, which will always be dry; Vouvray, which cover the full spectrum from dry to sweet; Coteaux du Layon which are always sweet and Cremant de Loire, sparkling wines. All are from the Loire Valley.

In the New World and Israel, the Chenin Blanc is less distinguished. In South Africa though, it is the main white variety. There it is also known as Steen. It makes some very good wines as well as basic shelf fillers, but it never reaches the greatness that it achieves in the Loire.

In Israel, Chenin Blanc is experiencing a comeback precisely because of that much sought natural acidity. There are not many Israeli wineries making Chenin Blanc, but those that do illustrate a broad range of wines, but there is no one style which shouts out Chenin Blanc.

Zeev Dunie of the Sea Horse Winery is the pioneer of Chenin Blanc, being the first to return to using it. He calls his Chenin Blanc ‘James’ in memory of Ronnie James of Tzora Vineyards where he and so many others were first enthused about winemaking.

Shvo Vineyards is owned by Gaby Sadan, one of Israel’s finest winemakers. When he chose to plant Chenin Blanc in his start up Upper Galilee vineyard, people took notice. This alone was enough for many to take another look at the variety.

Pierre Miodownik has chosen Mediterranean varieties and Chenin Blanc as the varieties for his Domaine Netofa winery. No Cabernet, Merlot or Chardonnay for him! He makes two Chenin Blancs.

Assaf Kedem spent time in South Africa and what he learnt there influences him to this day. His Assaf Winery is at Kidmat Zvi on the Golan Heights. He produces a Chenin Blanc to pay homage to the Steen wines he came know well from there.

Tal Pelter is one of Israel’s most celebrated winemakers. However, Pelter Winery, situated on the Golan Heights, is not kosher. So he has founded a new winery called Matar by Pelter, which is kosher. The wines have stylish labels and the Chenin Blanc may be recognized by its unusual and attractive powder blue capsule.

So Chenin is back! We are following its second coming very carefully and with great interest.

The main Israeli Chenin Blancs are as follows:

Sea Horse James 2013 (NK)
This comes from an old vine vineyard in the Judean Plain (Gedera to be exact), which is in the Samson Wine Region. The wine is barrel fermented and aged. The result is a fragrant wine with notes of peach and pear wrapped in a sweetish texture (though it is a dry wine), with a clear acidity which comes to light in the finish. Certainly not an obvious Chenin Blanc, but a great wine nonetheless.

Shvo Chenin Blanc 2011
This wine has an understated nose of greengage and nectarine, slightly grassy in the background, with rippling minerality and a delicate herbaceous character on the palate and a long balanced finish.

Netofa White 2014
The unoaked 2014 is crisp, with delicate tropical fruit notes and good acidity from a Lower Galilee vineyard. It is truly refreshing and a great summer wine.

Netofa Latour White 2013
is part oak aged giving more complexity and broadness in the mouth. Out of the two I preferred the purer, simpler version.

Assaf Chenin Blanc 2013 (NK)
The Assaf Chenin Blanc 2013 is in a more blowsy style. It has an attractive flowery nose, prominent acidity and a slight bitterness on the finish, which gives it a refreshing quality.

Matar Chenin Blanc 2013
is very dry, with pronounced acidity, with more green apple than any soft fruit influences. It is lean and refreshing. It comes from Mitzpe Ramon in the deepest Negev.

The quality & variety of Israel’s wines remains one of its best-kept secrets.

Many of Israel’s wines more than match up to the best international standards and the finest are undoubtedly world class. I am not alone in being complimentary! Israeli wineries are winning trophies and gold medals in some of the world’s major wine tasting competitions and receiving high scores from some of the world’s most famous wine critics.
Two of the world’s most famous wine critics have also noticed the changes.  Hugh Johnson, the world’s most famous wine writer, wrote : “Recently with plantings of classic varieties in high altitude regions, a wine revolution took root. Continued investment in modern technology & international trained winemakers, have had dramatic effects.” Robert Parker, the world’s most famous wine critic wrote about Israeli wines: “The wines…..are getting better all the time and some of them are superb”.

Israel already has a worldwide reputation for its agriculture and technology, which really come together in its vineyard management. It will take a great deal of work and many more blind tastings for Israel to receive a similar image for its wines, but when it does it will be richly deserved. The passion and expertise of the growers and winemakers, and the ambitions and investments of winery owners have together managed to develop a quality wine industry in a way inconceivable even only 20 years ago.

As one of the very first countries to make wine, Israel has an ancient winemaking history and evidence of this is found in its archaeology, religious practices and literature. The importance of wine and land of Israel, has accompanied the people of Israel since the time of Noah. Wine is like a thread which connects the dawn of the Jewish people with modern Israel.

In modern times, Israeli wine has gone through four wine revolutions. The first was the founding of a new Israeli wine industry in the late 19th century by Baron Edmond de Rothschild, owner of the famous Château Lafite Rothschild in Bordeaux, using French knowledge & tradition. The first winemaker was from Bordeaux and the winemaking consultant and viticulturists were all French.

Secondly was the quality revolution, which began with the import of expertise from California in the 1980’s. This brought with it New World technology and the answers of how to make quality wine in hot countries. The winemakers and consultant that initially brought about the change were from California and had studied at UC Davis.

The boutique winery boom began in the 1990’s. Numerous boutique wineries, garagistes and domestic wineries were founded giving the Israel wine scene depth, color and enormous variety. This is a trend which shows no sign of abating.

The 2000’s witnessed the turnaround of Israel’s larger wineries, which reacted to the new competition by investing in quality. The names of larger wineries were changed from Carmel Mizrahi, Eliaz, Efrat and Askalon-Carmei Zion, to Carmel Winery, Binyamina, Teperberg and Segal Wines, to reflect the change of focus.

Today the wine drinker has the opportunity to choose wines made from all the major international grape varieties. Wines of different styles are available to suit all price points. The wine buyer is able to choose wine made from vineyards in the desert in the south to the hills in the far north.

For a country which would comfortably fit into Wales or New Jersey, Israel boasts an extraordinary range of microclimates – and each region is host to winemakers & growers attempting to make wine reflecting their local terroir. There are also an astonishing number of wineries. If there are 50 wineries harvesting over 50 metric tons of grapes a year, ranging from the large commercial operations to boutique wineries, there are a further 250 small boutique wineries or domestic garagistes who are making wine with pride & passion.

Amongst other things, Succot is a festival which celebrates the wine grape harvest. In times gone by, girls would go out to the vineyards, dressed in white, to frolic and dance, and hopefully attract a good match in the form of a future husband.

These days, Succot is a time for visiting wineries and sampling the fruit of the vine in liquid form. I urge you not to sit on the sidelines, but to become an active participant in the exciting blossoming of the Israeli wine scene. I recommend that you see the country through the prism of its wine industry. Whether your interest is history, people, religion, gastronomy or wine, you can really get to know Israel through its wine regions, wineries & wines.

Many countries have a Wine Route. Possibly the most beautiful in the world is in South Africa; perhaps the most famous is Napa Valley in California. Now we have our own. There is plenty to see… and taste!

I suggest that you visit two wineries a day and certainly no more than three, leaving time for food, schmoozing, toilet breaks and shopping. The biggest mistake organizers make, is trying to cram too much into a day. It is suggested to choose wineries carefully, so they are not too similar. Remember a stainless steel tank and wooden barrel will look similar wherever you go! Always, always, book in advance to avoid disappointment.

The day should also include a visit to a vineyard which simply puts everything in context. It could be a hike through a vineyard area, taking time for a picnic or simply stopping to take in the view for a few moments.

In the Golan Heights, I recommend a visit to the Golan Heights Winery, the nearest we have to a Napa Valley winery, the rather grand Chateau Golan or Mount Odem, Israel’s most northern winery.

The Galilee is big, so I would divide it up. In the Upper Galilee, I would recommend Dalton and Adir, both on the same estate, or Galil Mountain and Ramat Naftali. In the Western Galilee, both the Stern family winery and Kishor, a quality winery in a unique setting, are worth a visit. In the Lower Galilee, Tabor, Israel’s 5th largest winery in the shadow of Mount Tabor, is a must along with Netofa, specialists in Mediterranean varieties or Tulip, the winery with special needs workers, as other options.

In the Mount Carmel region I would visit Carmel Winery at Zichron Ya’acov for its history. It is the only winery in the whole of Israel that can give a real insight into our wine history. I would then visit Tishbi for its splendid food initiatives, especially the chocolate, and Amphorae for its beauty.

In the Sharon Plain and central coast, I recommend the award winning Recanati, the new winery building at Vitkin, or the small Benhaim family winery as worthwhile venues.

In the Judean Shefela, the Barkan’s beautiful visitors center at Hulda, and Karmei Yosef- Bravdo’s estate winery provide great contrasts for a day’s outing. In the Judean Foothills, Flam and Tzora provide a quality wine experience for small groups. Then there is the peerless Castel and a garagiste called Sea Horse in the Judean Hills.

In the central mountains, which run down the spine of the country, there are numerous places to see. Tura is a quality winery in a Biblical setting. Psagot has a wonderful visitors center, and one of the wineries consistently producing great wines is Gush Etzion, situated in a grand building which looks more like a synagogue than a winery.

In the Negev, I would recommend visiting Yatir Winery at Tel Arad, arguably the finest winery situated in the south of Israel, or Midbar at Arad, a quality winery which specializes in wines sourced only from Negev vineyards. Alternatively, a visit to the Ramat Negev Winery at Kadesh Barnea would impress you. Fascinating to hear how Midbar and Ramat Negev are making the desert flow with wine.

If you choose to stay in Tel Aviv, I would recommend visiting the HaEretz Museum to see the display of wine presses from different eras and the Rothschild pavilion which tells the story of Baron Edmond de Rothschild. I would then visit Derech Ha’Yayin in Hashmonaim Street, the Sarona Market and the finish up in Tasting Room, an innovative wine paradise.

Alternatively you may choose to explore Israel wine country at your leisure by visiting restaurants and wine bars, being sure of course to drink only Israeli wine. However you decide to spend your Succot holiday, be prepared to be pleasantly surprised by the quality and variety of Israeli wine. Devoting a day of your holiday to wine will undoubtedly leave you with a great sense of pride in our wines, winemakers and growers.

Le’haim!! To Life!!

My prayer for this week is: Please release me from all the wine snobbery and things I learnt from wine experts. After all, wine is a drink, just like other drinks. If I like it, it is good and if I don’t like it, it is not good. Please encourage us to drink in order to enjoy, and not to impress.

Wine does not have to be at the center of the table or discussion. It does not have to be tasted or talked about. It should not be put on a pedestal, but on the back burner, taking its place modestly alongside the salt and pepper.

The wine writer Hugh Johnson, once wrote in favor of the Italian attitude to wine: “Food and wine belong in that order …..in any Italian mind. Put too much stress on the wine and you upset the balance. It is simply bad manners for a wine to assert itself too strongly.”

He goes on: “You can stand too close to wine. Watching a chef does not help you enjoy his cooking and the modern tendency to look over the winemaker’s shoulder may distort as much as it reveals.”

So this is my crusade against those who elevate wine to something elitist and unattainable. Here are the Ten Commandments against wine snobbery.

It is ok to drink wine from a plastic cup or a tumbler. For someone swirling, sniffing and then pontificating about the liquid in the glass as I do all day long, it is a wonderful release to drink wine from a glass without a stem and all the baggage that goes with it. The French or Italian agricultural worker who can be seen in a bar late morning after an early days work, is not wrong. He will be drinking wine from a tumbler but he is not a peasant. He is simply enjoying wine in its purest form.
Look out in the film ‘Sideways’ for the highlight when the hero drinks his expensive bottle of wine in a plastic glass in a hamburger joint. It is a sobering image for the committed wine snob, but for me it is an epiphany moment.

It is ok to put ice in the wine. Where did we get so precious that we feel embarrassed about adding a couple of cubes of ice to a glass We do it with whiskey sometimes and the roof does not fall in. Wine is mainly water, so what the hell. The sommelier who frowns at this request in a restaurant is not worthy of the job. The customer is always right.
This prompts a story I am compelled to tell. I was visiting one of the most famous wineries in the world in Bordeaux as a guest for lunch. The aristocratic owner of the winery thought nothing of picking up cubes of ice (with his fingers, not tongs!) and plomping them into his glass of champagne. Well I suppose it is only the nouveau riche that have to show how sophisticated they are. If you are the genuine article, you don’t need to impress!

It is ok to eat white wine with meat and red wine with fish. There are no rules. It is all a question of taste and there is not one right answer. Match the wine to your mood not to food. What you like is the best choice. It will go ok with the food for sure. Don’t get hung up on matching.
So allow me to release you from having to do it right. It does not matter. If the wine is good and food is good, they will go well together.

It is ok to buy, drink and enjoy a wine costing less than 25 shekels. There is so much inverted snobbery in wine and in particularly in Israeli wine, that you would think it is the first lesson in every a wine course. How to be a wine snob. Many would turn their noses up automatically at the prospect of buying cheap wine. I agree that at these price points, the wines are to drink and not taste like a pro, but considering the price, they are really not bad and if served chilled, very quaffable. When did you last drink a wine and feel you don’t have to talk about it
It is ok to add sparkling water to your wine. Just because the yekkes from Germany liked to add soda water to Carmel Hock pre state, does not mean it is has to be passé. In fact it is a great idea and one of the most refreshing and invigorating ways of drinking wine. In our climate it is ideal and amongst a few friends a bottle can go a long way. I say bring the spritzer back! I am all for it.
It is ok to drink sweet. Many people feel sweet is Kiddush wine and particularly not acceptable. Well, some people never like the bitterness of coffee and drink it very milky. This sort of person will not like dry white wine which they will find sour or a red wine that they will find astringent.
A lot of people are too sensitive for the harsher flavors of wine. Why can they add copious spoonfuls of sugar to coffee, and it is ok, yet when they say they like sweet wine, we regard them as inferior To the wine jury, I say people have ketchup and coca cola with a meal and they are sweet. So if they want a sweet wine with a meal, why not

It is ok to drink so called unsophisticated wines. Some people like semi dry red wine, or semi-sweet Moscatos, not because they have won a medal, but simply because they are tasty. Lambrusco, Buzz Semi Dry Red, Tabor Pnimim, Selected or Hermon Moscato…..These are fun wines. Allow yourselves to enjoy something, without having to explain why you like it.
It is ok not to taste the wine you have ordered in the restaurant. You will be approached by a formidable looking wine waiter. When asked if you want to taste the wine, you are then expected to perform the tasting ritual in front of your guests or family. You don’t have to play this game. Just say no thank you, go ahead and pour.
It is ok to buy a wine with a screw cap. Why make things difficult for yourself One can never find the opener anyway and if you can, you can never remember how to use it. Today there are fine wines sold by screw cap. It is practical, sensible and modern. A wine is not less impressive because it doesn’t have a bit of tree bark in it to stopper up the bottle.
Finally, it is ok to serve your red wine chilled. In fact I believe even the finest red wines should be served after 20 minutes in a domestic fridge. With high alcohols here, a red wine can lose its shape when served at room temperature.
I recently went out for a meal with my daughter, with wine of course. The wine exactly suited the ambiance and the food and before I knew it, we finished the bottle because it was so refreshing and seemed an intrinsic part of the meal. (What is a good wine An empty bottle, of course!) It occurred to me later, that I had no idea what wine we had drunk nor did I even bother to look at the label, but it was perfect.

This reminds me of Baron Philippe de Rothschild, being asked being about his favorite wine. He answered: “It was on a beach in the height of summer. The sunset was breathtaking and the girl was beautiful. As for the wine, it was the best I have ever tasted…but I have got no idea what it was.”

My message is put wine in its rightful place. What you drink and how you drink could not matter less. You don’t have to give a sermon about it. Don’t talk. Drink…and Enjoy!

natural for white wines. Now we arrive at Rosh Hashanah. This is the festival where we eat sweet things to wish ourselves a sweet year. So for me, the obvious choice of wine to drink is a sweet one. It will go with all the sweet dishes served including the Challah dipped in honey, the traditional apple and honey, dates and sweet carrot dishes which begin the festive meal. They will even go well with the Gefilte Fish, matching the sweetness and yet toning down the heat of the horseradish. Of course, mention the word sweet with regard to wine, and many will roll their eyes and grimace. The fact is that sweet is a term that turns many people off. If it is sweet, it must be a bad wine and if someone likes sweet wine, they are not like us, who understand wine! Well, I am pleased to inform you that not all sweet wines are Manischewitz, Palwin or King David. These Kiddush wines remind us of religion and ritual and everyone has experienced sweet wines tasting more of sugar water than grapes. That is why the better sweet wines are called dessert wines, which sounds more acceptable. Funnily enough, sweet wines are far more popular than anyone will admit. At our visitors center when we offer a tasting of Muscat or Moscato, a purchase is more or less assured. This is simply because these wines smell and taste nice. There is no astringency, or sourness and people buy because they like them. I was recently interviewed on air, and after explaining and tasting all our best wines, including award winners, the interviewer admitted his favorite wine was the sweet wine, or rather, I should say, the dessert wine! He said he would be quite happy drinking it throughout the meal, and then semi retracted because he thought it was not the right thing to say Well, he should not be ashamed. We have ketchup with food. That is sweet. Some people drink coca cola with food. That is very sweet. Furthermore many people have sugar in their coffee, and some have many spoonfulls to counteract the bitterness. These people have ultra-sensitive palates and are far more likely to be women than men. If they represent 20% of the wine drinking market, are we not flexible enough to allow them to drink wine too Why shouldnt they drink sweet if they want to It is aromatic, smells attractive and a good one will be delicious. The French are supposed to understand wine arent they Well, they drink Sauternes for an aperitif before a meal. That is a very sweet wine and no-one looks down their noses at them. All I am suggesting for Rosh Hashanah is to do the same. Use a sweet wine as an aperitif and with the starters. Then you can revert to some good table wines for the main courses. As for those who prefer sweet, this is your festival. Drink it through the meal. There are four ways of making dessert wines. The most obvious is from late harvested, overripe grapes. The extra ripeness provides the extra sweetness, but it only works if balanced by good acidity to ensure it is not too sweet and cloying. The next is from grapes affected by Noble Rot or Botrytis, which is a fungus that attacks the skins of the grape. The grapes shrivel to a point that they look disgusting. This particular rot affects the grapes in a certain way. The water content is reduced and the honeyed aromas are concentrated. The result is a luscious dessert wine, just like the Sauternes made in Bordeaux. The most traditional way of making dessert wines is to lay the grapes on straw mats to dry out, shrivel, lose moisture and gain concentration. This is what they did in Biblical times and it is a method still used today, particularly in Italy and nearby Cyprus and Greece. The final way is by picking frozen grapes on the vine. Think of cold climates and Icewine from Canada or Eiswein from Germany. The water content freezes leaving the juice very sweet and unctuous. Another type of sweet wine is a fortified wine. The usual method of making these is by fortifying during fermentation by adding grape spirit. This stops the fermentation and leaves the wine sweet and strong. Port and Madeira are fortified wines made this way. Another way is for the wine to be fortified after fermentation, and this is how sherry is made. The most common way in Israel is to make a Vin Doux Naturel. This is not a natural sweet wine like the name would imply, but the sweetness is natural. These wines have alcohol added to arrest the fermentation, leaving unfermented sweetness. For those sweet wine sceptics, I want to remind you that some of the greatest, rarest and most expensive wines in the world are sweet wines. Also in Israel, we have some particularly good ones. It is a style of wine Israel makes really well. Obviously for the festival I would select a slightly better quality sweet wine than the usual Kiddush wine, because after all it is the Jewish New Year. Lets honor the festival with a wine upgrade. This could range from an inexpensive and fun Moscato to a fortified Muscat, up to a high quality dessert wine made from Gewurztraminer. Moscatos are light, frothy, grapey, semi-sweet wines and they are low alcohol. There are many with brand names like Buzz, Dalton, Hermon, Selected and Teperberg. For those who fear that sweet means fattening, it is the alcohol that is more significant to weight watchers than the degree of sweetness in the wine. The Muscats are richer, very aromatic and with mouth filling flavor. They are usually fortified to 14% alcohol. The best are produced by Binyamina, Dalton, Private Collection and Yarden. Most of the Muscats and Moscatos are made from the Muscat of Alexandria grape variety, which is indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean. It is a large grape, more commonly known as a table grape for food. However it has been in our area for a long time and may even go back to Biblical times. The best dessert wines have coincidentally each been made from Gewurztraminer grapes. Binyamina, Carmel, Golan Heights and Tzora have produced delicious dessert wines in different ways. The Binyamina Reserve Gewurztraminer is made from individual clusters. The Carmel Shaal Gewurztraminer is a late harvested single vineyard wine. The Yarden HeightsWine, a play on the words Icewine and Golan Heights, is produced from Gewurztraminer grapes, which are then frozen at the winery. Tzora Or is only produced in special years. They each represent great value and are all outstanding having received either international recognition or quality awards. They will express, in different degrees, delicate aromas of peach, pear, lychee and apricot, backed by honeyed flavors with a pronounced thread of acidity to keep them from being to cloying. Remember dessert wines normally come in smaller format bottles, in sizes of half bottles (375 ml) or half liter (500 ml.) They are normally well priced and people tend to drink less because they are sweet. They are wines to sip and savor rather than to quaff. I always recommend serving a dessert wine served ice cold. Put it in the freezer, but dont forget it. As for the wine glass, use the normal glass you have, just pour slightly less than you would normally. A white wine size glass (slightly smaller) is ideal. However avoid the awful schooner, sparkling wine flutes or small liqueur glasses so often used by leading restaurants here. A Sweet wine for a Sweet year. Shana Tova!

Way back in 1969, Tony Laithwaite and his wife Barbara used to travel to France in a beat up white van, purchase wine and come back to England to sell it to their own data base of friends and family. They set up shop under an old railway archway, called their start-up company Bordeaux Direct and began with a mere 150 customers. In 1973 it developed into the Sunday Times Wine Club, received respectability and took off.

From small beginnings, this small acorn grew to a mighty oak. It is now a very large company trading as Direct Wines, which is basically an umbrella for a number of well-known subsidiaries such as Averys, Laithwaites, The Sunday Times Wine Club and The Wall Street Journal Wine Club. These are mail order companies and wine clubs which sell more wine than the total annual production of Israel. The group has three core markets in the UK, USA and Australia. The moto of the company is ‘from the vineyard to your door.’

Their success is based on the inherent laziness of the customer who says ‘I am interested in wine and like drinking it, but don’t want to be bothered with the hassle of choosing it and delivering it’. The system works only if the choice is constantly innovative to stimulate the purchaser. The quality must be good and the wines should be particularly good value. However, above all else, the customer service has to be outstanding.

I for myself love browsing in wine shops and book shops. I like the whole dance which involves talking wine with the wine knowledgeable staff, maybe tasting something too. I like to be able to touch bottles, picking them up for a closer look and, occasionally reading back labels. In short, the act of buying is for me part of the experience.

However imagine you like wine as I do, but do not have time to search. You visit the supermarket or wine shop and experience that momentary panic when confronted with a wall of wine. You have no idea where to start, what to order and don’t like to ask. Also, you have no time to study the shelves.

I have similar feelings when I enter a Japanese or Sushi restaurant. I like Sushi but have no idea what all the names mean. I like to be led. I am a sucker for the waiter recommendation, which I usually accept with grateful relief.

Buying by the case means heavy lifting and as for transporting your precious cargo, you can’t leave the wine for a second in the car because in our temperatures, it can become cooked very quickly. The whole buying procedure takes time and effort.

Two enterprising entrepreneurs, Gali Feigin and Yael Lev Avidor, have decided to come to your rescue. After studying Business Management in America and working respectively with medical equipment and in Hi Tec, they returned to Israel with the idea of doing something for themselves. They were familiar with the concept of The Wine Club and liked wine. They did the research, asked friends for their opinions and the result was they decided to create a wine club “for people like us.”

They were quick to identify an untapped market in the Israeli wine scene, which has developed so far in some ways, but is so backward in others. They courageously founded a new company called DeVine based on the concept of The Wine Club, with marketing, sales and communication via an internet site and social media. They were smart enough not to reinvent the wheel, but adapted existing concepts to the Israeli market.

They source their wines from Direct Wines, the daddy of all mail order wine companies. They have the range, the accessibility, the innovative choices and they are as up to date as tomorrow.

They also imported wine expertise by deciding to work with Jessie Bodek as their wine expert. He leads them through the complicated world of wine, tastes with them and assists them in making the right selection. Gali and Yael describe how they contacted him initially and he immediately offered encouraging support.

Bodek is a well-known sommelier in these parts and a wine consultant who is involved deeply in many aspects of the wine trade including consultancy, judging, business, education and tastings. He speaks with a French accent as all wine consultants should do (maybe because he was born in France!) and is highly respected.

Feigin and Avidor set up an easy to navigate, attractive website, which is full of information. If you join the Devine Wine Club, you will receive a case of six bottles of wine every two months. It will be made up of one to two Israeli wines and the rest will be imported, though this can vary. The Israeli wines may be little known boutique wineries and the imported wines may made from unknown grape varieties or wines from less fashionable wine regions. Helpfully, there is a booklet delivered with each case giving details about the wines in question. So you can drink, enjoy and be educated at the same time!

The case will cost you only 174 shekels a month. The wines that will be sourced for you are in the 70 -100 shekel bracket, which the subscriber will receive for 58 shekels. Putting the value of this in perspective, if you eat out in a restaurant once a month, this is what you may be paying for a bottle of wine. Incidentally there is nothing to stop you taking Devine wines to restaurants, being prepared to pay the corkage fee. The wine will still work out more cheaply than it would be if you bought from the wine list.

Think of the anticipation every two months. There is a knock on the door and you are delivered with a box in the DeVine colors of red and white. You have no idea what is inside until you open it. The child on the morning of his birthday will feel the same way: the excitement of not knowing what is under the wrapping.

Well, DeVine manage to be innovative by selecting imported wines not brought in by other importers. As such the choice is interesting, challenging to the wine lover eager to learn, and fresh. This will not be a wine discounted because it has not sold through. Nor is it a wine pushed by the retailer because, unknown to you, he distributes or owns this or that brand.

No, this is a wine imported and selected with you in mind. It is the right price because it has been negotiated for you, the right quality, because experts have tasted it for you. I have seen the list of wines they offer and most prick my interest.

Gali and Yael are pedantically strict on issues of service. The first warm bottle they experienced, they sacked the distribution company the same day and brought all the distribution in house, using temperature controlled vehicles. It is a hands-on operation. When Gali recently gave a presentation explaining the concept to other members of the wine trade, someone raised a hand to ask a question. She immediately recognized the name as a customer. This is a company whose heartbeat is very customer and service orientated.

They say their main growth is by word of mouth. The moment that gave them most pleasure They were sitting in a restaurant, minding their own business, when they heard someone on another table extolling the DeVine impeccable service in great detail. The person had no idea the owners were sitting a few feet away.

They also have gift subscriptions. What a great gift for someone who has everything! They are now developing a premium offer for wines above 100 shekels. Of course, if you like a wine you have tried, you can make a follow up purchase in their on line wine shop, which also lists some Israeli kosher wines for the kosher drinker.

This is a new concept here and innovative. It adds to the mosaic of Israeli wine and provides new opportunities for the consumer. It fills an important niche and I wish Gali and Yael every success.

This article first appeared in the Wine Talk column in the Weekend Supplement of the Jerusalem Post.
The Israeli wine world for all its variety has a lot of sameness about it. Vineyards look pretty much the same. They are planted in more or less the same way, with the vines standing straight like soldiers to be suitable for mechanical harvesting. The grapes will as likely as not include the all- conquering Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot which are grown everywhere outside Israel and within.
The winery will undoubtedly be a clean, sterile area with a few oak barrels giving a flavor of tradition, and spotless stainless steel tanks providing a taste of technology. There will likely be a bar or comfort zone or even a visitor’s center for meeting customers and selling wines.
The winemaker will either be an enthusiast whose hobby has become a business or a smiling graduate of some foreign university who did a course, followed by a stage of a harvest or two in another country and then returned to become a winemaker.
There is usually an ongoing dance between the grower, who is a farmer and grows grapes and the winemaker who wants to grow wine. Who leads in this merry dance is usually the grower, and the winemaker tries to catch up, educate, enthuse and impose his controls.
The wine will be made in the boring international style which has become the norm. The reds will be full bodied, over ripe, high alcohol, and jammy. The whites will be full of tropical aromas, ‘nice to drink’ but lacking follow through and an underlying character or a sense of place.
Depressing OK, I am certainly looking at the cup half empty instead of half full and am intentionally giving a cynical overview. There is a reason. I want to introduce you to one of Israel’s most exciting young wineries, Kerem Shvo, owned by Gaby Sadan, who is one of the most talented winemakers in Israel and a totally free spirit. He is a master of thinking out of the box at the same time as being a proponent of the laissez faire style of winemaking.
Gaby Sadan started in fairly respectable fashion. He studied winemaking at Dijon in France, worked in Bordeaux and Burgundy. Afterwards he went on to gain experience in California and Australia as well as more experience in France. He spent far longer than the average winemaker in learning his trade, gathering information and experiencing winemaking in different countries. The long period of apprenticeship suggests a patience, thoroughness and thirst for knowledge.
In 1998 he returned to Israel and joined the Golan Heights Winery, the most advanced winery with regard to technology, under the legendary chief winemaker, Victor Schoenfeld. He became responsible for the red wines. There could not be more difference between the Golan Heights Winery and Shvo Vineyards, or Victor Schoenfeld and Gaby Sadan and yet they are both masters of their art.
In 2000 he moved to Galil Mountain to become the winemaker of this brand new winery. He was there for six years, and gained a name for his unoaked Galil Mountain reds, great drinking wines, and the great value, quality prestige blend Yiron. In 2006 he left to start his own venture.
Like most wineries in Israel, he started with a vineyard, but uniquely in this instance, the site was chosen, the varieties were selected and planted by him, the winemaker. He chose a site at 800 meters altitude between Dovev and Sassa in the Upper Galilee. Instead of planting the stalwarts like Cabernet, Merlot and Chardonnay, he chose Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre, which are all well- known from the South of France and Barbera, prominent in Piedmont in Italy for the reds. Sauvignon Blanc and Chenin Blanc, which thrive in the Loire Valley, were the whites.
Basically in an industry affected by internationalization and globalization, Sada does everything differently. The vineyard reeks of character and individuality. The soils are limestone with flint in areas. The Grenache and Mourvèdre are planted in low bush vines. There is a full cover crop between the vines. He is a believer in self sustainable viticulture, using compost and no herbicides.
He named his winery Kerem Shvo (Shvo Vineyards) after his mother. Considering his raison d’etre as a wine grower, it is totally appropriate that the winery would be named after the vineyard.
He setup a winery in a semi used, semi derelict packaging plant at Jish, otherwise known as Gush Halav. It is a Christian Arab village. Why there Simply, to be close to the vineyard. There is no sign signifying there is a winery. No visitors center, no marketing department, or tasting room. There is scarcely a comfortable chair to sit on. What is there, is what is necessary to make wine. Period. Nothing frivolous to get in the way of the principle objective: to grow wine.
At the winery, everything is different. The stainless tanks are rectangular, not round. The barrels are large, not small and new oak, is thankfully scarce.
The first wine was produced from the 2009 harvest. Harvesting is by hand. Yields are very low. In making the wine he also follows a totally individual route. The Sauvignon Blanc, for example, is hand harvested, whole cluster pressed and fermented using wild yeast in used 400 liter barrels and then aged in barrel. This is contrary in almost every way from the usual methods of making Sauvignon Blanc in Israel.
His red wine is a GSMB blend. In Australia, the letters GSM signify a blend of Grenache Syrah Mourvèdre. The B is the Barbera. The Grenache contributes perfumed fruit, the Syrah spice, the Mourvèdre tannin and texture and the Barbera acidity.
Gaby Sadan is a well set man usually wearing t shirts and shorts, with a mop of red hair and a full beard, probably not unlike the Biblical Esaw. (Referring to his hair color and the description, ‘he was a hairy man’).
He is a person who likes to take full responsibility and only truly relies on himself. I remember when the new Galil Mountain Winery opened and I was the initial export manager, he was checking my English text as though it was written by an illiterate non-English speaking Israeli. A crazy perfectionist yes, but this is a welcome trait shared by the very best winemakers.
He is a ‘Gingie’ not only in color, but also in character and does not suffer fools gladly. On the other hand, he is incredibly patient in the vineyard and winery, totally non-interventionist, allowing inordinately long fermentations without interference. The vineyard and grapes are allowed to express themselves in the final wine.
He is a quiet talker, explaining his way with passion, usually with his head cocked slightly to one side as though in inquisitive mode. He wants to make white wines which are less flamboyantly aromatic, with a greater flavor and minerality on the middle palate that gives a sense of place.
Regarding red wines, he believes in these Mediteranean varieties which most agree have a great future in Israel and Barbera, where the success here has yet to be proven. Interestingly he is not necessarily trying to make a big Mediterranean style wine but succeeds in making a wine that seductively draws you to take another sip because it is chunky but refreshing.
The wines are not kosher. Sadan is too much of a hands-on winemaker to pass on the responsibilities to any mashgiach, but they are excellent, original and are priced very reasonably. His journey is invigorating because it represents a back to basics. Everyone interested in the future direction of Israeli wine is following his way with great curiosity.
Shvo Vineyards is an artisan winery, whose wines are handcrafted and enticing.
Vive la Difference et la Qualité!
The Kerem Shvo wines I tasted were as follows:
Shvo Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc 2013
A full bodied wine with has a nose of red apple, peach and apricot, mingled with toasty flavors. It has a refined fruit and minerally taste which develops with time. It improves even more with aeration.

Shvo Chenin Blanc 2011
This wine has an understated nose of greengage and nectarine. It is slightly grassy in the background, with rippling minerality, a faint herbal touch on the palate and a long balanced finish.

Shvo Vineyards Rosé 2013
A delicious Rosé. It has an onion skin color, with an aroma of strawberries, a touch of VA (volatile acidity) on the nose, full flavor in the mouth and a refreshing acidity. It makes you want to eat something!

Shovo Vineyards Red 2011
This is one of my favorite reds of the moment. Meaty yet elegant; rich yet refined; rustic yet subtle. There is plenty of sweet ripe fruit on the nose, a mouth filling, chewy flavor, yet with the balance to entice you to take another sip.

Heard the one about the architect, carpenter, handyman and pastry chef I know it does not go quite like the nursery rhyme, ‘the butcher, baker and candlestick maker’, but it does tell a story. What do these people have in common They are all from one family and they founded a winery in 2001.

I am referring to Vitkin Winery. The architect, Sharona Paz-Belogolovsky owns the winery with her husband, handyman and jack of all trades, Doron Belogolovsky. The carpenter is Avraham Paz, the father of Sharona.

In 2002 they built a winery in the cowshed owned by Doron’s grandparents in the Vitkin Village, situated in the coastal Sharon Plain. Doron, the practical one, taught himself to make wine with the help and encouragement of the pastry chef.

I visited the original winery. There are some restaurants where a visit to the kitchen will put you off eating there again. It is exactly the same with wineries. A place that is tidy, orderly and with the mantra ‘cleanliness is next to godliness’, somehow enhances the feelings about the quality of the wine. Vitkin Winery was small, but immaculate and clean.

Fast forward to 2015, and they have moved to new premises, this time in a building which used to be a chicken coop. It is an impressive building. The architect designed the winery, the handyman built it and the carpenter made the furniture.

There is no single bit of bric a brac or even the smallest piece of furniture that does not have sentimental significance. It is either something handed down in the family through the generations or hand crafted by the talented members of the Vitkin family. The wines aren’t bad either.

Vitkin is one of Israel’s finest boutique wineries. It has a name for quality, originality and authenticity. Most of the credit for this is due to the pastry chef, who makes the wine. In fact, Assaf Paz, brother of Sharona, put down his spatula and rolling pin a long time ago. He studied wine in Bordeaux in the late 1990’s, travelled to California and Australia and became a winemaker.

I first came across him when I was working for the Golan Heights Winery. He contacted me because he wanted wine for a tasting of Israeli wines to be held in Bordeaux. I was reluctant to help. You have no idea how many requests one gets like this. Yet he was very confident of himself, very persistent and was not put off by my reluctance. He was a nudge, but in the nicest possible way. Charming and at the same time determined to follow through. In the end he got what he wanted!

He returned to Israel as the winemaker for Tishbi Winery. Then he worked with me at Carmel Winery (by that time I had moved to Carmel.) He was responsible for the boutique winery at Zichron Ya’acov Cellars. Later he moved to Binyamina Winery and was even for a short time at Segal Wines. This in itself must make him one of the more travelled winemakers in Israel. Now he is devoting himself full time to Vitkin.

He is a perky, optimistic character, usually smiling who likes to think out of the box. From the beginning he wanted to make Israeli wines rather than international wines. On his suggestion the winery decided to concentrate only on more unusual or exotic varieties. For him, ABC (the ‘Anything But Chardonnay’ movement), also meant no Cabernet Sauvignon, no Merlot and no Sauvignon Blanc. His was the first winery to make this choice and as such he became the main pioneer of the Mediterranean trend that now has many adherents.

He is like his talented father, who can look at a barrel and visualize how he can fashion furniture from it. Assaf has the ability to look at an old run down vineyard, with very high yields and envisage what he can get out of it. For instance looking at an old vineyard in the Zichron area, he thought what if I take only these rows and that plot, reduce yields and try and make a quality wine.

And that is what he did. He was able to make a silk pouch out of a sow’s ear by using fruit previously used for Kiddush wine to make a quality Carignan. It is amazing what can be done by looking at the same grapes in a different way, with the desire to make a quality wine and the knowledge and technology to back it up. Is there anything that symbolizes the Israeli wine revolution more than this The move from sweet to dry, and from the most basic level to quality.

The Vitkin Carignan 2002 and Petite Sirah 2003 were sign posts for an Israeli wine industry as a whole. Just to make sure we got the picture, he encouraged the same focus at Carmel with support of the chief winemaker and they produced their first Appellation Carignan and Petite Sirah wines in 2004.

I recently did a tasting of all the country’s leading Carignans and the Vitkin finished in first place. Not for nothing is Assaf known as Mr. Carignan. His interest in this variety stems back to 1999 when, whilst still in Bordeaux, he was invited to a wine tasting of Priorat wines that blew his mind. Priorat, in the Catalonian region of Spain, is one of the few regions in the world where old vine Carignan is given respect. Later on, at a time when other winemakers were visiting Napa Valley, Bordeaux, Barossa Valley and Tuscany, he chose to visit Priorat, to learn the secrets of the canny Catalonians.

Today Vitkin Winery is a specialist of the more unusual varieties like Carignan, Petite Sirah and Cabernet Franc. He also makes a Pinot Noir (it is so Assaf Paz, that he would try!) and a Riesling, (Johannisberg, not Emerald) which is one of the better examples of this variety in Israel.

His entry level wines, branded with the labels ‘Israeli Journey’ are extremely popular restaurant wines. They are full of flavor, yet refreshing with good acidity. There is a red, white and rosé, and these are wines to drink whilst sitting outside in Jaffa or Acre, eating mezze, fish and grilled meat, overlooking the Mediterranean Sea. It goes without saying they represent excellent value.

The prestige blend is a wine called Shorashim, which means roots. Not surprisingly, it is a Mediterranean style blend and it is made only in better vintages. This is a winery for whom roots, origins and family are of paramount importance.

Vitkin’s wines are sourced from the Judean Hills, Mount Carmel, Upper Galilee and Golan Heights. In other words Paz tries to source from the best region for the varieties he works with. They also have plans to plant a vineyard in front of the winery.

So Vitkin Winery has progressed from the cowshed to the chicken coop. The new winery is well worth a visit. Furthermore, from the 2015 vintage, the wines will be kosher for the first time. The winery’s high quality and good value wines are a lighthouse showing the way for the industry as a whole.

White Israeli Journey 2014
A white wine made from Grenache Blanc, Roussanne, Viognier, Colombard and Gewurztraminer. Broad flavored with a nose of apricot, floral notes and a hint of cut hay. It has a refreshing finish.

NIS. 75

Vitkin Riesling 2013
A fragrant, classic Riesling with delicate but complex aromas of citrus blossom, wild flowers and a petroleum note and a piercing acidity.
NIS 90

Pink Israeli Journey 2014
Crisp,strawberry colored rosé made from Carignan and Grenache grapes. It has a delicate berry aroma and excellent acidity. This is the year of rosé.
NIS 75

Red Israeli Journey 2013
A super drinking wine. It is a blend of Carignan, Syrah and Cabernet Franc. Ripe, fruity aroma, with a chewy flavor mid palate, and a refreshing finish that demands you take another glass.
NIS 75

Vitkin Carignan 2011
The aroma of this Carignan is reminiscent of plums, black cherry with a hint of Mediterranean herbs. In the mouth it has a complex dried fruit character and long balanced finish.
NIS 105

Vitkin Petite Sirah 2010
A deep colored wine, with an aroma of black fruits and a tantalizing hint of violets. The taste is meaty , earthy even spicy and the finish is long. This is a wine for carnivores.
NIS 125

The Teperberg Winery has recently launched a new look for their wines, across the board. This historic winery therefore completes a process which began a long, long time ago.

There are four revolutions that characterize the history of Israeli wine. First there was the French Revolution, when the wine industry was founded in the 1880’s by Rothschild, using French expertise. In the 1980’s the New World Revolution began, led by Californian winemakers, improving the quality of Israeli wines. The 1990’s was the beginning of the Boutique Winery Revolution, which provided color and variety.

Teperberg is part of the latest revolution, the Traditional Winery Revolution. Since the beginning of the 2000’s, there are has been a noteworthy renaissance of the large wineries.

The first of the traditional wineries to transform itself was Carmel Winery. Today their finest wines are amongst the best in Israel. Another was Binyamina Winery. The current talented winemaking team of Yiftach Peretz and Yael Sandler are making pretty good wines today.

Do you remember Askalon Wines They became known as Segal Wines and also started making some quality wines, particularly in the hands of winemaker Avi Feldstein. Even traditional wineries such as Arza and Zion started to make changes. And then there is Teperberg.

The family saga began in 1827, when Avraham Teperberg fled Odessa to avoid the army and ended up in Austria. There he would have come into contact with wine for the first time and picked up his Germanic sounding name. In 1850 he made Aliya to Israel and in 1852 he began trading in wine and spirits. Amongst his customers were Christian Arabs and Templars. His legacy was that he founded a wine dynasty that would last until today.

His son, Zeev Zaide Teperberg, decided it was not enough to distribute wine, but that they should make their own. He established a winery in 1870, which was situated between Yehudim Street and Habad Street in the Old City of Jerusalem, not far from the Zion Gate.

Sir Moses Montefiore was the most distinguished overseas visitor to Jerusalem at this time. He drank a bottle of wine every day and he would buy small casks of wine as a souvenir. Furthermore every community or individual he visited would welcome him with a bottle of their finest wine. It amuses me to think that on one of his visits to Jerusalem, he may have come across either a Teperberg or his wine. Maybe fanciful on my part, but it would certainly have been quite feasible.

The third generation was Mordechai Shimon Teperberg. By now the business included a winery, a distribution business and retail shops in Jaffa and Jerusalem. In 1921 there was a costly court case between the Teperberg and Carmel wineries over a disputed logo, the one of the two spies carrying the bunch of grapes, which they both claimed as their own. In 1925 the winery was forced to leave the Old City due to Arab riots, and the request by the British Mandate that industry should leave the area. They moved the winery to Romema in Western Jerusalem, later to be the site of the Egged bus station.

Also in 1925, the Teperberg and Segal families went into partnership to build a distillery at Sarona, within the Templar community. The Segals provided the distilling expertise, and the Teperbergs, the marketing, distribution and retail knowhow.

This business failed because raw materials became more expensive and at the same time, the British permitted the import of spirits and liqueurs. Mordechai Shimon wanted to leave the drinks business, but he was persuaded to continue by his Rabbi. In the end they lost a lot of money and the winery went bankrupt in 1929.

The revival of the business was led by the very young Menachem Teperberg, the fourth generation, along with his brother Yitzchak. He reestablished the family winery in 1951 in Mahane Yehuda and named it ‘Efrat’, after the ancient route the grapes travelled from Bethlehem to Jerusalem. Menachem decided to focus on the winery and passed the retail part of the business on to another brother. In 1964, they moved to Motza, the village at the entrance to Jerusalem.

Efrat was a small winery, no larger than a medium sized boutique winery today. Enter Moti Teperberg, the fifth generation. He joined the business in 1976 and became CEO in 1984. Slightly hunched like a prize fighter, almost bobbing and weaving as he waits for the next opportunity to catch his interest, he has a ready smile and hyper active air about him. He came in to a winery mainly selling Kiddush wine, grape juice and alcohol to the Jerusalem market. The first thing he did was grow the business, until the Motza winery was bursting at the seams. In ten years from the late eighties, the winery’s production grew tenfold.

He was always a business man before a wine guy, but he had the vision to realize that trends were changing. A winery could no longer live off Kiddush wine and grape juice. He understood that to improve the final product he would have to seek better vineyards or gain more control of vineyard management and employ an internationally trained winemaker. The winery would need to move to a new, larger site, and invest in more advanced equipment and technology. And, step by step, that is what he did.

Firstly he employed a new winemaker. Shiki Rauchberger became the chief winemaker in 2002. He has a reputation as one of the leading winemakers in the country. Previously he worked at Carmel’s Rishon Le Zion Cellars. He studied at UC Davis and worked with the legendary wine consultant Peter Stern. The associate winemaker, Olivier Fratty, who studied in Bordeaux, joined him in 2006. They are obviously a very successful partnership. The union between the two schools, new and old world, clearly works to the good of the end product.

In 2006, the winery moved to a new site in the Judean Foothills, near Dir Rafat, close to vineyards as Moti always wished. They changed the name of the winery from Efrat to Teperberg, to emphasize it was still a family winery.

Now, they have come up with a complete new branding. The new logo is a very traditional, large Tet (the Hebrew letter) and the slogan is ‘Family winery since 1870.’ The new labels cleverly emphasize family, history and tradition with a touch of modernity.

Today Moti Teperberg is the longest serving CEO of a winery. Teperberg has grown to be the fourth largest winery in Israel and the largest family winery. In 2014 the winery harvested over 7,000 tons of grapes, a far cry from the 250 tons harvested in 1989.

If Zeev Zaide visited today, everything would be unfamiliar. The grape varieties (international varieties instead of local Arab grown varieties), the vineyards (all over, instead of just from Bethlehem & Hebron), the style of wines (dry instead of sweet), the size of the operation, the number of stainless steel tanks…. However he would recognize the name over the door (and on the label), and this would make him feel very much at home. I am certain he would be very proud of his great grandson. Y’Shar Koach Moti & Shiki!

Teperberg Vision Dry White 2014
Light fragrant easy drinking white. Fruity, dry, but with a touch of sweetness and refreshing finish. Great aperitif. NIS 35

Teperberg Vision Malbec 2014
Teperberg is the pioneer of Malbec. This is the entry level. Fruity with an aroma of forest fruits, a touch of greeness, nicely weighted with a clean finish. NIS 35

Teperberg Impression Sangiovese 2014
Light colored, red cherry, berry nose, white pepper, balanced by vanilla flavors. It has a refreshing finish. NIS 45

Teperberg Legacy Petite Sirah 2012
Legacy is the prestige label in a bombastic bottle that makes a heavy port bottle seem light! The wine is a deep colored, powerful but velvety wine, with a ripe plum aroma, a hint of violets and full mouth feel. NIS 170

Teperberg Legacy Petit Verdot 2012
A powerful, full bodied wine, though closed and needing time. It is all there and will soften and open with bottle age. Well worth coming back to it in six months. NIS 170

One of the T shirts most often seen being worn by winemakers carries the slogan: “It takes a lot of beer to make fine wine.” Even wine people need a break from wine tasting sometimes, and when they do, they drink a lot of beer!

So let’s talk beer. Babylon and Egypt were great beer making empires in times gone by. Amusingly, archaeologists recently found fragments of pottery used by Egyptians to make beer, dating back 5,000 years, at a building site in Tel Aviv of all places!

However there was always a certain snobbery between the drinks produced from the grain and the grape. Wine was the drink of kings, empires and the ruling elite. Beer was the bread for the serfs and the working man. Also grain grew where the vine could not. In Israel, there was never any problem growing vines and one of the reasons that wine was the choice of industry of the first aliyah, was that the grape vines flourished, whereas the wheat and barley planted did not survive.

The first brewery in Israel was adjacent to Rishon Le Zion Wine Cellars, It was known as Palestine Beer Breweries. It was founded in 1934 by Frenchman Gaston Dreyfus and James Rothschild. Of course Israelis did not drink beer in those days. The only people drinking beer were the British.

When the British Mandate came to an end, sales crashed and the brewery was eventually closed in 1960. However it will be remembered for two names which live on: Israel’s first beer brand, Nesher, was produced there in 1934 and Israel’s leading selling beer, Goldstar was first produced there in 1950!

The National Brewery continued to fly the beer flag, until a soft drink company called Tempo gathered the various strands under one roof in 1985. Thus was born Tempo Beer Industries in Netanya and it became and still remains Israel’s largest brewery.

Its major competitor, Israel Beer Brewing Ltd (IBBL), then known as Carlsberg Israel, was founded in Ashkelon in 1992 and for the first time Israel had the beginnings of a competitive beer industry.

In the late 1990’s Tempo and IBBL started importing beers or making them under license in Israel. Each now has a full arsenal of international brands to ensure they can provide a full range of styles.

Tempo distributes Heineken, the famous Dutch beer, Samuel Adams, the beer that began the USA craft beer revolution, Murphy’s from Ireland, Paulaners from Germany , Staropramen, a Czech beer and Newcastle Brown from England.

IBBL’s lineup is Carlsberg, and Tuborg from Denmark, Stella Artois, Leffe and Hoegarden from Belgium, Weihenstephan from Germany and the one and only Guinness, from Ireland.

In the 2000’s, about 10 years after the boutique wine revolution, a micro-brewery movement was born, and the result was a number of boutique producers making beers of individuality and variety to add color to the Israel beer scene. Dancing Camel was the first craft brewery founded in 2006 and it was swiftly followed by Alexander, Bazelet, Jem’s, Malka, Negev, Shapiro and many others. All are making genuinely good beers and should be supported.

So Israel now has a more vibrant beer market than ever before. The major brands are in the supermarkets, but visit the local wine shop and quality bar, and they will as likely or not stock beers from smaller producers. However Israel remains a tiny country in terms of production and consumption.

The greatest brewing nations are the Czech Republic, Germany, Belgium and Britain. Czech breweries were the first to use hops and they invented the pilsner style of beer. The Czech Republic has the highest beer consumption per head in the world.

Germany is famous for instigating the beer purity laws. They have more breweries than any country in the world. They are famous mainly for Pilsener style lagers and also for wheat beers.

Belgium has the largest range of beers of any country and some styles unique to them, like Lambic beers. They have a beer culture not dissimilar to the wine culture in France.

Britain is famous for its ales, and cellar conditioned draught bitter, (Real Ale), drawn by hand pump, and Ireland is well known for its stouts, in particular Guinness.

However none of them are the largest beer producer in the world. That honor goes to the Americans. Fortunately their craft beer, microbrewery revolution has infused their volume based beer industry with some quality and interest.

Whereas wine is made from grapes, beer is a simple product that comes from grain, usually barley. The only other ingredients are water, yeast and hops. The barley is steeped in water to leech out the fermentable starch. The resulting malty liquid is fermented with yeast, which eats up the sugars, flavored with the addition of hops and the result is an alcoholic beer.

Beers tend to be Lagers or Ales. Lagers are like white wines, in which fermentation is at cooler temperatures for a longer time. The idea is to create a drink which is super refreshing and served very cold.

Ales are like the red wines. Fermentation is at a higher temperature and for a shorter period, producing a more flavorful product. The main difference is in the yeasts. Lager yeast ferments at the bottom of the fermenting vessel, and works more slowly. Ale yeast ferments at the top and works faster.

The most influential lager is the Pilsener style, made famous by Pilsener Urkell from the Czech Republic. The shortened version known to drinkers worldwide is Pils. This has created the most popular style of beer in the world which conquered all in the second half of the 20th century. San Miguel is a Pilsen style lager.

Most of the largest global brands are lagers, but big brand often equals bland, and some the largest selling beers do not have much character. Fortunately there is more variety today, and consumers can pick and choose.

Colors of lagers can vary from the pale gold Pilsener to the rustier deeper colored Goldstar for instance. There are also amber colored lagers and even dark lagers, but the popular style is beautifully colored, with a tight head of small bubbles. It makes you thirsty just looking at it. Carlsberg, Heineken and Stella Artois are examples of pale lagers.

Ales vary in color from the Blonde, a term used in Belgium, which as its name suggests looks like a pale lager, to the dark stout, which is as black as coca cola. The difference in color is dependent on the level of roasting of the malt.

Abbey beers are made in Belgium, usually produced by Trappist Monasteries. They are strong and fruity, sometimes with a touch of sweetness. Leffe Brown is an Abbey beer.

Pale Ale is a style that originated in Britain. It is pale because of the use of paler malts. Bass is a famous pale ale first made in Burton on Trent in 1777. Fuller’s London Pride comes from London. Newcastle Brown is a darker, nuttier version of ale, produced in the north of England.

IPA stands for Indian Pale Ale. When beer was shipped to India, extra handfuls of hops were thrown in to act as a preservative on the long journey. Hence IPA’s tend to be hoppier, fruitier with a balancing bitterness.

Wheat beers or Weissbeers are ales made from the use of wheat. They are often cloudy being unfiltered with a very yeasty, aromatic aroma. These are like the aromatic wines made from Muscat or Gewurztraminer grape varieties. Examples are Hoegarden, Paulaner and Weihenstephan.

Stouts are ales which are as black as night, with a bitter sweet character and nose of malt and mocha and a creamy head from the use of nitrogen. The daddy of them all is Guinness and Murphy’s is another Irish stout. For those who have Guinness for the first time , start with the draft. It is smoother, whilst in the bottle, the bitterness loved by Guinness drinkers is more apparent.

Of course, there is so much more variety. As always, find what you like and enjoy experimenting with new styles. For more information, I recommend any books by the late Michael Jackson, (no relation), who was the Hugh Johnson of the beer world. In Hebrew the best guide is the book Beer and Beyond by Shahar Hertz (www.beerandbeyond.com)

Sometimes a shluk (taste) of beer can be the only cure for long hot Israeli summer.

Maybe the Syrah grape produces wine that does not have the structure of Cabernet Sauvignon, nor the wild perfume of Pinot Noir, but it does straddle the two and have some of the qualities of both. It is too hot here in Israel for a really good Pinot Noir, and though Cabernet Sauvignon is still king, cab demands high elevation of at least 500 meters above sea level to come in its own.

The main quality of Syrah is that it is very suitable for our climate and it grows everywhere with equal success, whether the high altitude Golan or the flatter Judean region. It is a latecomer, only making Aliyah to Israel in the last 20 years or so. This is surprising as most varieties have been here previously at some time or another. However, better late than never. It is a marriage made in heaven. I believe Syrah has the most potential of any variety to make quality wines from different terroirs across the price scale. Potentially this is the variety that could knock Cabernet Sauvignon off its perch.

The Syrah grape variety produces great wine in two places on the planet. In the Northern Rhone, it is associated with rare, pricey wines with names like Hermitage, Cornas, Côte-Rotie, Crozes Hermitage and St. Joseph.

In Australia, where the same variety is known as Shiraz, the iconic wines such as Penfolds Grange and Henschke Hill of Grace are both examples of how good Australian Shiraz can be.

In the South of France, Syrah is usually only used in blends. In the Southern Rhone, it is a junior part of the Châteauneuf du Pape blend, and is usually more prominent along with Grenache and Mourvèdre in Languedoc Roussillon.

In Australia the classic blend is Cabernet Sauvignon Shiraz, two varieties which combine well together. If you see GSM on the label, the initials are the clue. The blend is likely to be Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre.

Throughout the world, the words Shiraz & Syrah are interchangeable. They are the same grape variety. One is a synonym for the other. Confusingly, both are used here, though Shiraz seems to be used more often. Basically, those that have planted the Australian clone tend to use the word Shiraz, and those using the French clone, use the word Syrah. However, there are no rules and the decision of which to use may simply boil down to a marketing choice of the winery.

Anyway, don’t let the name get in the way of the message. Israel is today making some very fine wines from this variety and this has been supported by international, third party recognition. Arguably, the finest examples are the single vineyard Carmel Kayoumi Shiraz from the Upper Galilee and the rare, strictly allocated Clos de Gat Sycra Syrah (NK) from the Judean Hills. Others include the Adir Shiraz, Flam Syrah, Leuria Syrah, Montefiore Syrah, Recanati Reserve Syrah Viognier, Tulip Syrah, Yarden Syrah and Yatir Syrah. All show varietal typicity and each in their different ways, prove the point.

So what is the flavor profile of Syrah Well, the wines generally tend to be very deep colored. They have blackberry, blackcurrant and plum aromas with hints of black pepper, a backdrop of herbs and spice, and sometimes a touch of leather or even a smoky character, reminiscent of smoked meat. Some are in a richer, fruitier, broader, more oaky style, others are leaner. There are similar differences between the ‘new’ and ‘old’ worlds. The Australian versions are deeper, more intense, riper and with sweeter fruit. At the other end of the Syrah spectrum, the Rhone Syrahs are more austere, elegant and delicately fragrant.

However the Syrah or Shiraz is nothing if not versatile. The younger versions can be bright and vibrant, with simple, juicy, up front raspberry and cherry-berry fruit.

At a midway point, I would put the Gamla Syrah, Recanati Shiraz, Carmel Private Collection Shiraz and Tabor Adama Shiraz at the head of the pack with the best quality per price ratio. Fruit forward, easy to drink, but full of flavor. These are great introductions to Syrah, at an affordable price!

Syrah also plays a crucial role in the new Israeli style of Mediterranean blends such as the Shvo Red (NK), Lewinsohn Red (NK) and Chateau Golan Geshem (NK). These are super, chewy, flavorful wines. This is a style of wine that is becoming a trend in Israel.

As for Cabernet Sauvignon Syrah blends, following the Australian model, the Carmel Appellation Cabernet Shiraz is excellent value, and at the other end of spectrum, the Tzora Misty Hills is majestic. A wine to age in your cellars or to open, drink slowly and savor. Arguably the finest blend of these two varieties in the country.

It is fascinating to me that Syrah has also slipped in under the radar to other Eastern Mediterranean countries, where it is contributing to some very good wines. It could even become the variety most associated with this ancient region that gave wine culture to the world. I always preach we should know the wines of our neighbors if we want to better understand the terroir and wines of Israel.

Well here are some great wines to convince you: Domaines des Tourelles Syrah du Liban from Lebanon, Domaine Vlassides Shiraz from Cyprus, Kayra Imperial Shiraz and Kavaklidere Pendore Syrah from Turkey and Gerovassiliou Syrah from Greece. If you can track them down, you will see they are a fabulous advertisement for the new marriage between Syrah and the Eastern Mediterranean countries. Israel is not alone!

It has almost become the standard in Lebanon that Syrah is blended with Cabernet Sauvignon and other Bordeaux varieties in the ‘Grand Vin’ of many of the leading wineries. Also in the other East Med countries, like Cyprus, Greece and Turkey, there are praiseworthy attempts to blend Syrah with their own indigenous varieties.

Though Syrah is relatively new in the Eastern Mediterranean, the same can’t be said of North Africa. There, they probably have more, old vine vineyards of Syrah than anywhere in the world. This is from the time the French planted vineyards there, to surreptitiously import wines to France to secretly bolster up their own fine wines. Now almost as a result of neglect, the vineyards still exist. For the most part, the potential is unfulfilled but there are exceptions. The most international Syrah produced in North Africa is the Tandem Syrah produced in Morocco, by Thalvin in a joint venture with Alain Graillot, one of the greats of the Northern Rhone. Elsewhere the wine can be found under the inventive name Syrocco!

Many believe that the roots of Syrah variety point to the Middle East. Certainly if names are anything to go by, there is a town in Iran called Shiraz and it may not be too fanciful to guess that the word Syrah was derived from Syria. I would love to believe it was born in our region, and then transported by the Phoenicians to Europe. Unfortunately, I have no evidence to support my fantasy theory, but I do have a fertile imagination!

Incidentally, apart from the heights it reaches in France and Australia, Syrah is also planted in Chile, New Zealand, California, South Africa and Argentina, as well as Spain and Italy. This classic, noble variety is really global.

The point I want to make is that it has crept into Israel along with our neighbouring winemaking countries, almost without us noticing, and it is making some pretty good wines. Que sera sera, whatever will be, will be. However, I just wonder whether in the future, Syrah will come to be regarded as the leading quality ambassador of the Eastern Mediterranean region

Mr. Durif was born in France but never really succeeded there. He changed his name and travelled to far off lands where he achieved great success in the eyes of a small number of followers, but mass appeal and fame still eluded him. He never had the popularity of Mr. Cabernet or Mrs. Chardonnay. Also his new name provided constant confusion with his more famous parent Mr. Syrah.

Of course, I am referring to the Durif grape variety, created in the late 19th century by French botanist Francois Durif. In his nursery he had plantings of Peloursin and Syrah, and hey presto, one thing met another, and a new grape variety called Durif was born.

The Durif never took off in its homeland in the South of France, but when it became known as Petite Sirah, (it is sometimes spelt Petite Syrah) and was planted in California and Australia, the wines it made did gain a following amongst the wine anoraks and people who appreciated its qualities.

Despite its name, until the late 1990’s, Petite Sirah was thought to have nothing to do with the more noble variety, Syrah. However in 1997 its parents were finally identified by the University of California.

As it started life in Mediterranean France, it is no surprise that this variety is extremely well suited to Israel’s Eastern Mediterranean climate.

The Petite Sirah grape variety was a new immigrant to Israel in the 1970’s. It was brought over here purely to provide color, structure and body to inexpensive blends. That is exactly the role it played for nearly thirty years. Few people were even aware they were drinking it.

Incidentally the other varieties bought over at exactly the same time were Emerald Riesling and French Colombard! They all came on the same boat, brought over by the legendary French born Director of the Israel Wine Institute, Charles Loinger, who is in his 95th year. Emerald Riesling became for a time the largest selling wine in Israel producing semi dry white wines and Colombard became the main blending white variety (like Carignan amongst the reds.) Interestingly both are now in decline at the time when the renaissance of Petite Sirah is well under way.

The change in Petite Sirah’s fortunes began when winery owner Yair Margalit decided to use 15% Petite Sirah in his rare, strictly allocated Special Reserve. He insisted that this addition, to 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, was what made the wine ‘special.’ His was the first quality boutique winery in the country and his special reserve was arguably Israel’s first cult wine. It was the first time the wine intelligentsia in Israel took notice of Petite Sirah.

Then two boutique wineries began to make Petite Sirah varietal wines in the early 2000’s. They were the Sea Horse Winery at Bar Giora in the Judean Hills and Vitkin Winery, situated at Kfar Vitkin in the Sharon Plain. Both wineries decided to specialize in more unusual, less fashionable varieties. The respective winemakers Zeev Dunie and Assaf Paz saw the potential and understood the special affinity Petite Sirah had with the Israel climate. They were the pioneers.

The larger wineries which took the Petite Sirah idea on board were Carmel and Recanati. They decided to rejuvenate the variety.

A large proportion of the Petite Sirah vineyards in the country were Carmel’s, but it had previously been used for entry level blends. However they chose a 40 year old vineyard in the Judean Hills, with thick trunked, low bush vines, almost on the ground and drastically reduced yields. The results were that the unfashionable Petite Sirah was found to produce wonderful wines, which were totally original.

Recanati Winery has become a flagbearer for Mediterranean style wines, and they initially introduced their Petite Sirah blended with a little Zinfandel. Now they continue with a varietal Petite Sirah under their Reserve label.

Petite Sirah produces very dark, inky wines, with concentrated black fruit and a tantalizing whiff of violets, with a backdrop of black pepper. Can you imagine a big dark wine with the most delicate flowery aroma The wines are tannic, with a plummy, meaty, earthy flavor. They are usually full bodied and suitable for the largest steak or a selection of grilled meats. Petite Sirah is a wine for carnivores. You won’t get an elegant wine, which is refreshing with good acidity from this variety, but you will get a real mouthful of wine with more flavor, added complexity and the true taste of Israel.

Israeli Petite Sirahs have received international recognition. The Appellation Petite Sirah was awarded four stars in Decanter Magazine and was also made Wine of The Month in the same magazine.

The Recanati Petite Sirah was listed by Berry Bros. of London, maybe the most famous and certainly the most historic wine shop in the world. A massive compliment.

The Carmel Vineyards Petite Sirah was selected by Mark Squires and Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate as ‘The Best of Israel in 2014.’ Furthermore it was selected in the Best Value category.

The Dalton Petite Sirah scored 93 points in the Wine Enthusiast Magazine, equaling the highest score for an Israeli wine.

If we are talking about the grape variety Israel may become known for, both Carignan and Petite Sirah are often mentioned in the same breath. Both had a pretty poor image for a long time, but winemakers have learnt to make quality wines from these traditional varieties by being very selective, working where possible with older vines and reducing yields dramatically at harvest.

Certainly the Carignan grape variety is more part of the Israeli story having been here from the beginning. However Petite Sirah really grows well here and the best wines are outstanding. It is perfect for our climate and produces wines of great power, depth and complexity.

Wine connoisseurs are more interested in tasting an old vine Petite Sirah, rather than yet another Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot. If Israel is looking for regional identity, then Petite Sirah is a wine that is reasonably unique, and the wines produced are original with strong regional character.

The finest Petite Sirahs in Israel are the Carmel Vineyards Petite Sirah, Dalton Petite Sirah, Recanati Reserve Petite Sirah, Montefiore Petite Sirah and Vitkin Petite Sirah. Any of these are great examples if you are looking to sample a Petite Sirah wine for the first time.

Petite Sirah remains a superb blending grape, which over the years has been its primary use. The best blends incorporating Petite Sirah are the Shilo Legend Red, a blend of Petite Sirah, Petit Verdot and Shiraz. This wine also achieved the score of 93 points in the Wine Enthusiast.

Also the Tabor Sufa, (Storm), produced by Tabor Winery, is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Petite Sirah with great complexity and a long flavorful finish . Furthermore the Sea Horse Winery uses Petite Sirah in a number of its creative, unusual blends, which are always full of character and individuality.

In California, Petite Sirah has gained a loyal following. It even has its own marketing advocacy group, ‘PS I Love You’, created to promote, educate and share information with other lovers. Petite Sirah is also appreciated in Australia and Mexico, but I believe the expressions of this variety here are particularly interesting.

So next time you meet Mr. Durif, give him a chance. Try something different and sample a true expression of the Israeli climate, earth and terroir. The effect on your palate will not be as small as his pseudonym would imply.

THE COVENANT KITCHEN
The Covenant Kitchen is a newly published book, for the ‘new Jewish table’. It is a fun read and a great cookbook filled with the flavors of Italy, Provence, North Africa, Asia, California and Israel. It is written by Jeff & Jodie Morgan, co-owners of the Covenant Winery in Berkeley, California.

Jeff Morgan has a twinkle in his eye with the look of someone who has seen it all but still lives life to the full, and his wife Jodie is charming and vivacious. They are veterans of the food world having written no less than seven cookbooks, but this is their first on the kosher kitchen. Jeff Morgan is also a veteran of the wine world, which he has straddled as a customer, writer, critic and producer. Their winery produces some of the finest kosher wines in the world.

I particularly like the book because a fair bit is devoted to wine. I think every cookbook should have wine in it somewhere, but it rarely happens if ever. However, the Covenant Kitchen offers an introduction to wine which will interest both the wine lover and the person new to wine, who wants to learn. It is pitched exactly right.

Furthermore, every recipe has a wine matched to it. So if you wanted to know which wine goes with hummus, you need look no further. At the same time, for those uptight about matching food with wine, the Morgans explain that the perfect match does not exist and that it is all to do with personal taste.

I particularly liked their advice about whether it is worth buying expensive or cheap wines: “If you can tell the difference, then it is worth paying for. If not, buy something inexpensive”.

Another comment I picked out was: “Wine is like real estate, where value is often measured by perception of quality.” Smart, and so right.

For those who hoard special bottles for some special time in the future, the Morgans urge “Why not tonight” and explain “wine does not need to age to taste good.” The wine section is full of information and advice with a few gems thrown in.

The meat of the book is its recipes. Each is clearly marked pareve, meat or dairy. There are all the standards including their own take on kosher classics like ‘Cowboy Cholent’. But it is also a cookbook that will be attractive to the keen cook whether Jewish or not. For instance the Lavender Goat Cheese Tart, Grilled Sardines, Spiced Lamb Tagine and Orange Olive Oil cake are particularly enticing.

I always consider wine, food & good company is a holy trinity and if one part of the three legged stool is missing, the experience is not the same. The Morgans add a fourth leg. The spiritual aspect.

It was kosher winemaking that bought Jeff Morgan, a lapsed Jew, back to Judaism. He was driven by the urge to make, in his words, the best kosher wine in 5,000 years.

Well he more than succeeded. The king and queen of wine critics are of one mind. Robert Parker referred to Covenant as “the finest kosher wines on planet earth.” Jancis Robinson MW referred to it as “maybe the best kosher wine I have ever tasted.” Praise indeed from the doyens of wine criticism.

I was fortunate to be invited to a very rare vertical tasting of his Covenant Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley from the 2003 to the 2012. It was held in Jaffa in a beautiful setting, overlooking the Mediterranean. I have to admit they were an outstanding range of wines. The 2003 is still drinking well. For what it’s worth, my favorites were the Covenant 2004, 2008 and 2012.

Jeff Morgan had a Barmitzvah at the ripe age of 54, goes regularly to Shul and tears up when explaining how making kosher wine has bought him to Judaism. Just in case you don’t get the importance to him of being Jewish, the names of his wines make it quite clear. Apart from Covenant, his other labels have names like Red C, (with a bid red C on the label), The Tribe, Mensch and Landsman. This is a message of someone who has a pride in his Judaism and does not mind who knows it.

The Morgans were in to food and wine before immersing themselves in kosher wine through the Covenant Winery, and now kosher food through this great new book. Next stop Why, Israel of course! Seems like a natural progession.

They have had a great excuse to become regular visitors. Their daughter Zoey has come to live here and they have recently bottled the very first Covenant Israel wines. There is a delicious, refreshing rosé (in another life Jeff Morgan was Mr. Rosé, but that is another story), virtually sold out on release. There is also a red to be released in September. This is a Syrah, which will keep drawing you back to take another sip.

The labels have the characteristic Morgan wit. In this instance, the word Covenant written in blue on a white silhouette of the map of Israel. It is not for nothing that the Covenant from California is a Cabernet Sauvignon, and Covenant Israel is mainly from Syrah. He believes that is the variety to follow here.

What’s next Maybe a Covenant Israeli Kitchen! We will just have to wait and see.

HAPPY HOURS
Mira Eitan is a person with as much experience of bars as you would want for someone writing a book on spirits and cocktails. She has literally worked in every facet of the industry. Working as a barmaid, running a bar, participating in professional tastings, not forgetting a lifetime of frequenting bars, drinking with friends. Whichever bar she will be in, she is the one with the biggest smile and the most people around her.

She has an enormous amount of product knowledge, but also knows the stories and folklore surrounding the brands. This encouraged her to start to write for a crowd hungry for information.

There are hundreds of books about wines of every type from anywhere and everywhere. Articles explaining the secrets of the bar were few and far between. However she does not just know the theory. She also knows the context in which drinks are served and the type of things customers and enthusiasts yearn to know. She took to her new career as a journalist like a duck to water.

Eventually she reached the top of her profession, becoming the number one female journalist specializing in wines and spirits in Israel. Then she edited the magazine Wine, Gourmet & Alcohol, the county’s leading drinks magazine in the country, for many years. A long time in the drinks industry has not dulled her passion and little girl excitement. She is a long standing friend, but I am not alone. Everyone knows and likes Mira.

She has now distilled all the years of bars, drinking, shmoozing with drinks people into an excellent book called Happy Hour. It is beautifully presented, handily compact and well balanced between the story or anecdote and the practical. If you want to understand the difference between whisky and whiskey, learn about what is Al Namroud, or need to learn how to make a Margarita, this the book for you. Regrettably it is only as yet in Hebrew, but there are not so many books like this around and I thoroughly recommend it for professionals or amateurs alike.

I was standing proudly on the Israeli stand at the Prowein wine exhibition in Germany, when I heard someone say: “Well, I suppose we are all here because of you!” I wheeled around, and saw the remarks were directed at Shimshon Welner.

Welner was the first managing director of the Golan Heights Winery, who founded the winery in 1983. Somehow from a background in growing apples on the Golan Heights, he was able to cajole a number of growers to get together to create a winery. He was smart enough to import expertise and aim for the maximum quality with no compromise. How did he do it Because he was smart, intelligent, feisty, canny, eager to learn and totally focused on the objective. He took on the wine establishment and conventional way of doing things and came out on top due to bloody minded perseverance.

Partly because Israelis have very short memories, Welner’s contribution to Israeli wine has largely been forgotten, and yet, credit where it was due, it really was the beginning of the revolution in Israeli winemaking. Arguably Welner was at the time the most influential figure since Baron Edmond de Rothschild, who founded the Israel wine industry a hundred years previously.

Think where we were then. The big sellers were Grenache Rose, Hock and Adom Atik. Carmel was the dominant winery. Stock and Eliaz were the next biggest. The best Israeli wines were the Carmel Special Reserves of 1976 and 1979, the first Israeli wines aged in small oak barrels. The big guy receives a lot of knocks, and Carmel was frequently the target of criticism, but they do deserve credit for establishing the infrastructure of Israeli wine and for keeping the industry going for a 100 difficult years of austerity and strife.

However at the time, the wine and food industries were driven by the need for production and distribution, rather than branding and marketing. There was no perception of quality. A farmer grew grapes and sent them once a year to the winery. Israeli wine was made at the winery. A winemaker rarely visited a vineyard. Wines generally lacked varietal character and white wines were often yellowing and oxidized on the shelves.

So what did Shimshon Welner do that was special?
Firstly he imported expertise. Peter Stern from California was employed as wine consultant and he chaperoned a series of UC Davis trained winemakers who worked on the Golan. That’s how it was until 1992 when Victor Schoenfeld became the first permanent chief winemaker. For the first 15 years at least, Stern’s contribution was influential and crucial. No-one can take away what he did for Israeli wine.

In the vineyard, the changes were most apparent. The importance of the vineyard was given its rightful place for the first time. With vineyards up to 1,200 meters above sea level and the volcanic tuff and basalt stone, people started talking about the importance of terroir for the first time. Welner understood you could not make good wine from bad grapes. The new idea was that you grew wine and not grapes.

This was the first time altitude was understood to be important. It was realized we are North Africa in terms of latitude, and it was important to climb to produce a longer, cooler and more balanced growing season. Today whether it is the Golan Heights, Upper Galilee, Judean Hills, Central Mountains or Negev Highlands, it is appreciated that the best wine is made from high elevation vineyards.

One of the most important changes was that all decisions in the vineyard, passed from the grower to the winery for the first time. The winemaker was therefore the key decision maker of how to prune and when to harvest. The concept of making wine in the vineyard began here.

In the winery, new world technology came to Israel for the first time. Strict temperature control and cold fermentation techniques, allowed for production of quality wines in a hot climate.

Welner was as revolutionary in marketing as he was in the winery and vineyard. The label became something aesthetical for marketing an image rather than just imparting information. The original gold foil, colorful mosaic and ancient oil lamp gave the first label a style and quality which has lasted the test of time. The Yarden label has barely changed over the last 30 years. That is a great compliment to the design.

The label and logo were chosen by Peter Stern. When I worked at the Golan Heights Winery, he gave me the folder explaining how they chose the logo, brand names and labels. It was a priceless historical memoir of the time. When I left, I obviously left it behind. I hope it is not lying forgotten somewhere.

The wines themselves were priced up, well above the norm, bringing wine into the aspiration and luxury category, rather than being a mere commodity.

Furthermore, the wines were sold on strict allocation to certain customers only. They were initially sold only to the King David Hotel and then at the Hilton Tel Aviv too, as well as in export. Nothing like scarcity to drive demand!

Welner also set up the deals with important distribution partners included Magash Shaked in Israel, House of Hallgarten in Britain and Royal Wine and Winebow in America. These companies became partners in developing the brand.

Recognition was swift. In 1984, Yarden wines, particularly the Sauvignon Blanc, were referred to in America as Israel’s first world class wines. In 1985 Tom Friedman wrote a complimentary article in the New York Times. He referred to Shimshon as irrepressible. This was a turning point in the fortunes in America.

In 1987, the Yarden Cabernet Sauvignon 1984 won the Gold Medal and Winiarski Trophy at the International Wine and Spirits Competition in London. A sensation.

Then in 1989 at Vinexpo in Bordeaux, the Yarden Cabernet Sauvignon 1985 won the Grand Prix d’Honneur. Confirmation. Israeli wine was on the world wine map.

I was in England at the time, (in the mid 80’s), purchasing wine for a hotel chain.  I remember putting Yarden Sauvignon Blanc, Gamla Cabernet Sauvignon, and Golan Mount Hermon White (yes, then it was Golan. Later it was sold under the Yarden brand. Today the label is Hermon!), on the wine lists in restaurants throughout the chain. This was my introduction to Israeli wine.

Today, in his mid 70’s, Shimshon still appears driven.  He runs Welner Wines, a family business with his wife Liora and son, Yahav. He makes best value kosher wine at eleven different wineries, in seven different countries. Sounds like a logistical nightmare to me, but Welner controls everything from harvesting, production through to marketing and sales.

He markets to twenty countries, including giants like Trader Joe’s in America and Tesco in Britain. He targets a shelf price of $8 or under. He knows most sales of wine around the world is under $10 a bottle. Incidentally, most Israeli wine in export markets is priced above this.

Shimshon Welner can often be seen today at international wine shows. He is usually bent slightly forward, walking quickly, dragging a bag on wheels. My main job in the days I worked at the Golan Heights Winery was knotting the ties of the successive CEO’s on visits abroad. Shimshon has never benefited from my expertise. He wears a tie Israeli style, with a large knot and at half-mast. He always has mischievous twinkle in his eye and he always talk to you as though he is in a rush. Usually he is.

The success of Welner Wines is apparent on the shelves abroad. However that is another story. For now, we should appreciate the changes he introduced in the viticulture, winemaking and marketing of wine here in Israel, that influenced a whole industry for the better. The quality wines of today owe a great deal to those beginnings. How many things which we take for granted today, were first introduced by this enterprising pioneer!

In western culture, cheese is normally part of a meal and there is usually a whole course devoted to cheese. The English will normally enjoy cheeses at the end of the meal, after the dessert. This would traditionally be accompanied by a glass of Port, the famous fortified wine from Portugal. The French will serve their cheeses after the main course and before the desserts. This enables the red wine served with the main course to be continued with the cheeses.

In countries like Switzerland and the Netherlands, cheese is often served at breakfast. This would also be true of Israel. The famed Israeli breakfast covers a large range of dairy products, where there are no problems of kashrut, (mixing milk and meat.) In countries like Greece & Spain, cheese will often be served as part of the mezze or tapas at the beginning of the meal.

In Jewish culture though, we do have a festival at which it is traditional to serve dairy products. This is at Shavuot, which gives the perfect opportunity to hold a cheese and wine party.

There is something satisfyingly rustic with having a meal of freshly baked, crusty bread, with a variety of cheeses and a carafe of wine. Have you ever enjoyed the experience of ordering what is called a Ploughman’s Lunch in an English pub

The phrase, ‘cheese and wine’ rolls off the tongue. They are natural partners like Ginger Rodgers and Fred Astaire. There is a famous saying in the English wine trade: “Buy on an apple, sell on cheese.” This means an apple will show up the quality of wine as it is, faults and all, whereas cheese will make a wine more palatable. So when you are buying the wine, taste it with a slice of apple, but when you are selling it, provide cheese which will enhance the wines.

This does not mean that every wine goes with every cheese. For instance, there is regular misconception that red wine is the most natural partner to cheese, but there can be some awful clashes. Funnily enough, white wines can often go better and be more versatile.

The wine world is complicated enough. Well the cheese world is if anything even more complicated. There is such variety. Cheese may be strong flavored, fat, acidic or salty. It can be hard, soft, creamy or crumbly. It can be matured, pasteurized or unpasteurized; made from goat’s milk, cow, or sheep. President Charles de Gaulle once said: “How can anyone govern a nation that has two hundred and forty-six different kinds of cheese And he was talking only about France!

However to prepare a cheese and wine party is relatively easy to do. You will need to decide if you want to go international or Israeli. There are plenty of good quality options here too. As a simple guide, I suggest you choose at least four different types of cheese as a minimum. These could be a hard cheese, a soft cheese, a goat’s cheese and a blue cheese. This is enough to give the necessary variety.

The hard cheese may be something like Emmental, Gruyère, Cheddar or Parmesan. The best wines to match with this will be a full bodied dry white wine like an oaked aged Chardonnay or medium bodied red, possibly made from Bordeaux varieties, (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot etc.)

In the same way the English add milk to lessen the tannin of the strong tea they drink, the cheese will soften the tannin of the wine. Remember an older, matured cheese will be tangier with a more pronounced acidity. If the cheese is older and more pungent, the wine needs to be more mature and less tannic to avoid a clash. For this you will need older vintages. Cheeses start bland and become stronger as they age. With wine it is the opposite. Older wines are less tannic and astringent.

The goat’s cheese could be a Chèvre. The options are endless because Israel excels in this category. There some wonderful Israeli goat’s cheeses from boutique dairies. They tend to have a strong goaty character, but can go with either white or red wines. However, the classic combination for a young goat’s cheese is a varietal Sauvignon Blanc, which is very aromatic, totally dry and with a sharp, refreshing acidity. An aged goat’s cheese will go better with a well-rounded, soft style Merlot.

The soft cheese, maybe a Brie or Camembert, or something similar. If this style of cheese is too young, it will be virtually tasteless, and your guest will wonder what all the fuss was about. However if it is older, and runny, it can be so pungent as to be too strong for any wine. A balance between the creaminess and the flavor is what is desired.

This is the hardest category to find a match. A creamy, fatty cheese will make most reds seem like water. The fat in the cheese will neutralize the tannin, but an oaky and tannic red wine will taste slightly metallic when these cheeses are ripe and runny.

A Brie or Camembert would best be served alongside a lightly oaked Chardonnay with good acidity. Or alternatively, a light unoaked red wine with lots of fruit, good acidity and no tannin is the best choice. A Beaujolais style red or entry level wine from one of the larger wineries would really be ideal.

The classic blue cheeses are Stilton and Roquefort. The match made in heaven is to drink them with sweet wine because the saltiness of the cheese and sweetness play a concerto of matching flavors in your mouth. Opposites attract. A quality dessert wine, (in Israel often made from Gewurztraminer or Muscat grapes), would be the perfect partner. Alternatively a port style fortified wine will also do the trick. The salt and sweetness contrast to enhance both cheese and wine. Tasting these together should be part of any course matching food and wine to illustrate the theory does sometimes work and that ‘one plus one can equal three.’

Salt accentuates tannin so the myth that red wine goes with all cheeses is shown to be most false when a red wine is matched with a blue cheese. Note that authentic Danish Blue and the strongest Gorgonzola may just be too strong to be wine friendly.

That only leaves us with the dessert to eat after the cheeses. Obviously this is likely to be …a cheesecake! No surprises there. The best wine to enjoy with the classic New York style of cheesecake is a fortified Muscat.

Serve the cheeses at room temperature, so take them out of the fridge in advance. Decorate the cheese platter with grapes, served cold from the fridge, chutney, with some walnuts and finally a few cut vegetables, like carrots and peppers of different colors. Celery also provides a crisp, refreshing partner to cheeses. Buy some crusty baguettes, which you can cut just before people arrive, and have some healthy crackers available too.

As for wines, we have to be practical. You can’t have available every option I have mentioned. However, for the absolute minimum, you need a dry white wine, a medium bodied red wine and a dessert wine. Provide one glass for everyone and you will have prepared the easiest party you have ever hosted.

Israeli cheeses are so good and have gone through a similar quality revolution to Israeli wines. We all love cheeses, but sometimes worry about eating too much cheese for health reasons. How lucky we are that the Jewish faith has catered for us with a festival where it is compulsory!

I recommend making the most of the opportunity with a smile!

Wedding season is approaching and planning for those special days is underway. A question every wedding organizer should decide at an early stage is, who is taking care of the wine I am sure for every simcha, there have been endless food tastings, with discussions down to the finest details. It always surprises me the attention the preparation of the menu receives, whereas with regard to wine, people seem happy to go with whatever the caterer offers.

However, the choice of wine can leave an impression and affect the enjoyment of your guests. So forgive me for giving a little focus to wedding wine here.

If it is your responsibility, you will need to consider a drink as an aperitif as guests arrive, the pre-ceremony drinks bar and then, last but not least, wine for the meal itself.

Ideally a sparkling wine should be served on trays by waiters moving amongst guests as they arrive. Champagne is the classic wine for the aperitif. However you don’t need to pay for real champagne which is expensive in Israel. There are Israeli sparkling wines and kosher imported sparkling wines at more convenient prices.

It is tempting for a wine lover to choose a bone dry sparkling wine because that is what they like. Remember for a function you are buying to satisfy the lowest common denominator of wine lovers. So a sparkling wine with a touch of delicate sweetness may be a better choice. (Confusingly ‘Extra Dry’ on the label will be sweeter than a sparkling wine described as Brut.)

What caterers love to do is add cassis to a sparkling wine to make a Kir Royal. This makes the sparkling wine sweeter, and it will certainly be a beautiful color. However, I can’t help thinking that any addition destroys the quality of the sparkling wine. When I receive a Kir Royal I always think they have done it to mask the quality of a pretty dire sparkling wine.

My advice is, if you want the sweetness, buy a sweeter sparkling wine and if you want the pretty color, buy a rosé. I am a fan of rosé sparkling wines for weddings. Their delicate, salmon pink color seems to be suitably romantic.

Many caterers and banqueting halls readily offer a sickly sweet, bubbly, soapy, often colorful liqueur cocktail before an event. Again, I suggest sticking to straight sparkling wine. Certainly bubbles have never been more popular.

You will need wine at the bar. Normally the wine offered will be the cheapest wine from a recognizable large winery, but the label will be unrecognizable, because it will only be used in function halls. It will normally be a red, maybe a Merlot and a white, which is often an Emerald Riesling.

The sensible choice is to rely on the house wine of the caterer which will automatically be the cheapest wine their negotiating skills could arrange. However if you are buying wine both for the bar, the aperitif and the meal, you can save bottles by choosing the same two wines to cover every situation. Cabernet Sauvignon and a semi dry Gewurztraminer may be an upgrade on the Merlot and Emerald Riesling.

The standard at most function halls, is to find a red wine sitting in the middle of your table, usually chilled. For a white wine, you have to ask the waiter, if you can find one. I certainly don’t mind if the red wine is cold. By the time it is drunk, it will be pleasantly chilled and refreshing, rather than too warm.

There is of course no reason why you should not upgrade the wines offered initially. You may choose a more expensive menu to give your guests better food. You can also ask to upgrade the wine to gain better value for your shekel.

There are creative options. I recently went to a wedding where a basic white wine was served in ice buckets on the tables. At a side table better quality red wines were available. The host was making a statement & complimenting his guests. What was interesting was that most were content with the wine on the tables. Only those that valued the expensive wines, & knew what they were, took the trouble to seek them out. This idea enabled the host to offer a far better wine, but waste the minimum bottles on those that would not appreciate it.

Just make sure, that if you bring you own wines that you don’t need to pay a corkage fee to the caterer, whose interest may be to push the wines that he is contracted to sell. You should also check you don’t need Mevushal wines (pasteurized wines).

I recently provided wine for a family wedding. All was arranged and delivered in advance. When I arrived, relaxed and ready to enjoy myself, my precious wines were nowhere to be seen. I asked where the wine was and was told the Rabbi did not allow it as it wasn’t mevushal! Of course no-one thought to let me know beforehand.

All was resolved after some screeching and wailing, but let my experience be a warning to you. No harm in checking in advance that your kosher wine is kosher…….if you see what I mean!

You should always ensure there is too much wine. It would be embarrassing to run out at your daughter’s wedding. However ensure that the caterer does not open all the bottles in advance (which happens too often) and then when you want to collect the unopened wine, there will be none.

Best choice are light, fruity red wines and an off dry white wines. How many bottles to buy I believe the average size of champagne flute glass used a weddings will allow you to get 8 glasses out of a bottle. Allow for six glasses for a wine served in a normal wine glass. In Israel, I calculate conservatively on a basis of one glass per person. The people who drink more than one glass are balanced out by those who don’t drink at all. There should certainly be at least enough red & white wines to put a bottle of each on every table.

As for the wine, buy in bulk to get the best price. Retailers will give discounts on purchases by the case. A savvy retailer may allow you to return unopened bottles. In Israel I would go for a balance of 60-65% red wines, 35-40% white wines.

If it is a do it yourself affair and you want to chill a number of bottles quickly, then the best way is to put the wines in a large plastic container or a bath tub. Fill it with ice, which may be purchased from a nearby petrol station. Pour in water to cover the bottles and add a little salt which will quicken the cooling process. If you use a domestic fridge, put the wines in at least two hours before you need them.

Finally, don’t forget the most important wine. There are two cups of wine under the Chuppa. The blessing for wine is said and the bride and groom then each take a drink, which is symbolic of the new partnership. It reminds me of all the good bottles of wine they will be sharing in future.

After this, the Sheva Brachot, or seven blessings, are recited, and the happy couple again share in drinking the cup of wine. For me the wine has to be a special one which has a meaning for both parties. Some couples have their song, others have their wine. However my lofty ideals fall on stony ground as a basic Kiddush wine seems the choice of most couples.

The choice of wine can make a difference about how an event is perceived. To splash out on everything, but skimp on the wine, is a pity. Conversely, choosing the right wine can make a meal into a banquet.

Once, not so long ago, the most popular wine in Israel was a rosé. After the peak years of Carmel Hock and Adom Atik and before Emerald Riesling came to the fore, the Carmel Grenache Rosé was king. Many new consumers came to wine via this wine. There was one wine writer who used to talk about a romantic meeting on a beach where this wine featured. It was an induction into wine and a coming of age on the same evening. No-one has ever referred to Grenache Rosé with such love and longing and he traced his interest in wine from this memorable occasion!

In those days rosé wines were recommended as the ultimate compromise choice. The rules then said, white wine goes with fish, red goes with meat, but rosé goes with everything and anything.

However since those heady days, perhaps because it was then a cheap wine and with a generous dollop of sweetness as was then the fashion, things changed. Rosé came to be considered passé in Israel. The new Israeli experts drank red wines.

Thankfully, the last few years have seen not only a revival in the fortunes of rosé, but a revolution. Wine drinkers have realized that this is a style of wine absolutely made for Israel’s climate and wineries have responded by making some really good quality rosés.

Rosé is a perfect Mediterranean wine conjuring up scenes of a cloudless sky, calm sea and casual dining, with mezze on the table. The range of possible styles is quite broad. The color might be a light delicate onion skin pink or alternatively it can look like a red wine that has been mixed with a glass of water. The early Bordeaux wines were named claret by the British because they had a similar light red color.

It can be bone dry, with piercing acidity or virtually semi dry to even medium. It should be fragrant, with delicate berry fruit but not too aromatic. Above all, it should be refreshing. Best served in a white wine glass, rosés are suitable for spicy food, cold meats, fish dishes, sashimi and especially at picnics and barbeques. How about matching colors and drinking a pink wine with baked salmon! Whatever you choose, be sure to serve it very cold. It is the ultimate spring and summer wine for any occasion. Just remember to drink fresh and young. Avoid older rosés on the shelves that take on an orange hue.

Undoubtedly the most developed rosé culture is in France. There a bottle of rosé on the table carries no stigma. No-one looks down on someone who prefers a bottle of rosé instead of a red or white wine.

Arguably the best rosés come from there. Rosé d’Anjou from the Loire Valley, Tavel Rosé from the Rhone Valley and Provence Rosés from the South of France, are examples of some well-known rosés.

White Zinfandel from California is another well-known form of rosé. It is known as a ‘blush’ wine, because of its delicate, paler color. It is more likely to be pink rather than light red, and will almost certainly be considerably sweeter than the French versions. White Zin, as it is known, is extremely popular as an entry level wine.

Closer to home in the eastern & southern Mediterranean, rosé wines also have a strong following. It is a popular style in Morocco, where it is known as ‘vin gris’ or ‘gris de gris’. Lebanon also has particularly good rosés especially those produced by Chateau Kefraya and Chateau Ksara.

Perhaps the most prominent rosé over the years has been the Portuguese Mateus Rosé in the squat bulbous bottle, which became popular the world over. It is medium dry and lightly carbonated. This was one of the largest selling wines in the world at one stage. I remember it was in Israel before the import boom took place. It contributed to make rosé attractive and accessible. It is still around either for those that like it or for those that want to make an innovative table lamp from the bottle.

The most famous rosé today is the one made by the actor celebrities Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie. The wine is Miravel produced at their French Provencal estate, Chateau Miravel. The wine has done extremely well in blind tastings and has succeeded in putting rosé wines in the limelight. With good packaging and an original, dumpy style bottle, they have made rosé chic, sexy and aspirational.

Rosés are made in three ways. The first way is separating the grape skins from the must (grape juice) early in the process, then proceeding as though it is a white wine. It is the grape skins that provide color, so the depth of the color depends on the time of skin contact. The result is basically like a white wine, pink in color, but made from red grapes. This is why wines like White Zinfandel, often have the word ‘white’ or blanc’ in their name.

The second way is the ‘saignée’ method, where wine is ‘bled’ off from the red wine making process. The effect of this both concentrates the red wine and provides a fuller flavored rosé wine, which is liable to have more character.

The third way is simply mixing red and white wines. This does not happen with table wines but is more likely to happen with champagne.

There are some high quality wines like the Castel Rosé (mainly made from Merlot grapes), Flam Rosé (Cabernet Franc & Syrah) and Yatir Rosé (Grenache & Tempranillo). These are bone dry rosés with structure, body (all relative of course), flavor and excellent acidity. The wine connoisseur will put these on their table without a second thought.

Then there are fun rosés, which have delicate aromas, a lively taste and a refreshing finish. In this category I put the Carmel Vineyards Rosé (Tempanillo & Shiraz),

Dalton Rosé (Barbera, Zinfandel & Cabernet) and Galil Mountain Rosé (Barbera & Pinot Noir).

The Recanati Rosé ( Barbera & Merlot) is beautifully packaged. It is a quality wine and looks it. It comes in an attractively different style of bottle shouting ‘I am rosé, and I am proud of it!’, so it stands out.

Newly released is its sister rosé called Recanati Gris de Marselan, an elegant and delicate rosé. Then there is the Tabor Adama Barbera Rosé, in a screw top bottle. Oh so sensible not only to preserve freshness, but also for those who can never find the bottle opener. Both are excellent.

The Selected Rosé is an Israeli example of White Zinfandel. Pink, inexpensive and semi dry. Good with pizza! Whilst we are on pink, the Yarden Rosé Brut is a really high quality sparkling wine made by the classic or traditional method. Try that with a bowl of freshly picked strawberries and you will think you are in heaven. Maybe rosé sparkling wine is the most romantic wine of all!

Rosé is not a wine that demands attention and merits discussion. It does not receive high scores and medals. The critics don’t write long articles about rosé. However, most wine drinking is done with wine taking a supporting role. Not only is there nothing wrong in that, I support it. That is how wine finds its best place on the table. Rosé is a wine which supports the mood or occasion.

After you get home tired, after a long hot summers day, and before the daily news depresses you further, a glass of rose is the perfect pick me up!

What better occasion or happier mood is there than on Yom Hatzmaut – Israel Independence Day! Rosés go well with Barbecues, families and parties. Somehow sitting on a patio or balcony in the early evening with a glass of chilled rosé, seems just right. I already feel better just thinking about it!

Carignan is part of the fabric of the modern Israel wine industry. Its career as an honorary Israeli started in the 1870’s when the Mikveh Israel Agricultural School, which taught many of the country’s new wine growers, planted cuttings. They chose varieties, primarily because of what they judged to be a similarity of climate between 19th century Palestine and the South of France.

In the 1880’s Baron Edmond de Rothschild’s first growers planted a grape called ‘Corignan’, and that was how they pronounced it and wrote it. Amusingly some growers six generations later still refer to ‘Corignan’. For over a hundred years, Carignan was the mainstay of the Israeli wine industry because of its high yields, suitability in our hot climate and flexibility of use.

Carignan hails from Carinena in Spain, though I like best the hypothesis that it came from our region and was bought by the Phoenicians to Sardinia, and spread from there. Though you should not spoil a good story by the truth, there is apparently no evidence for this theory!

It is known as Carignane in California, Carignano in Italy and Carinena or Mazuelo in Spain. It is most prominent in Languedoc-Roussillon, the Catalan regions of Spain, Sardinia and North Africa. Out of the new world countries, it is most successful in Chile. As for the Eastern Mediterranean, it is fairly well distributed in Cyprus, less so in Turkey and is barely seen in Greece. However it is more respected in Lebanon, where it forms part of the blend for the iconic Chateau Musar. In Israel though, it became the most planted variety from the beginning. Even now it is still the second most planted variety after Cabernet Sauvignon.

In the 1970’s over 50% of Israeli grapes were Carignan. As a result, people used to drink far more Carignan than they ever knew. It might have been in your grape juice, what your Kiddush wine was made of and also used in inexpensive blends. The only wine actually labelled Carignan was likely to be the cheapest wine under the most basic label in a winery’s portfolio.

As a result of Carignan’s dominance, many times the grapes were used for a wine masquerading as Cabernet Sauvignon. Israel has never been great for wine laws and it was not so long ago that there was not enough Cabernet to justify all the Cabernet Sauvignons on the market! I remember Daniel Rogov, z”l, saying to me wrily after sampling a Cabernet Sauvignon from a respected winery, that it was the best Carignan he had tasted!

Carignan was also the largest planted grape in France, dominating the Languedoc, but the variety was not appreciated. When there were incentives to grub up vines, Carignan was top of the list.

So what were left was old vine vineyards, which the owner cared for enough not to uproot. The revival began in the 1990’s in places like Priorat in Spain, and Fitou & Corbières in France. The first glimpse of a different way of looking at things here, was when Yair Margalit produced a quality Carignan in 1999 and also called it Carignan. His was arguably Israel’s first cult winery, so people noticed.

Then in the 2000’s Carignan began its reemergence. The small family winery Vitkin, was the first to specialize in quality Carignan. They produced their first in 2002. Carmel followed with theirs in 2004 and became the first of the larger wineries to rehabilitate Carignan. What was in common between these two wineries was Assaf Paz, Israel’s own Mr. Carignan and the real pioneer of quality Carignan in Israel. He was a winemaker of Vitkin owned by his sister and brother in law, and at that time he was also a winemaker at Carmel’s Zichron Ya’acov Cellars.

He looked at those same vineyards producing massive yields to be used for kiddush wines, identified the better plots and determined to make a quality wine. This he did by using old vine vineyards, reducing yields and hey presto, the ugly duckling became a swan.

Later, it was not surprising that Carmel and Vitkin were the first wineries to launch prestige Mediterranean style blends, in which Carignan played an important part. The Carmel Mediterranean and Vitkin Shorashim were also pioneering wines, forerunners of a new trend.

A few months ago I attended a tasting of Carignans from Israel, France and Italy organized by David Perlmutter, the wine guide extraordinaire, and led by Elizabeth Gabbay, Master of Wine, who gave an excellent presentation. A tasting of varietal Carignans is an extremely rare event. Carignan is rarely the bride elsewhere too, being hidden in regional blends. In Priorat it is usually blended with Grenache. In places like Corbières and Fitou it is often blended with Syrah, Grenache or Mourvedre.

One thing became apparent. Different Carignans speak different languages. It does not have a fruit forward character that is easy to identify. That is why it is hard to pigeonhole and gets a bad press. What is does have is good tannins and pronounced acidity.

What is clear though, is that Israel is producing some very good Carignans, which do not suffer by comparison with anywhere else. In a time when Israel seems to be awash with Cabernets, Merlots and Shiraz, the odd varietal Carignan provides welcome variety.

Carignan also represents our own history of winemaking here. The original flirtation with Mediterranean varieties, followed by a long history of winemaking where price and the kashrut certificate where more important than quality. Then a quality revolution and lately a move back to Mediterranean varieties. Somehow Carignan represents the Israeli story. It was one of the few varieties here even before Rothschild founded a modern wine industry. Now it represents a wine almost as authentically Israeli as we have got.

The country’s main Carignan specialists are Carmel, Recanati, Somek & Vitkin. Other Israeli wineries producing good Carignans are Arza, part of their i-med label, Beth-El, with vineyards at 800 meters in what I call the ‘Central Mountains’, Jezreel Valley, gold medal winner at the Eshkol Ha’Zahav Competition, Trio and Vortman Wineries.

Vitkin Carignan 2009 (NK)
This for me was the best wine of the tasting, including the overseas Carignans. It was certainly more clearly defined and elegant than the other Israeli expressions . A wine with a beginning, middle and end, but moderate in all aspects, and with everything in proportion. The fruit was from the Hanadiv Valley south of Zichron Ya’acov.

Somek Carignan 2011 (NK)
Somek wines are grown by Barack Dahan a fifth generation grower and the wines are made by his wife Hila, who studied at Adelaide University. The vineyards for this wine also come from the Hanadiv Valley. This wine was dominated by ripe aromas of black fruit and broad oak flavors, but despite this had a refreshing finish.

Carmel Vineyards Carignan 2010
Carmel is the winery most associated with Carignan over the years. This wine comes from 40 year old vines in the Shefaya – Ein Tut region east of Zichron Ya’acov. It has a small amount of Petit Verdot in the blend. Represents good value.

Trio Spirit of Alona 2012
This is a Carignan from the Alona Valley, made by Yotam Sharon for Trio Winery. Actually it is my favorite red wine of the Trio family. The wine has a nose of blueberry, plum with a hint of Mediterranean herbs, a touch of sweet vanilla and a full flavored finish.

Recanati Wild Carignan 2013
A dilapidated and run down vineyard was spotted by winemaker Ido Lewinsohn in the Judean Foothills. He had the vision to forsee the wine that could come from this. The result is the leading Israeli Carignan, recognizable by the attractively, rugged old vine drawn on the label. Recanati’s Carignan has scored 92 points with Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate and is being sold by Berry Brothers, the world’s most famous traditional fine wine shop in London. Definitely, the best ambassador internationally for Israeli Carignan.

This is a big wine. The aroma is profound with black fruit dominating, yet it is encircled by a blanket of oak. The mouth feel is chewy, there is a balancing acidity and it has a long, long finish.

Visiting a restaurant is a standard procedure for many. However ordering the wine can be a big ordeal. Even people with great confidence and power in their business lives, can shudder at the prospect. It is rather like someone being honored by an Aliyah in synagogue for the first time. What is routine for many can reduce an assured CEO to jelly if he is not used to it.

You are handed a long wine list. There are rows of complicated names. Panic sets in and you go glassy eyed. What to choose Where to look Firstly decide whether you want red or white wine and have an idea of your budget. Look for a brand or grape variety you know or check out the wines at the price you want to pay. Basically it is a choice of either what you know or the conscious decision to try something new.

Ordering wine is not so much different from ordering food. You don’t have to be a big expert. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. You ask for an explanation about the food without fear of retribution. Why not do the same regarding the wine The sommelier, wine waiter or waiter staff should be more informed than you are. Use their expertise. You can explain, “I like Shiraz, what do you have similar” Or you can point to wine in the list and explain: “I want something in this category.” They will then know your target price.

In fact the restaurant scene is the best place to try something new, but choosing what you know and like is okay. Don’t be pressurized into trying to match the wine with the food. Today we say: “match the wine to mood, not to food.” Anyway it is an impossible task in a big gathering. The more you ask, the more suggestions there will be and what was a difficult enough task will only become more difficult. Just ask whether people want red or white, then my recommendation is you choose what you like.

Don’t feel you have to commit to a bottle. If ‘she’ wants to start with a sparkling wine as an aperitif and ‘he’ prefers a dry white wine. Then she wants to follow up this with a dry white wine with the meal and he wants a red wine. The only way to give everyone the flexibility they want is to choose wines by the glass. You don’t have to commit to a whole bottle, you can try different things and everyone can drink what they want.

I like a restaurant with a good and innovative choice of wines by the glass. I love the opportunity to skip from glass to glass, exploring new things. You avoid the risk of having bought a bottle that may be disappointing from its first sip.

Restaurants these days take more trouble to provide interesting by the glass options. I just wish they would go to the trouble of pouring my wine by the glass from the bottle in front of me, rather than producing as if by magic, a glass full of something, which just may or may not be what I ordered! Just avoid restaurants with too many wines by the glass unless they use wine saving devices.

If you do order a bottle, the waiter will open it in front of you and then pass you the cork as though it is the crown jewels. You are meant to sniff the cork and look suitably impressed. No need. A cork smells … well, like wine soaked tree bark. So if you are handed it, you can decline or just put it down without having to feel that it will unlock the secrets of your wine.

The waiter will ask who wants to taste the wine. The honor is normally given to the person who has ordered the bottle, male or female. Wine service should not be sexist. All you have to do is take the glass by the stem, agitate it slightly (or swirl the wine by making a half circle of the glass on the table), and then put your nose in it. Take a short sharp sniff. If it smells ok, there is really no need to taste it. Tell the waiter that he/ she has your permission to pour.

Remember the theatre of wine service is not for you to say you like the wine or not. It is an opportunity for you to check it is the wine you ordered and you can decide if its temperature is to your liking but you should only send it back if it is faulty in some way.

Don’t be afraid to ask for an ice bucket for your red wine. Red wines are usually served too warm in Israel. Too warm for me is room temperature. A wine can lose its shape in our climate, especially with high alcohols we have here. I prefer my red slightly chilled which can then gently warm up in the glass.

This means for home drinking, I put even the best red wines, (maybe especially the best red wines), in a domestic fridge for at least 20 minutes before serving. If wines in a restaurant are served from a wine fridge or cellar, then they may be already chilled. However if not, do not feel embarrassed to ask for it to be chilled for you.

Just always make sure the ice bucket has ice and water in it, (not just ice, which alone will not be effective,) and that it is filled. How often are you given an ice bucket with a smattering of ice just covering its base! Don’t be afraid to be assertive. It is your right as a customer. Even if you wanted ice cubes in your white wine, a restaurant should comply with goodwill and a smile. Ever heard of the customer always being right

We all have special wines at home that we are saving for a special day. Unfortunately that day never comes and we often only finally get to drink such wines when they are past their best. So don’t hesitate to take your special bottle to your next restaurant experience. Wine is meant to be drunk, not saved like a trophy. Corkage is normally 35 to 45 shekels. There is never wine on every table in even the top wine restaurants. So, most restaurants will appreciate your custom, even if you bring your own wine.

The corkage charge is a fair deal because a restaurant will open your precious bottle, provide quality glassware, pour the wine for you and your guests, and even wash up the glasses for you! That merits a charge. Even if they ask for more outrageous 75 shekels corkage, as a few brazen restaurants do, it still pays because restaurant prices are so high.

The etiquette is not to bring a wine that is already featured on the wine list and it is a nice touch to offer a taste to the wine waiter. In any case if I bring a red wine, I will often also buy a bottle of white. If you purchase a bottle, a thinking restaurant is likely to waiver the corkage fee. Bringing your own bottle is recommended. In fact it usually pays to do so.

Check out prices and reward those pricing with seichel. A restaurant wine should never be more than double its retail price. Restaurants should mark up by no more than three times. The charge for a glass of wine should not be more than the cost price of a bottle. Avoid those restaurants with ridiculous prices. As a rough guide, you could aim to pay for a bottle what you will pay for one diner’s meal.

A personal tip. In my view chefs are always at their best and most creative with the starters. Also portions are more manageable. I would just as well order an extra couple of starters, put them in the center of the table and share with family and friends with a variety of wines by the glass. Forgo the main course, no need to commit to a bottle and tiptoe from glass to glass. And enjoy!

This is a story that begins and ends in the founders street of Bat Shlomo, a farming village founded in 1889, on the southern slopes of Mount Carmel.

Like many wine stories in Israel, it starts with a Rothschild. Baron James Jacob de Rothschild was one of five bothers that were sent from the ghetto in Frankfurt to start a bank in the European capitals. He was the youngest and most brilliant of the brothers, and he settled in Paris.

For thirty years he tried to buy Château Lafite, even then a proud symbol of France. He finally succeeded in 1868, but died three months later without even managing to visit. It was a long journey from Paris to Bordeaux in those days.

His three sons took over ownership, one of whom was Edmond. However the matriarch of the château was James’ widow, Baroness Betty Salomon de Rothschild, who resided there and redecorated it and furnished it to her tastes. Ironically she is most known as the subject of the famous portrait painted by Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, but she certainly left her mark on Château Lafite.

When Edmond de Rothschild took it upon himself to found an Israeli wine industry which had lain dormant for 2,000 years, he took the trouble to honor his parents, like a good Jewish boy. Zichron Ya’acov, one of the two primary winery farming villages founded in 1882, was named after his father. It means ‘in memory of Jacob.’

He then founded an overflow community, more like a street, which was called Bat Shlomo, literally the daughter of Shlomo. This was in honor of his mother Betty.

Visit the street today and you get a glimpse of pre-state Israel. Fourteen houses including a synagogue, stand there as evidence of those pioneering times. The red roofed founder’s houses, squat, square and made from stone, with a row of handsome cypresses marking the way.

What makes wine more interesting than say, coca cola, is that behind every winery is the fulfilment of a dream or vision of someone. Each wine produced is a celebration of the place where the vineyards grew and person that made it. Each wine has a story.

At the end of this road reeking with nostalgia, is Wadi Milek. There I was able to visit some special young vineyards. These were established by someone who is described as a serial entrepreneur. I am referring to Elie Wurtman, a wine lover inspired by that founders street in Bat Shlomo and the Rothschild wine revival over 120 years ago. He chose as his professional partner Ari Erle, a Californian born, wine grower-Zionist, to plant vineyards and made a connection with the Regavim Agricultural School to ensure their students cared for the precious vines. This resulted in Bat Shlomo Vineyards, a winery which revitalizes the Rothschild vision of vineyards, wine and Jewish labour, in a place where it all started.

Ari Erle is pretty laid back, languid, Californian style. He keeps his passion and dynamism well buttoned up. But he has it in buckets. He studied winemaking in California at UC Davis and then learnt his craft working at a variety of top notch Californian wineries such as Colgin Cellars, Clos du Val and O’Shaughnessy.

He must be an out and out Zionist. Only a Zionist would leave the comforts of California to serve as a lone soldier in the IDF. He also must be pretty confident in his ability. He has planted and managed the vineyard using his heartfelt beliefs from California, ignoring some of the prevailing customs here. Spacing of vines is tighter, there is a lush cover crop between the vines and he uses a cross arm style of trellising. This is someone who knows what he believes in and wants to practice what he preaches.

The vineyard is self-sustainable which he prefers to organic grown vineyards. The innovation continues to the winery. We know that cement tanks are back in vogue. Ten years I would show people around Carmel’s Zichron Ya’acov Cellars and rush past the bulky out of fashion cement tanks explaining they were part of the winemaking history of Carmel. Basically they were installed in the 1920’s because they gave more capacity than the gigantic oak barrels used previously.

A new winemaker and a returning fashion put paid to that. Each tank was painstakingly cleaned, restored and refurbished and they are now much valued. Of course, there is nothing new under the sun in winemaking. Today cement tanks and the large size barrels are back in use even in the most progressive wineries. In winemaking, what goes around, comes around.

Well, Ari Erle also liked cement, but being ultra-modern, innovative and up to date with tomorrow’s trends, he chose to purchase a large concrete egg to assist his winemaking! And if this was not enough, to be creative in the vineyard and winery, he also shows his advanced thinking in the finished bottle. His Sauvignon Blanc is closed with a glass stopper, which pops open. No chance of cork taint here. It is also easy to close and re-use, making this an innovative water or olive oil bottle when the wine is finished.

Ari told me he was a farmer at heart and liked nothing more than the grow something from scratch. However I think he is too restless to devote himself to one project, so he spreads his talents.

He is the practical winemaking teacher at the Ohalo College in Katzrin. This is a serious program in association with the leading winemaking school in Beaune. In the first year, Erle makes wine with his students in their experimental winery, using fruit from their experimental vineyard at Merom Golan. The second year the students make their own wine, under the teacher’s guidance of course.

He is the consultant winemaker at the innovative start-up Jezreel Valley Winery and has been tapped to be the associate winemaker of the exciting Covenant Israel project. (Watch this space!) Covenant may just be about the most lauded kosher wine in the world when grown in the Napa valley. How it fares here, we are all fascinated to find out.

The restless farmer also dabbles in the commercial side of wine. He has an importer and distributor license in California for The Israeli Wine Company, whose objective is to market lesser distributed quality boutique wines.

As far as learning what Erle’s favorite grape varieties are, you won’t get far if you look at the wines he produces. Bat Shlomo Vineyards uses the classic varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc. Jezreel Valley makes predominantly Mediterranean style wines using Carignan, Argaman and Syrah. Covenant Israel will be focused on Syrah. Horses for courses. Whatever the variety, Erle’s wines are good, his services are in demand and he is a rising star of Israeli wine.

I mentioned this is a story that begins and ends in Bat Shlomo. This is because Elie Wurtman has purchased one of the founder’s houses which will be restored as a winery and visitors’ center. Herzl said “if you will it, it is no dream.” Well, Elie and Ari’s dream is coming true. Welcome to Zionism of the 21st century, which echoes and recreates the Zionism of the First Aliyah. Who said we are in a period of Post Zionism

The wines of Bat Shlomo Vineyards are distinguished by elegant labels, with a silhouette of Baroness Betty on them.

Bat Shlomo Sauvignon Blanc 2013

Aromatic sauvignon blanc, complex nose with piercing acidity that cleanses the palate. A perfect food wine. Best with fish cooked under the grill, mezze or sushi. PRICE: 89 ILS

Bat Shlomo Chardonnay 2013

This is a full bodied oaky, creamy chardonnay. Californian style. This is a wine that needs aerating and it should not be served too cold. Perfect with pasta in a cream sauce or a chicken dish. PRICE: 120 ILS

Bat Shlomo Betty Cuvée Cabernet Sauvignon 2011

A big Bordeaux style wine, with aromas of black berry fruit mingled with oak flavors, a chewy mouth filling flavor and a long finsh. To be drunk with a leg of lamb, entrecote steak or cheddar cheese. PRICE: 160 ILS

Paradoxically, one of Israel’s newest boutique wineries, the 1848 Winery, has the longest history of any winery in Israel.  I will explain. It all started when the Galina family arrived in the Holy Land from White Russia in 1834. The family settled in Safed, and when the patriarch of the family, Rabbi Mordechai Avraham Galina, was made Rosh Yeshiva of Tiferet Yisrael, they moved to Jerusalem.

His son Rabbi Yitzhak Galina realized the family needed to earn a living. They had made wine and alcoholic beverages domestically in their mother country. There, the grapes were probably raisins, but in Palestine, fresh grapes were more plentiful.1848-1

Therefore it seemed logical to start a winery. The only trouble was that the necessary permissions were hard to come by. Fortunately his brother in law, Rabbi Baruch Shor, did have the necessary licence. So the Galina Shor family founded the first recorded winery in the Holy Land in 1848.

It was called Eshkol and was situated in Haggai Street, in the Old City of Jerusalem. The cellar backed on to the Wailing Wall, and a row of wine barrels was strategically placed, so that forgetful workers would not touch it by mistake!

The family changed their name to Shor and began producing wines and spirits. The wines were sweet from indigenous table grape varieties, harvested from Bethlehem and Hebron vineyards. The grapes were brought to Jerusalem by donkeys.

This is where the history and folklore my own family and the Shors coincide.

Forty years before Herzl and Rothschild, my distinguished forbear, Moses Montefiore, outlined his own vision. He thought that Jews in the Holy Land should work instead of just living from donations. He became the first practical Zionist, before the word was even invented, buying land for agriculture and laying the cornerstone of modern Jerusalem, with the foundation of Mishkenot Sha’ananim. He was the first to urge Jews to return to agriculture and to plant vines. The windmill he built was symbolic of his world view: ‘Without flour, there is no Torah’.

Coincidentally, the first Shor family harvest coincided exactly with one of Montefiore’s visits to Jerusalem. Dignitaries and community leaders used to present Montefiore with gifts of wine as a sign of welcome. This was much to his liking as he was known to drink a bottle of wine every day…perhaps that is why he lived to nearly 101 years of age! He was even known to buy small casks of wine as souvenirs.

It may be slightly fanciful, but is certainly not impossible to imagine that Montefiore may have come across the Shor family wine. Anyway, the legendary wine critic Daniel Rogov, z”l, (ex-Jerusalem Post), was believed that Rabbi Yitzhak Shor was inspired by Moses Montefiore’s vision. It is interesting to note that the census commissioned by Montefiore in 1849, provided the first actual evidence of the Shor family’s new profession.

The second generation of Shors, included the legendary Rosa Shor, a formidable woman, who in 1871 opened a wine and liquor shop and bar to sell the family wines.

After eighty years in the Old City, the Arab riots of 1929 forced what was by now called A & M Shor Bros Winery, to find a new home in Beit Israel, near Meah Shearim. In 1944 the winery was renamed Yikvei Zion (Zion Winery). The building was on three levels and included a cellar, winery, living quarters and a synagogue. The cellar was to prove an attraction during the 1948 War of Independence when Jerusalem residents joined the family in sheltering there.

By the formation of the State, the family had grown too big for the business and the brothers, Avraham and Moshe, decided to go separate ways. Moshe and his son, Yitzhak, opened a new business in Tel Arza, mainly producing spirits and liqueurs whilst Yikvei Zion, continued to produce wine and grape juice. In 1958 the Tel Arza business split again and Hacormim, another winery branch of the Shor family was formed.

A few years ago I sat with three generations of the Shor family at the Zion Winery and was charmed by the individual characters I met. I sat with Elisha, the sixth generation and chairman, who was still at is desk at over 80 years of age. A great raconteur and story teller! Then I met the current Moshe, the seventh generation and managing director. Quiet, honorable and a real mensch. He was the one to realize the winery could not live only from liquid religion in modern times.

He bought a pneumatic press, small oak barrels, upgraded the selection of vineyards used and employed the services of the reputed wine consultant, Arkadi Papikian. The results were impressive: gold medals and good reviews. Zion Winery started to produce good table wines which were great value, particularly under the Erez label.

I also met Moshe’s nephew, Zvika Shor, the winemaker from a long line of Shor winemakers. I remember his smile, his openness, professionalism, eagerness to learn and his pride in the new quality.

I remember a shy youngster called Yossi Shor was also there. He is the son of Moshe and represents the eighth generation. He was responsible for the marketing rejuvenation of Zion Winery in the last six years or so. However this was not enough for him. He wanted to create a new winery to really compete in the quality wine world. He therefore created the 1848 Winery.

Yossi is bright eyed, with black kippa and white shirt, but with an eye to quality and innovation. He has a foot in both worlds. On one side is the cautious, traditional and conservative family that has been making liquid religion continuously for 166 years. On the other, Yossi has succeeded in reaching out to the modern, feinschmeiker world of quality wine. In a sense he embodies the wine revolution that took place in Brooklyn twenty five years ago, which is now happening in Israel. These days, the ultra-orthodox community, also have their collectors of fine wine, organized tastings and specialist wine stores selling only table wines.

The 1848 wines are high quality in a new world style. Each generation is represented on the label. As with the family itself, the later generations represent the better quality wines.

The 1848 Special Reserve 2009 is oaky, muscular but full of chewy fruit. A high quality wine without doubt. The regular labels represent better value. The 2nd Generation Cabernet Merlot, 2nd Generation Rose, 5th Generation Cabernet Franc and 5th Generation White are my favorites. Certainly they are recommended.

Today there are three wineries owned by the Shor family: Zion, Arza and Hacormim. All are situated in the same street in Mishor Adumim. Zion and Arza are both in the top ten wineries in Israel in terms of size and have made giant strides towards quality. Hacormim is more known for its Conditon brand of Kiddush wine.

It is true the founding of the Israeli wine industry is rightly attributed to Baron Edmond de Rothschild and Carmel Winery on a basis of French expertise. The ‘new world’ quality revolution dates from the founding of the Golan Heights Winery with the help from Californian winemakers. However the roots of Israeli wine go back to this special family dynasty, who found a way to combine industry and commerce, agriculture and wine with faithfulness to their religion.

Now the Shor family has provided us with 1848. A year of turmoil and revolution in Europe. The year of Israel’s first recorded winery. The year of Moses Montefiore’s third visit to Israel. Now, 1848 represents a new dawn of Israel’s oldest wine family.

This article first appeared in the Wine Talk column in the Weekend Supplement of the Jerusalem Post.

Though the Jewish people are steeped in the history of wine, spirits and liquor, the consumption has always been modest. Jews throughout history have been regarded as an abstemious people. A people that don’t drink. If you arrive at a Scottish wedding the guests will all be congregated at the bar. At a Jewish wedding, the bar is empty, because it is the food which is the attraction.

popular as the wine and many tasters arrive to taste your best and most expensive cuvée, balancing a wine glass with an overfilled plate of food. The heady bouquet of wine mingles with the wafting aromas of salt beef.

Drunkenness is not regarded well in Judaism. Noah tarnished an unblemished reputation by becoming drunk from the wine he produced. Also the story of Lot and his daughters is another Biblical story where over indulgence is an issue.

The Talmud says: When a man eats the fruit of the vine he is as gentle as a lamb; when he drinks wine he believes himself a lion; if by chance he drinks too much he grimaces like a monkey; and when he is drunk he is nothing more than a vile pig.

I suppose whereas the Ancient Greeks regarded wine and over indulgence as a divine state, and even creating a wine God called Dionysus, (Bacchus to the Romans), wine in Judaism was always measured by caution and respect.

However on Purim, you have the permission to let loose. Purim is really the only time Jews are encouraged to get drunk and it is all in the name of religion. You need to become so drunk that you can’t tell the difference between the words: ‘Blessed be Mordechai’ and ‘Cursed be Haman’.

Even in Israel where we have developed a drinks culture in the last 20 years, consumption remains pitifully low. Wine consumption is as low as 4-5 liters per head, compared to nearly 50 liters a head in some European countries. The Israeli beer industry has really developed recently with a blossoming of new microbreweries and an expanding of imports. However Israeli consumption remains a paltry 14 liters per head, which pales when compared with the144 liters per head in the Czech Republic.

Even though the slogan ‘Jews don’t drink’ has less validity these days, (certainly the vodka culture amongst young Israelis would imply otherwise), it was certainly true historically. However, conversely, Jews have always been deeply involved in the drinks trade.

Wine is an ongoing thread throughout our history, from Noah who planted the first vineyard, through Rashi, a vintner in France in the Middle Ages, to Baron Edmond de Rothschild, founder of the modern wine industry in Israel. Wherever Jews reside there has been domestic winemaking. Always. So those who talk about Israel’s first boutique wineries in the1990’s, forget that the Jewish household has always made wine to allow the family to make Kiddush. In the Old City of Jerusalem in the middle of the 19th century, there were no less than 26 wineries. The revival of wine in Israel is nothing short of a revolution, but it is not new. They were making wine in Ancient Israel 2,000 years before the vine reached France and Italy!

In the Middle Ages, Jews were forbidden to do many jobs, but to be distillers, brewers or Tavern keepers was not only permissible, but it almost became the preferred profession for Jews in Poland and Russia.

In America, when the country in an act of self- flagellation decided to introduce the period of Prohibition (of alcohol), it was the new immigrant Jews who became bootleggers importing and producing alcohol to break the ban. In those days the Jews were the producers and traders and the Italians were the drivers. Together they sowed the roots for the rebirth of an alcohol industry in the United States.

Seagram which became the largest spirit company in the world was founded out of the ashes of Prohibition by the Bronfman family. Sam Bronfman, the founder, was a prominent bootlegger. The whole American distribution network of Wines & Spirits is today peppered by Jewish owned companies, led by the mammoth Southern Wine & Spirits, the largest drinks distributor in the world.

For a people where drinking quantity is rarity, the association of wine with Judaism is particularly deep. For those in the wine trade, what a wonderful religion it is that encourages the purchase of wine every week in order to sanctify Shabbat. The requirement to drink four glasses at Passover, and the extra Seder Night in the Diaspora, make Passover the equivalent in sales to Christmas in the western world.

And then there is Purim when this people so associated with wine and restraint, are encouraged on one day of the year to drink with abandon.

I recommend inexpensive wines firstly because their value is better than ever. Look at the downward spiral of prices in supermarkets. Anyone who says Israeli wines are expensive should do a tour of supermarkets. Secondly they are generally easier drinking. Carmel Selected’s red wines are light, fruity, with cherry berry aromas. Barkan Classic have slightly more body and structure. Teperberg Silver has a rounded, full fruit, juicy sweetness. Hermon reds are flavorful.

I am generalizing, but these wines are better than ever, even if I agree they are wines to drink and enjoy, not taste! Not every wine has to be tasted with the intense concentration of a sommelier or winemaker. There are wines than can also be enjoyed and drunk with relaxed abandon.

The Selected Merlot, Classic Cabernet Sauvignon and Mt Hermon Red are favorites, but you will also find great value from Binyamina, Segal and Teperberg. However, there is a full range of wine styles, so dry and semi dry whites and sweet wines may also be found under some of these labels.

Regarding Mishloach Manot, the traditional gift packs given at Purim, I see wine as good option. It adds value to what you give, and how much chocolate can you give anyway However I would suggest choosing which wine according to the label. An attractive and original label, would raise the perceived value and improve the look of the gift.

So enjoy yourselves, but always remember even on Purim, to drink with respect. Maybe become a monkey, but a pig That would not be kosher!

This article first appeared in the Wine Talk column in the Weekend Supplementof the Jerusalem Post.

I have been pondering which have been Israel’s most influential wines over the last twenty five years. I list a personal choice of a top ten. This is not a list of the best wines, but each one contributed to the advance of Israeli wines in some way and been a stepping stone in the improving image of Israeli wine.

The first two wines are mentioned for their influence on the local, Israeli market and the remainder, are made up from those wines that have drawn attention to Israel through awards or recognition.

Selected Emerald Riesling (1989- 1999) – Freddie Stiller/ Israel Flam

This was by far Israel’s largest selling wine of the 1990’s in the days when most of the consumption was white wines. Aromatic, spicy and semi dry, it performed the same job in Israel as Liebfraumilch in the UK and Lambrusco and White Zinfandel in the USA, in that it introduced many new drinkers to the joys of wine. The wine is still one of the leading white wines sales wise, but its dominance has been eclipsed somewhat by the rise of Geurztraminer and Moscato.

Mount Hermon Red (2000- today) – Victor Schoenfeld

This wine was originally sold under the Golan brand, then Yarden and has lately settled under the name Hermon. Mount Hermon Red, the largest selling wine of the 2000’s represents the move to red wine consumption in Israel. Light, fruity, easy drinking with mouth filling flavor, it showed that red wines could be made in a non- astringent style, almost like white wines. It was the forerunner of a new style of red wine and it remains the largest selling Israeli wine.

Yarden Katzrin 1990 – Winemakers: Peter Stern/ Victor Schoenfeld

Yarden Katzrin was Israel’s first super de luxe red wine. The first vintage was 1990. It was Israel’s first ever $50 bottle of wine and later vintages were Israel’s first ever $100 bottle of wine. Usually made by a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc, it is only produced in especially good vintages. This wine took Israeli wine onto a new plain.

Castel Grand Vin 1992 – Eli Ben Zaken

This wine was famous because it was Eli Ben Zaken’s first vintage, but it was also the one ‘discovered’ by Serena Sutcliffe, Master of Wine and Head of the Sotheby’s Wine Department. She referred to it as the best Israeli wine she had ever tasted. This encouraged Eli Ben Zaken to build his beautiful winery and it inspired the whole boutique winery revolution in the 1990’s.

Margalit Cabernet Sauvignon 1993 – Yair Margalit

Yair Margalit gained a reputation as the first really international class boutique winery being founded in 1989. He was Israel’s best known winemaker at this stage. However it was the 1993 that was regarded as his greatest wine. The wine drew attention to the quality of a smaller, less commercial style of winery and gave notice of the coming boutique winery explosion that was to follow. Recent tastings show the wine is still going strong.

Yarden Blanc de Blancs N.V. – Victor Schoenfeld

In 1996 this champagne method sparkling wine became the best bottle fermented sparkling wine winning the Trophy at the IWSC in London. The wine was then non vintage, but today it is made as a vintage sparkling wine. This showed that Israel could triumph on the world scene with alternative wine styles. The Yarden Blanc de Blancs won this same Trophy on two subsequent occasions too.

“C” Blanc du Castel 1999 – Eli Ben Zaken

Though Israel as a country became mainly known for its red wines, this wine was the first white wine to be noticed. It became a Decanter “best new release’ giving rare focus to Israel’s white wines. Later vintages were the first Israeli dry white wine to receive high scores in both the Wine Spectator and Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate.

Yatir Forest 2003 – Eran Goldwasser

The flagship wine of Yatir Winery made from Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, grown in the high altitude Yatir Forest vineyards in the southern Judean Hills. This wine finished in first place in the first ever tasting of Israeli wines held by Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate. It was awarded 93 points, which at that stage equaled the highest score ever given for an Israeli, kosher or Eastern Mediterranean wine by Robert Parker, the world’s most famous wine critic.

Yarden Cabernet Sauvignon 2004 – Victor Schoenfeld

This was the first Israeli wine listed by the Wine Spectator’s as one of the top 100 wines of the year. It was a big breakthrough for Israel to be recognized on this prestigious list. The Yarden Cabernet Sauvignon has been the most consistent winner of international awards over the years and it was appropriate that this was the first Israeli wine to make it onto the Wine Spectator’s prestigious list.

Carmel Kayoumi Vineyard Shiraz 2006 – Lior Lacser

Carmel Winery’s single vineyard Shiraz from Kayoumi Vineyard won not only the Regional Trophy in the Decanter World Wine Awards, but it was the only Israeli wine ever to go on to win the International Trophy beating the finest French Syrah, Australian Shiraz and southern Rhone blends like Chateauneuf du Pape. Decanter themselves referred to it as a sensational result.

Recanati Wild Carignan 2012 – Gil Shatzberg/ Ido Lewinsohn

The Recanati Special Reserve won more prizes, but this wine was the first Israeli wine to be selected by Berry Brothers & Rudd, arguably the world’s most famous and historic wine retailer. The 2011 also scored 92 points in the Wine Advocate. This wine represents the return to Mediterranean varieties in Israel and the revival of traditional varieties.

These may not be of the best wines Israel has produced – even though many of them are – but their influence in spreading the word of the quality and variety of Israel wines cannot be underestimated.

I have also allowed myself to select five of the most influential people of the last quarter of a century, carefully avoiding selecting anyone from my own company.

Daniel Rogov, z”l, the wine writer and critic, who worked for Haaretz and the Jerusalem Post and wrote his annual guide to Israeli wines, was the most prominent media figure in Israeli wine. Since he died in 2011, he has never really been replaced. He was the voice of the Israeli wine renaissance.

Uri Shaked, importer, distributor and retailer brought international standard wine retailing to Israel with the opening of Derech Hayayin in 1993 and the development of the chain of wine stores. His family company also set the standards for the importing and distribution of wine.

Segev Yerovam was CEO of the Golan Heights Winery from 1988 to 1998, and the first manager of Galil Mountain. He set the standards for winery management in the nineties for the whole industry. The attention to detail, pursuit of excellence in wine quality, the importance of asthetics in wine, wine tourism and wine education and the production of quality and innovative wine events.

Yair Margalit, winemaker and wine educator, owned the first quality boutique winery in modern times. He acted as consultant to other producers at the start of the boom, wrote the standard reference work for making wine in small wineries and turned his hand to education. Wine courses at the Technion and the Tel Hai Cellar Master course, were massive contributions to the development of wine culture.

Avi Ben Ami, sommelier and events organizer. Avi Ben Ami was Israel’s most celebrated sommelier working in Israel’s finest restaurants. He then devoted himself to organizing Israel’s most professional wine tasting competition and the most respected wine trade show.

Ten wines and five people that have positively influenced Israeli wine during my first twenty five years in Israel. I now look forward to my next twenty five years with optimism and anticipation.

Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery and regularly writes about wine in both Israeli and international publications.

This article first appeared in the Wine Talk column in the Weekend Supplement of the Jerusalem Post.

I came to Israel in 1989. After twenty five years in the wine trade here, and I think it timely to look back at the progress since then. Certainly a revolution took root and Israel began to produce world class wines.

One of the major changes has been in winery names. Back in 1989, Carmel Mizrahi, WEST- Stock, Eliaz, Efrat, Askalon – Carmei Zion and Baron featured. Today these wineries are known by other names, which will be far more familiar: Carmel Winery, Barkan, Binyamina, Teperberg, Segal & Tishbi.

There have also been massive changes in the ownership of wineries. WEST went bankrupt, and was reincarnated under new owners as Barkan. The Segal family sold their Askalon-Carmei Zion operation to Barkan, who in turn were sold to Tempo, Israel’s largest brewery. Binyamina went through a few owners before being bought by the supermarket chain, Hezi Hinam. Carmel, a co-operative for 107 years, was purchased by a consortium of private investors.

Then there were a maximum of twenty or so wineries. Today there are more than 300 and many more garagistes and domestic wineries. Back in 1989, there was just one large winery. Carmel had no less than 75% of Israeli wine production. The cellars at Rishon Le Zion and Zichron Ya’acov were by far the two largest wineries in Israel. Today, three large wineries, Carmel, Barkan and the Golan Heights, together account for nearly 70% of the wine market.

In the last fifteen years, the large wineries have all invested in new wineries and renovated existing wineries. Carmel built boutique wineries at Ramat Dalton (Kayoumi Winery) & Tel Arad (Yatir Winery) and refurbished its Zichron Ya’acov Winery. Now the historic Rishon Le Zion Winery is to be closed, and a brand new winery is being built at Alon Tabor.

Barkan built a new winery at Hulda, next to the largest vineyard in the country & Golan Heights Winery planted a leg in the Upper Galilee, with a winery called Galil Mountain at Kibbutz Yiron. Teperberg built a new winery at Tzora and Binyamina refurbished its existing winery.

Out of the top 10 wineries by size today, five of them did not exist in 1989, but the biggest change has been in the boom of boutique wineries.

Yonatan Tishbi was the first grower to decide to make his own wine instead of supplying the large wineries. In this sense he was a trend setter, because many other growers in the 1990’s followed suit. Most of the new boutique wineries either belonged to vineyard owners like Tishbi or were simply self-taught domestic winemakers, like Eli Ben Zaken of Castel.

There were only two boutique wineries in 1989, Meron and Margalit, but they

heralded the growth of small wineries in the 1990’s, which has accelerated in the 2000’s. Some like Castel gained a worldwide reputation. Others like Dalton & Tzora, and later Tabor, started small & grew very fast.

The most positive change has been the new pursuit of quality. In 1989 all the main wineries, apart from the Golan Heights Winery, sold sacramental wines, spirits & liqueurs as well as table wines. Today wineries are far more focused on wine.

Efrat & Eliaz, (now Teperberg & Binyamina), were selling mainly sweet wines to an almost exclusive religious clientele. Today they are producing good quality table wines. Zion and Arza are two other traditional wineries with a long history that twenty five years ago barely sold any table wines. They too have made impressive strides in the last 5 to 6 years.

The biggest turn around was Carmel which went through a quality transformation. I don’t believe there is one winery that existed in 1989 that does not make better quality wine today.

When I arrived here, Israel’s finest wines were the Carmel Special Reserves of 1976 and 1979, Israel’s first international style wines and Yarden Cabernet Sauvignon 1984 & 1985, Israel’s first award winning wines at the highest level. The leading quality labels were Rothschild and Yarden. Askalon (Segal) was known for its reds and innovative labels and Baron (Tishbi) for its clean fresh whites.

The market was weighted towards white wines. The largest selling wines were Selected Emerald Riesling and Carmel Grenache Rose. Selected remains the largest selling brand in Israel as it was then, but the largest selling wines today are Hermon Red, Selected Cabernet Sauvignon, Selected Merlot and Segal Red. Red wine dominates.

Fantasia was then a well-known brand of fun and flavored wines. Today the Moscato craze has taken its place. Brandy, in particular Stock 84 and 777 were extremely popular then. The youth of today prefer vodka or whiskey.

In the eighties only the Golan Heights Winery was winning major awards in international competition. Export was confined to Carmel and the Golan. Today many, many more Israeli wineries are exporting and winning prizes around the world.

In 1989, Mount Carmel and the Judean Shefela were by far the largest wine growing regions. These days, the fastest growing vineyard areas are the Golan Heights, the Upper Galilee and the Judean Foothills. The Golan and Galilee is already the largest wine region in the country.

The main grape varieties then were Carignan and French Colombard, which comprised 61% of the harvest in 1989. By 2013 their contribution had shrunk to 22%. They were replaced by the noble, classic varieties.

In the 1980’s Cabernet Sauvignon and Sauvignon Blanc were the main varieties for quality wines, but quantities were small. Merlot and Chardonnay had just arrived and Shiraz and Gewurztraminer were to come later on. Today Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Shiraz rule.

Funnily enough, Israeli wine was built on the bricks of Mediterranean varieties, but the wine revolution occurred on the back of Bordeaux varieties. Today Mediterranean varieties are coming back in, as well as white wines.

Stylistically red wines are becoming more elegant and less bombastic whilst white wines are becoming lighter and fresher.

In 1989 only the Golan Heights Winery had internationally trained winemakers. These initially were Americans, who studied at the University of California at Davis.

By 2014 most of the commercial wineries & the better small wineries had internationally trained winemakers. Not only this, but they were all Israelis, who had traveled abroad to study & gain experience. Another difference is that the place of study is not only California today, but also Australia, France, Italy and New Zealand.

In 1989 most of the country’s wine was sold in supermarkets and dusty kiosks. The shelves were untidy and old vintages of oxidized white wines prominent. There were a few pioneers like Super Drink in Ramat Hasharon, Avi Ben in Jerusalem and Israel Assayel’s shop in Rehovot. In the 1990’s, Derech Ha’Yayin opened, and now it seems as though every medium sized town has its own wine shop. Many have more than one!

There were barely any imports in 1989. The wines that did arrive were almost exclusively for duty free or diplomats. There were hardly any imported wines in restaurants and none in supermarkets. By 2014, up to 20% of the market was imported wine. Many of the world’s most famous international brands are now sold in Israel and the supermarket shelves are groaning with imported kosher wines from countries like France, Italy, Chile & Argentina.

In 1989 there was one famous restaurant with a truly international wine list. This was the legendary Mishkenot Sha’ananim Restaurant in Jerusalem’s Yemin Moshe. It had arguably the best cellar in the Middle East, however elsewhere it was a wine desert.

Thirty years ago, Bernard Levin of the London Times, moaned on visiting Israel: “Doesn’t anyone here have a Jewish mother”, because the food was so bad. He would not be so disappointed today. There are hundreds of quality restaurants with quality wine lists. The culinary and wine awakening happened at the same time.

We should not beat our chests and claim we have arrived. France and Italy need not worry. The point is not that we are so good, but we are on an exciting journey. Compare where we were twenty five years ago and where we are today, and the progress is impressive. Let’s hope the upward curve continues.

Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery and regularly writes about wine in both Israeli and international publications. [email protected]<span style=”vertical-align: bottom;”> (mailto:[email protected])

This article first appeared in the Wine Talk column in the Weekend Supplement of the Jerusalem Post

I was so sorry to hear of the untimely death of Serge Hochar, a true cedar of Lebanon. He was one of wines most original and much loved personalities, which was expressed through a unique wine, Chateau Musar.

The winery was founded in 1930 by Gaston Hochar, Serge’s father. He planted vineyards in the Bekaa Valley, a current stronghold of the Hezbollah, where all the best Lebanese vineyards are situated, but kept the winery at Ghazir, in a safer Maronite Christian area. (The Hochars are Maronite Christians.) A major early influence was Ronald Barton of the Bordeaux Chateaux, Langoa Barton and Léoville Barton. Gaston’s second son was named Ronald in his memory.

Serge Hochar was born in 1939, and studied in Bordeaux. When the Civil War struck Lebanon, he took his wine around the world to find new markets. He was an elegant, charming figure, in a pin stripe suit, with all the exaggerated hand movements to support his French accented English. It was the mischievous twinkle in his eye, gap-toothed smile and wonderfully expressive eyebrows that caught your attention.

He was a wine philosopher who would answer the most basic question with his own question, like querying the reason for being and wines place in the universe. “I know nothing about wine” he once said, “and each day I discover I know less.”

In 1979 Chateau Musar was ‘discovered’ at a wine fair in England and since then took its place as one of the world’s most idiosyncratic, recognizable wines. He brought Lebanese wine to the attention of the world and made his Chateau Musar the icon wine of the Eastern Mediterranean. On many occasions it was the only wine outside the traditional wine producing countries on a Michelin star restaurant wine list.

Chateau Musar is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cinsault and Carignan. Part classic Bordeaux, part spicy Rhone. It is a wine that does not see a customer until at least seven years after the harvest. To put this into perspective, the current releases of the Margalit and Castel wineries are from the 2012 vintage.

The Musar red is a unique expression of the Hochar laisser-faire mode of winemaking. Many look at its tawny hue and nose the volatile aromas and insist the wine is faulty, oxidized and past its best. Others are in rapture at the exotic character with a combination of aromas of ripe plums, sweet dried fruits, spice along with the heat of the Lebanese sun. It is a wine that appears tired in its youth and gains a second wind and extra layers of complexity as it ages.

The enigmatic Musar white is even more unconventional. It is a blend of two indigenous Lebanese varieties, Obeideh and Merweh. Again, the purist would say it was flabby, lacking up front fruit and acidity. The patient Musarophile, prepared to wait up to 20 years, would find a white wine with honeyed aromas, whiffs of honeysuckle and a touch of apricot, not a refreshing dry white wine, but a complex full bodied mouth filling wine without a beginning or an end.

Wine today reeks of sameness. Wines from Napa, Barossa and the Galilee begin to taste the same because of globalization and the advance in technology. The need to make wines over ripe and extra clean, strips them of personality. Musar is the ultimate expression of individuality, originality with a distinct sense of place. Whether the wines are your cup of tea is less important than the non-conformist approach which has to be celebrated.

Why would an Israeli newspaper be interested in a Lebanese winemaker The answer is because wine is above politics (something Serge used to say and he would know). I believe someone who truly wants to understand Israeli wine, should study our neighbors. Israelis have a self confidence that sometimes over talks itself. In wine too, not just football.

Well we have a great deal to learn from our neighbors, whether Cyprus, Greece, Turkey …or Lebanon. Never forget that if Chateau Musar is the most famous wine from our region, the World Atlas of Wine pinpoints the best wine from our region as being Domaine Bargylus…from Syria! I spend my life championing Israeli wines of which I am very proud, but it is not a crime to be humble, reflective and to occasionally look sideways.

Like it or not, our wine growing region is the Eastern Mediterranean, not something called ‘kosher’. The best wines of Israel should be alongside the best wines of Cyprus, Greece, Lebanon and Turkey on the restaurant wine list and on the shelves of wine stores.

Serge Hochar was the charismatic figure who inspired a boom in Lebanese wineries. Twenty five years ago there were just five Lebanese wineries. Now there are fifty. It is still Chateau Musar that garners the most attention, but other Lebanon wineries are making wonderful wines today.

How I wish Israeli wineries would work together like Wines of Lebanon, or even Wines of Turkey for that matter, to advance brand Israel. I wish we had someone half as charismatic as Serge to lead the charge. Serge Hochar showed it was possible to break through the stuffiness and preconceived ideas of a conservative wine world.

I first came across him in the mid 1980’s. I was buying wine for Crest Hotels (part of the Bass Hotels Group) and put his wine on the wine lists throughout the chain, alongside an Israeli wine, under the heading Eastern Mediterranean. Thus was born my interest in the Eastern Med as a region.

I then organized and hosted a memorable vertical tasting of Chateau Musar in London in 1989. Hochar did not forget this. Years later when I
changed my status from an English buyer to an Israeli representing Israel at wine exhibitions, he was no less charming and kind and always gracious enough to refer back to ‘that’ tasting.

He broke out of the comfort zones of the ethnic market, where sales were easy, into the real wine world. He showed the way for wines in our region. If a Lebanese wine could break through the glass ceiling, there was a chance that Israeli wines could do so too.

He was a symbol of continuing life as normal through war and adversity. Hell, we can admire that quality here in Israel. In fact he did not make wine in 1976 and 1984 because of what we call in Israel, ’the situation’, but in other years, nothing would stop him.

I loved the way he makes his own wine in his own style. In a world of globalization and technical perfection, Hochar not only insisted on doing things in an eccentric way, he positively delighted in being different.

I found a meaningful quote by Serge in a wonderful article by Elizabeth Gilbert: “If you are open to understanding change, ..wine can teach you a lesson of tolerance. When you understand that all the flavors and smells and memories .. experienced over ……hours.. .. come from the same wine, then you will learn not to condemn any wine until you have stayed with it through all its stages.’

The essence of time, against the need for instant gratification. We taste wine and demand an instant description. If you like, a snapshot of the particular second it was tasted, provoking a knee jerk reaction from the rushed taster.

I remember seeing the great Michael Broadbent tasting wine with a stopwatch by his side and adding a tasting note every half an hour to capture the ever evolving wine. I think of Mark Squires the Israel expert in Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate team, who often takes the time to taste wine over a two day period.

Hochar understood that wine was an evolving thing which needs time to develop both in the barrel and bottle and even in the glass. It is not something to be summarized in a sniff or shluk (Israeli slang for a taste.) A great lesson for all wine lovers.

The Psalms say ‘The righteous shall grow like a Cedar of Lebanon.’ I feel privileged to have met him. Thank you, Serge, for the memories and the inspiration. This cedar has fallen, but Musar continues.

Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery and regularly writes about wine for both Israeli

and international publications.

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This article first appeared in the Wine Talk column in the Weekend Supplement of the Jerusalem Post.

Assaf Kedem. He stands upright, with the posture of a guardsman. Bespectacled, he has a warm broad smile, with hair swept to one side like a schoolboy. The welcome is always warm, but quiet and modest. There is nothing he likes more to show his wines in the place he made them.

However he won’t tell you how good they are. He lets the wines talk.

He is a man of the soil and salt of the earth. But not just any soil, or any earth. It is the Golan Heights where he put down his roots. At Kidmat Zvi, the agricultural village on the high altitude plateau, he cares for the vineyards amid the volcanic tuff and basalt stone, and has done so since 1990.

In 1998 he opened Bazelet Hagolan with Yoav Levy. It was the first boutique winery on the Golan Heights and immediately gained plaudits for its quality. Kedem studied at the Technion and Tel Hai College, gained practical experience at a Stellenbosch winery in South Africa and theoretical knowledge from the winemaker Peter Silverberg.

Silverberg was a charming person, who worked at the Golan Heights Winery, in the days I also worked there. Silverberg had studied winemaking at UC Davis in California. He looked the spitting image of a young Woody Allen and even his mannerisms sometimes seemed to ape the famous film director. However he could make wine better than Woody Allen that is for sure. Smart, savvy and up to date, he took the new winemaker under his wing and led him through the early learning years. Assaf Kedem takes every opportunity to give him the credit and thanks due.

In 2004 Kedem went out alone opening the Assaf Winery. He grew the grapes and made the wine. His British born wife Hadassah, looked after the visitors center and customer club.

Assaf Kedem always had a dream to create a wine village. How many dreams does one hear that people rush to tell you breathlessly, but more often than not they end up on the threshing floor. Sometimes one gets the impression that talking about something has the same weight as actually doing it. Here words can speak louder than actions!

My policy is usually to ignore tittle tattle until there are facts on the ground. So when I heard Assaf’s vision, I said out loud “great idea”, but inwardly thought ‘it will never happen’. However he was determined and steadfast enough to overcome the legendary Israeli bureaucracy and the Kedem Wine Village now exists.

His son, Oren Kedem aged 32, is the next generation. He worked the harvest in 2005, more out of filial duty than love for wine. He was prepared to assist his father, but the wine bug had not yet really hit home. Then he travelled abroad for a few years to see the big wide world. He worked in America, returning to serve in the Second Lebanon War, where he was wounded in action.

In 2009 he found work in California at the Michel Schlumberger Winery in the Dry Creek Valley region of Sonoma County as a cellar rat. This is a job that entails doing everything and anything whenever it is needed. He loved the pace of a stylish winery and quality of the wine life struck him. Why chase abroad what he had at home In no time at all he realized this was where he his future lay and he returned to the family business.

His sister, Adi Kedem Alon, also had her own epiphany, but this was in the food world. She studied to be a chef in the French Culinary Institute but also returned home and opened a coffee shop called Adika.

Assaf & Hadassah’s other children, Shahar and Tomer, and Karen, Oren’s tall, slender, pretty Brazilian born wife, also contribute to the success of the winery. It seems that within the black basalt stone of Kidmat Zvi, there is a powerful magnet that drew this particular family back to its home base, close to its roots in the soil.

The wine village comprises the Assaf Winery and Adika Coffee Shop. They organize wine and culinary events, along with workshops based on wine, food and yoga. Their tastings and wine evenings are highly rated, giving the family the opportunity to show its strengths in all their colors. People travel from Tel Aviv to experience the Kedem hospitality, wine quality and food. Soon the first of the guest cabins will be opened allowing visitors to stay overnight.

Regular tours are also available for tourists. They cost 25 shekels. Visitors can taste a few wines and eat in the Beit Café. I always recommend taking the time to book in advance to avoid disappointment.

Assaf Winery produces 45,000 bottles a year and a large proportion of their sales is done at the cellar door. The wines are not kosher. They produce eight different wines under the labels Silver, Reserve and the rare, strictly limited Grand Reserve.

Assaf Kedem’s loyalty to South Africa is plain to see in that he specializes in two grape varieties that are very popular there. One is Pinotage, which was developed in 1925 by Abraham Perold. It is a cross between Pinot Noir and Cinsault and has become the signature variety of South Africa. In Israel, Barkan Winery is a Pinotage specialist, but it is not heavily planted here.

The other is Chenin Blanc, which is the staple white variety in South Africa, where it is often known as ‘Steen’. Of course, its most famous expression is in France’s Loire Valley,.’ Kerem Shvo and Sea Horse are other wineries leading the welcome revival of this variety in Israel.

It is the philosophy of the Kedem family that underwrites the whole initiative. Oren explains how wine helps people get away from the daily pressures. He says “we want to be simple, humble and modest. We are not chasing after marketing noise. What is important is the family and nature.”

I asked what plans they had, and he answered: “ to continue to do what we enjoy and to do it the best way we can.” How is that for a recipe of contentment, in the hectic, fast moving, instant gratification era of the 21st century. The Assaf Winery is worth a visit to sample the beauty of this particular corner of the Golan Heights and witness the perfect synergy between a family, their land and their wines.

The Assaf wines I tasted were as follows:

Assaf Chenin Blanc 2013

A dry white wine, with a yellow straw color, which was aged for 6 months in Hungarian oak barrels. It has an attractive flowery nose, prominent acidity and a slight bitterness on the finish, which gives it a refreshing quality.

Price: 90 ILS

Assaf Four Seasons Pinotage 2011

This is made 85% from Pinotage and the remainder from Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Shiraz. It is aged in American oak barrels for 20 months. The wine has red berry fruity aroma with a sheen of spicy vanilla, a mouth filling flavor and a good finish.

Price: 90 ILS

Assaf Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve 2009

This is a blend of 89% Cabernet Sauvignon and 11% Cabernet Franc. It is an aroma of overripe berry fruit contrasted with bell pepper notes from the Cabernet Franc. There is a prominent note of eucalyptus – as there always used to be in the Bazelet Hagolan. The wine has good length.

Price: 130 ILS

Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery and regularly writes about winen both Israeli and international publications.
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This is a story of love, romance, art, culture, war and wine, all with an Italian accent. Sounds like good fodder for an opera. The star is a ballerina called Elena, who was swept off her feet, came to Israel for love and is now sharing with us the beautiful Italian approach to lifestyle and wine.

Elena Guglielmi was born in Venice and began to take ballet lessons as a child. She then progressed to ballet school and eventually became a classical dancer with the Ballet di Verona.

Many of us would say it was a hard life, but Elena had passion, was not afraid of physical hard work and thrived on the disciplined life. Until today she remembers the sensation that the smell of the stage evoked in her. She was a professional, dancing with all the great names, and afterwards did not leave the fraternity, but became a ballet teacher. Only later, she moved to Rome to work in sales and marketing. Because of her personality, she found she was quite good at it.

Now in Italy, everyone drinks, and there is a lot of wine available. It does not mean that wine is something precious or elitist. The opposite is the case. It is simply there, part of the scenery and on the table. Wine is a drink to accompany food, assuage thirst and it is the obvious choice for a social get-together in the local bar. No drama or drum-roll. In this atmosphere, Elena learnt to drink and enjoy the fruit of the vine.

She met her future husband, Rani, at a party held by ballet colleagues late in 1999. He glanced at this elegant, graceful person with a dancing light in her eyes, and immediately told their hosts that this was his future wife. He then invited her to Israel to enjoy the millennium. On the night of 31st December 1999, whilst watching the sunrise in Jerusalem, he cracked open a bottle of Dom Perignon and asked her to marry him.

She said she would think about it. A week later she agreed and left everything for love to come to Israel. Her mother was not so pleased. When told, she put the phone down and would not speak to her for two months.

Her husband, Rani Zimbalista, is a businessman who also hales from an artistic family. His mother is the famous sculptress, Ofra Zimbalista and his brother Chen, the well-known percussionist. The mother in law soon came round. She and Elena now believe Rani is more Italian than the Italians!

They settled in the Avigdor Moshav, north east of Ashkelon. Elena’s husband said that she drank so much wine, they had better start a winery.

Wines from Ashkelon were prized in Biblical times. Many wine presses have been excavated nearby, including some quite recently. The Segal family of distillers also immortalized Ashkelon. In 1950 they founded a winery which they called Ashkelon Wines, because that is where their vineyards were. They thought it was the Bordeaux of Israel!

Now, as all English speakers know, Israelis aren’t that hot at spelling in English. One can see evidence of this on menus, maps and road signs. I once saw three different spellings of the word Montefiore in English, on different street signs on one road…all within 100 meters of each other. Hilarious but true. Only in Israel!

Well, the Segals decided to spell Ashkelon in their own unique way. They wrote it as ‘Askalon’, and that is how it appeared on the labels and stayed that way until they changed the name to Segal Wines. Today the only remnant of this individualistic spelling can be seen on the labels of Askalon Arak, which still exists.

The Zimbalistas wanted to do it properly, so they travelled to Sicily, to compare soils and check varieties. Elena was certain of one thing. She only was interested in white wines. It was a good place to choose because the climate of Sicily is close to Israel, and perhaps surprisingly, the island produces more white wines than red.

They were particularly enchanted by the Muscat of Alexandria that they found there. This grape variety is not particularly noble or a classic, but it is one the oldest of all the varieties. It hails from North Africa, probably from Egypt if the name is a clue, but is pretty well indigenous throughout the Eastern and Southern Mediterranean. It is also known as Zibibbo in Sicily, Zibbib in North Africa, Haneport in South Africa, Gordo Blanco in Australia and Muscat Alexandroni in Israel.

Possibly because of its versatility, also being popular as a tasty, fleshy table grape, it has quite possibly been in Israel continuously, even during the time of prohibition of growing wine grapes. It may even stretch back to Biblical times.

It is usually known for producing blowsy, aromatic, grapey dessert wines. It is at its best in the Rivesaltes ‘vin doux naturels’ of Roussillon in France, the Portuguese Moscatel de Setubal, in some of the Samos Muscats from Greece and the Moscato di Pantelleria in Sicily. It may have been this last wine that turned their head.

Of course Sicily is an island that produces more wine than Australia, yet for many years they were known just for inexpensive wine, until Planeta came out with an acclaimed Chardonnay which drew new attention to Sicily’s new quality wines. Now Sicily is concentrating more on its indigenous varieties, but Elena and Dani had their inspiration. They chose to plant Muscat and Chardonnay in 2002, alongside olive trees and fruit trees, in the Italian tradition.

The first harvest was 2006. Later she also planted Sauvignon Blanc and Gewurztraminer. Zimbalista Winery now produces 15,000 bottles a year, which are snapped up by restaurants and leading wine shops.

Elena Zimbalista is a pioneer in a few ways. Firstly she is bringing focus back to Ashkelon region, an area reeking with wine history, but lately unfashionable as wine growing moved to the hills. Secondly she was arguably the first winery in Israel to focus on white wines only. When I came to Israel 25 years ago, people mainly drank white wines. The pendulum swung to red wines in the 1990’s.

Israel certainly learnt how to make quality red wines in the 1980’s and 1990’s. However since the beginning of the 2000’s, we have also started to make great quality whites. What goes around comes around. White wines are having a revival. Consumers are beginning to realize they are more suitable for our climate and match better with food.

This is what Elena is teaching us. She is making wine to be refreshing and to accompany food well, to drink and enjoy. She is not making wines to put on a pedestal or to win the highest rating.

She has wisely employed the services of Itay Lahat, the celebrated wine consultant, to provide wine making expertise, whilst she looks after the vineyards. Even war, and rockets being fired from Gaza, did not put off this slender, plucky, spirited Italian. She sheltered in the vineyard and even believes the experience brought her closer to her vines.

Zimbalista wines may be recognized on the shelves by their striking packaging. Each label is decorated with the blue three-dimensional figures, taken from Ofra Zimbalista’s unique sculptures, which stand guard, overlooking the vineyard.

So pop open a bottle, and experience a touch of the dolce vita. Try and picture the dancing vines of Elena Zimbalista in the little Italy she has created, here in Israel, not far from the Ashkelon coast.

I tasted the following Zimbalista wines;

Chardonnay di Zimbalista 2013
The new style of Israeli Chardonnay. Dry, unoaked, crisp, with green apple and lime aromas and a very refreshing finish. A great food wine.

Sauvinyali di Zimbalista 2013
A Sauvignon Blanc, named after their son Yahli. The nose is of tropical fruit and grapefruit. It has mouth puckering acidity and a clean, citrusy finish.

Vino Dariolino Zimbalista 2013
A blend of the two most aromatic grape varieties, Gewurztraminer and Muscat, named after their second son. The result is semi dry, very aromatic, slightly spicy. Those that like this sort of wine, will like it very much.

Moscato di Zimbalista 2013
Fruity, grapey and semi sweet. A wine that dances like the ballerina Elena once was. Drink it ice cold and it is a delightful any place, any time wine, from breakfast onwards!

This article first appeared in the Wine Talk column in the Weekend Supplement of the Jerusalem Post

Savor the picture. You are sitting with friends in front of a table covered with small plates, each offering tantalizing colors and tastes in small bites. The sea is likely to be nearby, and fisherman’s nets will be out drying but you could be in Jaffa, Beirut, or Larnaka and Istanbul for that matter. It will be hot, but there will be a welcome sea breeze with a salty tang. In the center of the table will be small glasses of a milky white liquid,

twinkling with the condensation on the glass.

The pearl colored drink will be anise flavored Arak, if you are in Lebanon or Israel, maybe Ouzo (in Greece or Cyprus) or even Raki (in Turkey). The place will be anywhere in the Eastern Mediterranean. The food will be Mezze, the local style of hors d’oeuvres. The atmosphere will be relaxed, almost timeless. The ritual will be indigenous to our region, though it is repeated elsewhere around the Mediterranean. For example, witness popularity of Pastis in Marseilles.

Arak is served in small thin, narrow glasses, somewhere in size between a ‘mini-me’ highball and a glass for Turkish coffee. Not dissimilar to an ornate Moroccan style glass for serving tea. It will be conveniently held between thumb and forefinger. The classic recipe is 1/3rd arak and 2/3rds water. However this may obviously be adapted for taste. If you prefer reduced alcohol content or a less pronounced anise taste, simply add more water. Make a longer drink, adding five parts water to one part of arak.

Pour the arak in first. The liquid will be clear. Then with the addition of water, it turns to its familiar cloudy, milky white color. Only after adding water, and the purists insist on this, is it permissible to add a cube or two of ice. Finally carefully place a sprig of nana mint in the glass for color, aroma and taste.

It then looks the part and you have before you a drink that symbolizes a whole region. It is not to be gulped like a shot of vodka, but to be sipped and savored slowly as you trip between the plates of mezze, whilst listening to the backdrop buzz of small talk in the bar or cafe.

Why arak is so suitable is that it truly accompanies the variety of tastes in a traditional mezze. The acidity, spiciness, sometimes hot, garlicky starters can murder a wine. However, just like sherry for Tapas bars, arak is a drink born to fufill the task of coping with a myriad of flavors.

To make arak you need freshly picked grapes, anise, water and a rudimentary copper still. Nothing else. The grapes are fermented and the resulting white wine is distilled usually two or three times. The anise is first added on the second distillation cycle. After this the arak will be stored in clay jars.

In Lebanon, Arak is regarded with holy reverence. It used to be a rich man’s drink, because only a rich man would have his own still. Today it is a drink for everybody. More often than not, production is domestic. When homemade, it is called Arak Baladi.

The cycle of events is that the Lebanese farmer will harvest his grapes in the autumn, eat what he wants for food and preserve what he needs for raisins. The rest he will use to make wine. The wine will be stoppered up and saved to be drunk during the winter months. Only when the wine starts to turn and become oxidized, he will then distill it to make arak. This he will drink during the summer, before the cycle repeats itself.

The word arak means ‘sweat.’ The drops of condensed alcohol are said to represent perspiration! In Lebanon they revere arak like a Scotsman reveres his whisky and refer to it as Lion’s milk.

The finest arak comes from village of Zahle in Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley. The Bekaa is the center of their wine trade (and also the profitable opium business!) The grapes they prefer to use are the indigenous Obaideh. Most Lebanese wineries make arak. Some produced arak first and then branched into wine. Others focus on wine, but found making arak a good way to find a use for poorer grapes.

The most famous arak in Lebanon is the Le Brun produced by Domaines des Tourelles. The most recognizable bottle to us outside Lebanon maybe the Touma Arak, produced by the same family who make Clos St. Thomas and Heritage wines. In places where arak is regarded as new and trendy, it may be the Massaya Arak that gains notice with its stylish packaging and blue bottle.

The finest arak in Israel is made in the industrial area of Moshav Goren, not far from the Lebanese border. There you will find Elias, who is a larger than life, impressively powerful figure, who protected Israel for twenty years as part of the South Lebanese Army. Somehow I can easily imagine him fearlessly standing up to the Hezbollah in South Lebanon on our behalf. His Yorkshire Terrier is slightly incongruous beside him. He does not give out his surname for fear of reprisals against his family.

He came to the western Galilee when Israel withdrew from Lebanon, and wanted to bring something inherently Lebanese with him. He decided on arak made in the Zahlawi way.

His arak is called El Namroud. Nimrod was a pagan king representing strength and power. Elias uses local Dabouki grapes grown in southern Mount Carmel area. The anise comes from the exclusive Syrian region the other side of Mount Hermon, which produces the finest and most aromatic anise. He distills his arak three times. He is experimenting with maturing arak in oak barrels and using wooden staves. El Namroud comes in two different alcohol strengths, and there is also a lower alcohol version called Fairuz. This is the arak which sets the quality standard.

El Namroud came to be distributed by IBBLS, Israel’s leading importer of sprits. So the iconic Israeli arak made in the Lebanese style may be found alongside the world’s most famous global spirit brands, including Johnnie Walker Whisky, Smirnoff Vodka and Gordon’s Gin. IBBLS is the exclusive importer and distributor of Diageo, the largest spirit company in the world, in Israel.

El Namroud’s success has encouraged other artisan distillers producing arak in Israel. Chief amongst them are Masada and Kawar.

Masada is produced by Wadir and Jiryis Hadid in the beautiful Christian village of Meilya, not far from Maalot. They use the distillation services of Shukri Hayak, another ex SLA soldier, who was in involved with El Namroud in the early days. They offer three labels. The entry level is Jabalna, mid-range is Kafroun and the top label Alwadi. All provide a taste of Lebanon in a bottle.

Another local producer is Kawar, now managed by the third generation of Arak distillers from Jordan. They have set up in Tsipporit. There are three handsome looking bottles. Green, red and black labels in ascending order of quality, alcohol content and price. No question these are high quality araks.

In every drinks store, supermarket or kiosk, it is possible to find the Elite Arak. It is present everywhere. It is the entry level arak for anyone, being readily available and relatively inexpensive, but these days arak is no longer drunk only by Israeli Arabs and Sephardi Jews. There are now some quality alternatives produced in an artisanal way from natural raw materials, which give the whole category a more quality feel. Arak may not have the status of whisky or the popularity of vodka, but it is the essence of the Levant and the authentic spirit of the place we call home.

Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery in Israel. He regularly writes about winefor Israeli & international publications.

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This article first appeared in the Wine Talk column in the Weekend Supplement of the Jerusalem Post

I was delighted to have the opportunity to meet Bruno Quenioux, barely known outside France but whose influence has spread around the winemaking world. He is a terroir’iste, which means he likes to bring the terroir, or a sense of place, into the taste of wines. He is a guru to many producers in France.

I met a dapper, immaculately dressed man, slightly tense and outwardly reserved. Only the flashing eyes betray the fire that burns in his soul. When he starts to talk you begin to understand. He is a crusader against wine globalization.

This is a spreading disease whereby wines from different parts of the world begin to taste the same wherever they are made. Overripe fruit, high alcohols and over use of oak are other manifestations. He compares the difference of a sculpture as being like a modern wine made from nothing, as opposed to the stone Bibovinomason who molds something that is exists. In his terms, the vineyard, climate and grape variety.

He was born in the Loire Valley, virtually in a vineyard. His was a farming family. He knew vineyards, but it was a red Burgundy that caught his imagination. He drank a Corton 1976 which he describes as a magical encounter, almost a religious experience and his calling was sealed.

The upshot of his message is that wine education is the scourge of wine because it teaches people to taste and analyze with the brain, when people should be encouraged to taste with the heart. He believes wines today are too pornographic and in your face, when they should be more erotic. He wants to bring a spiritual approach back into wine enjoyment. In his view, the essence of wine has been destroyed by the tasting note, which has killed the spirituality and conviviality of wine.

This does not mean he does not have a scientific approach. He used science to hone his craft, learning to get the most out of a vineyard and gained great insights by studying the wine styles and wine culture of the Ancient Greeks and the Bible.

He was a sommelier in one of the top wine stores in France and eventually graduated to run the wine department in Lafayette Gourmet. There was a paradox in this man of the soil with the passion of a prophet, working in one of Paris’ symbols of luxury. However, he succeeded in influencing a generation of winemakers back to the soil. He became their guru, gave them a place to show their wines pour encourager les autres.

He does not see growing organic or biodynamic vines as an end in itself, but believes in both to enhance the taste of dirt in the wine. Clean, sterile technically made wines are not for him.

He recommends tasting with the eyes closed and gently chewing the wine rather than sucking in air as one is taught. Whilst holding the wine in one’s mouth, he illustrates that first you taste the wine and later the place where it is made. A tasting note for him is the feelings of a poet rather than the contents of a fruit basket. He won’t talk about forest fruits, berries and cherries. He wants wine to be less-complex, reducing the ceremony but giving more undiluted pleasure.

He believes the key is choosing grapes suitable for the terroir. For instance he does not think Cabernet Sauvignon is right for Israel and does not think much of Syrah at all. He suggests Carignan and Cinsault as grapes suitable for a hot climate with a water shortage. Of course Carignan has been the mainstay of Israeli wine for 130 years, and thanks to Carmel, Recanati and Vitkin wineries, has undergone a revival in the last ten years. Cinsault was originally planted in Israel in the 1880’s but disappeared a long time ago. However not far from here, it became Lebanon’s most planted variety.

Quenioux does not know Israel well but is eager to learn more. He thinks the Golan Heights is a quality region. The wines of Yarden and Castel featured in Lafayette Gourmet at different times. Recently he tasted the James Chenin Blanc produced by Sea Horse Winery, which he says reminded him of home. (Chenin Blanc is at its best in the Loire Valley.)

The reason he was here was for the launch of the first BiBoViNo wine shop in Israel, an initiative launched by three French entrepeneurs. This is bringing Bag in the Box wines to Israel. Thirty years ago, Bag in the Box represented the cheapest, nastiest wine you could buy. Carmel used to sell a three liter box until comparatively recently. However technology has improved and the younger wine drinker is less locked into the idea of a glass bottle with a bit of tree bark as a stopper.

Quenioux has a number of protégés who make highly individualistic wines by following his creed. Equal contributions by winemaker, terroir and climate influence the final result, rather than the winemaker and winery manipulations being too dominant. His selections make up the BiBoVino wine list.

The wines all come in three liter wine boxes which are in the same bright purple color. I asked him how the similar packaging conveyed the individuality he sought to convey. He was ready and waiting with an answer! He explained that this was the whole idea: To make the wine talk instead of the packaging. ‘Ignore how it looks, don’t start checking the grape varieties, just enjoy the wine’.

The wines take you on a tour of the regions of France. Many will be new to the average drinker. They work out at between 50 to 100 shekels a bottle. A box open will last up to four, maybe six weeks. Ideal for the couple of glasses a night merchant.

Bruno Quenioux is riveting and the concept is interesting and innovative. If you are curious, go and see for yourself at BiBoViNo, 48 Ibn Gibrol, Tel Aviv. There you can taste and then buy the wine of your choice. You will be received by French sommeliers in matching purple aprons ready to guide you. Though the wines are not kosher, they would like to introduce a kosher wine sometime in the future.

If you want a bite to eat along with your glass of wine, the Salade Nicoise is a feast for the eyes and I can also recommend the Matias Herring. You can sample Bag in the Box and experience French chic in the middle of Tel Aviv! A votre santé!

I tasted the wines. My favorites were as follows:

Bourgueil Les Grandes Rangs 2012

This is my best buy: Cabernet Franc at its best and most refreshing. Medium bodied, aromative black fruit flavours, a touch of attractive greenness, mouth-filling flavor and a great balancing acidity.

Price: 235 ILS for three liters (equivalent of 58.75 shekels for a bottle)

B-418 2012

This is a unique wine made from a parcel (plot) of pre-phylloxera, very old vine, Carignan grapes. It is a big wine, quite full bodied with soft tannins, a mass of plums and cherries with a herbal hint in the background.

Price: 280 ILS for three liters (equivalent of 70 shekels for a bottle.)

Coteaux des Travers, Rasteau 2013

A blend of Grenache , Syrah and Mourvèdre. It is wine made in the southern Rhone, with a wonderful sensual nose of elegant raspberry and strawberry fruit, with an elegant finish and long length.

Price 325 ILS for three liters (equivalent of 81.25 shekels for a bottle)

Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery and regularly writes about wine for both Israeli and international publications.
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Let’s destroy some popular misconceptions: Not all kosher wine is made in Israel and not all Israeli wine is kosher! Nowadays nearly every wine producing country in the world today produces kosher wine. In Israel, just

to be confusing, many of the smaller wineries make non-kosher wine. However it is true to say that the majority of wine made in Israel is kosher.

The kosher wine laws are the oldest wine laws in the world. France may boast about its Appellation Controllée and Cru Classé systems, which have roots that may go back hundreds of years, but the Kosher wine laws are measured in thousands. Some of these laws (orla, kilai hakerem) still make sound agricultural sense. Others (like shmittah, trumot & maserot) are today regarded as more symbolic. In Biblical times though, they were revolutionary, addressing the profoundest issues of spirituality v’s materialism, economic justice and ecological sustainability. One thing is for certain, not one of the kosher wine laws may be held as a reason for making poor wine.

The kosher designation should not be thought as a quality defining process. Think of kosher certification more like a quality assurance program, similar to the ISO systems. All raw materials like yeasts, barrels and fining agents have to be prepared under the strictest quality and hygiene standards. Origin and traceability are key and there is an exaggerated emphasis on cleanliness. However there is nothing which alters the basic way of making wine and traditional methods are followed throughout the process.

A kosher wine today is likely to be dry, possibly made from a classic variety like Cabernet Sauvignon, which is grown in the finest vineyards of Bordeaux, California or the Galilee. The technology will be advanced and the equipment state of the art. The winemaker will be internationally trained, just like his non-kosher winery counterpart. No difference between kosher and non-kosher. It will be harvested, fermented, aged and bottled in the same way. A well-made kosher wine is good and a poorly made kosher wine is bad. It is not good or bad because it is kosher.

Mark Squires, an expert on Israeli wines, got it right. He wrote in the Wine Advocate and Robert Parker’s Wine Guide: “Today the mainstream (Israeli Kosher) wines are more likely to be bottlings of Bordeaux varietals, Chardonnay, or Syrah that have typicity and will seem familiar to sophisticated consumers.” He went on to say: “…no one should avoid wines simply because they have kosher certifications.”

Unfortunately the word ‘kosher’, where wine is concerned, is almost a pejorative term. If it is kosher, there are those who believe it can’t be good. Regrettably, kosher wine is often confused with the Kiddush wine category. These are the sweet, red sacramental wines that have given kosher such a bad name. A quality kosher wine can be equated to other quality wines. It has nothing at all in common with the sweet, sugary liquid religion wine used as Altar or Communion wine by Christians or Kiddush wine by Jews.

Most wineries usually prefer to ignore the ‘k’ word. They want to make the best ‘Israeli and Eastern Mediterranean’ wine they can, which just happens also to be kosher.

Strict observance of kashrut, does not prohibit the possibility of either making great wine or even drinking a fine wine for purposes of religious ritual. One of Judaism’s greatest sages, The Rambam, aka Maimonides, gives some guidance here. He was an early proponent of quality wines and insisted that sweetened or pasteurised wines should not be used either for Kiddush or ‘Arba Kossot’, the four glasses at Passover.

Regrettably it is often the Jewish communities around the world, which are the most cynical with regard to the acceptance of the possibility of quality kosher wine. A lifetime of Palwin in the UK, Manischevitz, Mogen David & Kedem in the USA, King David, Yashan Noshan and Conditon in Israel at Simchas, Shabbats and Seders has had an effect.

Recent events have proved them wrong. Awards, scores and critics reviews have provided international recognition at the very highest level and destroyed forever the pre-conceived ideas about kosher wines.

Castel, Yarden and Yatir have each been awarded 93 points from Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate. Yatir Forest has scored 90 or more points eight years in a row. Castel received four stars from Hugh Johnson’s Pocket Wine Book, the highest rating possible. Yarden Cabernet Sauvignon was in the Wine Spectator’s Annual Top 100 Wines. Carmel’s Kayoumi Shiraz won The Decanter International Trophy, beating the best from France & Australia. The Golan Heights Winery was adjudged the best winery at Vinitaly. Carmel Winery, Domaine du Castel, Yarden-Golan Heights Winery and Yatir Winery are proudly Israeli and their wines happen also to be Kosher.

To put this third party recognition in perspective, Robert Parker is the world’s leading wine critic and Hugh Johnson the world’s leading wine writer. The Wine Spectator is one of the world’s leading wine magazines and the Decanter World Wine Awards, one of the world’s leading competition. Vinitaly is one of the world’s leading wine exhibitions. Each of the wines was being judged on a criteria of quality alone and not on a basis of whether they were kosher or not.

Sparkling wine is made everywhere, but French Champagne is regarded as the best. In the same way, kosher wine has become international. However the finest kosher wines in the world are, in my humble opinion, produced in Israel. Likewise in the same way New Zealand specializes in Sauvignon Blanc and Argentina in Malbec, Israel specializes in kosher wine. The best range, quality and best value kosher wines are today available from Israel.

Lets face it, kosher wines have had a bad reputation because once they were pretty awful. This is no longer true, but many abroad have not caught up with the new reality. The ‘k’ word stigma still exists. Now the world’s leading wine experts have given kosher wines their approval, it is time the wine drinking public did the same.

We should not be ashamed of producing kosher wines or labeling our wines as kosher. We should be kosher and proud of it!

Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery and regularly writes about wine for both Israeli and international publications.

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This article first appeared in the Wine Talk column in the Weekend Supplement of the Jerusalem Post

Moises Cohen was born in Casablanca, Morocco. His wife Anne Aleta came from Toulouse in France. Through an accident of fate, they both ended up in Catalonia in Spain. It was there they met, created a family and also decided to make wine.

Moises is the dry scientist type. He is quiet, academic and analytical, reasonably shy and frighteningly intelligent, but with the logical, step by step approach of the scientist. Anne is more outgoing, arty, emotional and vivacious.

He was born in Casablanca in Morocco. At 17 years old, he came to Israel to study at the Alliance French School. He then went on to the Technion in Haifa where he studied Agricultural Engineering.

He ended up in Catalonia in the mid-eighties working in agriculture and water management. His expertise took him towards viticulture and viticulture took him to wine. Amongst other things, he developed a plant sensor that measures stress in plants. He became a consultant to a number of famous wineries like Osborne, Marques de Grinon and Mas Martinet.

If you really want to see Moises animated, let him talk to you about plant sensors, vine stress, water regimes & humidity in vineyards. This is his world and he is in demand as a specialist in his field. He has been involved in projects all over, from Egypt to Chile.

Now, many growers, viticulturists and agronomists remain wedded to the vineyard but it does not necessarily translate to a love or understanding of wine. They are often connected but can be oceans apart. There was a catalyst that helped Moises make the transition and that was Anne.

She had studied History of Art and became a qualified sommelier. Sniffing and getting excited about a particular wine was part of her character. When they met, it was her passion for wine that took Moises over the bridge from vineyard to wine, from scientist to wine lover.

At home they speak three languages. These are the language of their youth, which is French, the language of their adopted country, Spanish and the language of their proud region, Catalonian. This is not including other languages different members of the family speak, like Hebrew, for instance.

It was love of Catalonia, and more specifically excitement that this was the time of the quality wine reincarnation of Priorat, that encouraged the Cohens to enter the wine business. To succeed they were able to combine the expertise, the passion and the contacts.

They bought a lovely property with a walled vineyard, which they called Clos Mesorah. The vineyard has 105 year old Carignan vines. These are knarled, thick trunked and close to the ground, like bushes. Old, yet brimming with character. The name Clos Mesorah combines the French word for enclosure and the Hebrew word for tradition.

Carignan has a special ring for Israelis. It’s a grape variety that covers over 130 years of wine in Israel and it tells a story of Israeli wine, from volume to quality. It came here in the 1870’s, bought over by the Mikveh Israel Agricultural School, even before Rothschild founded a modern wine industry. The first vineyards planted in 1882 included Carignan.

Unfortunately it did not have a good image, but that did not stop it. In the 1970’s more than 50% of Israeli grapes were Carignan. It grew well in the hot climate, gave good yields and was versatile. A winemaker could use it to make inexpensive reds, Kiddush wine or grape juice. What it did not make was quality wine.

In the early 1990’s Priorat showed for the first time what old vine, low yield Carignan could do. Here it was at its best and started producing great wines.

In the early 2000’s Israeli wineries understood the recipe of using old vines and low yields and started producing wonderful Carignans. The ugly duckling became a swan. Carmel Vineyards Old Vines Carignan, Recanati Wild Carignan and the Vitkin Carignan are three of the best.

The Cohens set up in the region where Carignan is the benchmark. They formed a company called Elvi in Marca, Priorat, to produce wines in different appellations. The company name combined the word El (G-d), with the letters Vi, short for Vino (wine). They used the contacts Moises made as a consultant, formed joint companies with the local wineries and rented the parcels of vineyards they chose.

The company had a principle: To work with local grapes from different individual regions. The wines where possible were to be natural, bio-organic and kosher. So they make kosher wines in the appellations of Rioja, Priorat, La Mancha, Alella and Cava.

The name of the very popular Spanish sparkling wine, Cava, is well-known to Israelis. The word has become the generic slang for sparkling wine in Israel. Someone asking for a glass of cava in a restaurant is as likely as not to be asking for any sparkling wine.

The Cohens have possibly become the first Jewish Sephardi vineyard landowners to make wine in Spain since the inquisition in the 15th century. There is another very famous non-kosher winery nearby to them in Monsant, called Capcanes. They make some very good kosher wines. However Moises Cohen is committed to bringing wines from different regions of Spain to the consumer. Like all quality kosher wine producers, he says his objective is to make quality wines with typicity for their region, which ‘just happen’ also to be kosher. Seemingly he has more than succeeded in his objective.

Elvi Wines has gone from strength to strength. They now produce 80,000 bottles a year and have garnered some pretty impressive third party recognition. Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate gave five of their wines scores of between 90 and 92 points and wrote: “Kudos to the Cohens for this remarkable array of kosher wines.” In the most important Spanish wine guide, Penin, their Rioja Herenza Crianza was ranked as the ’Best Rioja Crianza’ in Spain. The Clos Mesorah recently scored 93 points in the Ultimate Wine Challenge. Kosher they may be, but they are certainly high quality Spanish wines, regardless of the K word.

Elvi’s wines are imported to Israel by wine & spirits distributors, Hacarem. My favorite Elvi wines are as follows:

Elvi Herenza Rioja 2011

Lighter, more purple in color. Nice drinking wine with juicy aromas of cherries and strawberry notes. A great summer wine if served slightly chilled. Good acidity. Refreshing, but with the structure to stand up to food.

Elvi Herenza Rioja Riserva 2009

Made from the Tempranillo grape. The wine is deep colored with delicate aromas of strawberry, cherries and plum. Nice acidity, soft tannins and a long, well balanced finish. A fine Rioja in a more elegant style, with clever use of oak, kept in the background.

Clos Mesorah 2009

Deep colored blend of their own old vine Carinena (aka Carignan), blended with Garnacha, (aka Grenache) and Syrah. It is from the Monsant region, near Priorat. The wine has aromas of black fruit and cherry and is well defined with good balancing acidity. Good length.

Elvi EL 26 2006

This is a blend of Garnacha, Syrah and Cabernet sauvignon from Priorat. Rich, with aromas of blackberry, ripe plum and a hint of spice. The oak gives a cinnamon, spicy vanilla backdrop. There is an attractive sour cherry finish. The label is the color of the slate covered vineyards.

Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery and regularly writes about wine for both Israeli and international publications.

This article first appeared in the Wine Talk column in the Weekend Supplement of the Jerusalem Post

Once, this country had a love affair with Turkey and Israelis went in droves on holiday there. Then the situation changed and all of a sudden, Greece has become our new friend. People have returned from Rhodes, Crete and Santorini raving about Greece as a holiday destination.

In the last few years some good Greek style restaurants have opened in Israel. Suddenly Greece, amid all its economic problems, has become a symbol of greek1the Eastern Mediteranean life we aspire to.

The Ancient Greeks had one of the world’s great wine cultures. They even had a God for wine, Dionysus. They mixed what was then considered by Jews a toxic cocktail of wine, philosophy and hedonism. This was highly frowned upon by the Israelites of the time and considered a threat. It was in the shadow of the Greek raison d’etre of good living, that the Jewish attitude to wine was forged.

The rabbis set up the safeguards that built a fence of Jewish law around the subject of wine to avoid inadvertently drinking Yayin Nesech (wine that may be used for idol worship) and Stam Yeynam (a wine made by non-Jews). Mixing socially was forbidden for fear it would lead to intermarriage. Moderation was the antidote. These two great wine cultures, Greek & Israeli, grew side by side. One championed excess and the other focused on strict controls. One exported the vine & wine culture (for instance to Italy) and the other enshrined the importance of wine in Judeo Christian religious ritual.

There are also many similarities between the two. Despite their rich wine ancient history, both Greece and Israel made pretty awful wine for almost 2000 years. Their wine industries revived at the end of the 19th century, based on volume not quality. This was due to efforts of particular companies like Achaia Clauss, Boutari and Kourtakis in Greece, and Carmel in Israel. Some quality pioneers starting making serious wine in the 1980’s, starting with Chateau Carras in Greece and the Golan Heights Winery in Israel.

In the 1990’s there was a boutique revolution in both countries with new young internationally trained winemakers breathing life and quality into these historic, but stagnant wine industries. Then in both countries the larger wineries diversified and converted to quality. Look at Boutari & Tsantalis in Greece and Carmel and Teperberg in Israel for example.

Today these two wine countries are making better wine than ever, but despite the exciting things happening in wine quality, both countries still have major problems. Much of the world still assumes Israeli wines are sweet oxidized ‘Jewish’ wines. As far as the Greeks are concerned, the image is either Retsina (a white wine flavored with pine resin) or Demestica (a cheap brand that was ever present in kebab kiosks).

As a result both are grateful to export to ‘captive’ markets. Israel mainly sells to the Jewish market in the United States and Greece to ex-patriots in places like Germany. The potential in both countries has not been realized because of the damaging preconceived ideas honed by the 100 years of mediocrity. However, just like in ancient times, these two countries have revived the Eastern Mediterranean. Now it is a new world of wine, in one of the oldest wine growing regions on earth.

In Israel, there has been a distinct move to Mediterranean style wines. This trend was started by Carmel and Vitkin wineries just over ten years ago. They were the pioneers. The baton has since been picked up by Recanati too. Lately Arza Winery came out with a label called ‘i-med’. Now Tulip Winery has taken it a step further by launching MAIA Winery, with the slogan ‘Mediterranean Approach Israeli Art’.

Not enough for them the Mediterranean flavor, these wines have a distinct Greek look. The winery has a Greek consultant and not just anyone but Yiannis Paraskevoulos, one of the heroes of the modern Greek renaissance. The stylish labels with a Greek look pay homage to the Mediterranean which Israel is part of. Better to be in the Eastern Mediterranean where wine culture was born than the Middle East! Maia is a super initiative, well executed, which symbolizes a new love affair with all things Greek.

I have long been a firm admirer of Greek wines. It is a country with variety approaching that of Italy with hundreds of local, indigenous varieties. As a beginners guide, you need to know about four of them.

The star is the white Assyrtiko which produces steely, citrussy white wines. The variety is at its best in the volcanic Santorini in the Cyclades Islands in the Aegean Sea. There, it is so windy that the vine is uniquely weaved into a kind of basket with the fruit nestling inside for protection. The wines have a minerality that we could only dream of achieving here. How I would love to try this variety in Israel! The finest practioners of these wines are Argyros and Gaia wineries. The Gaia Thalassitis is unique example of Assyrtiko, with a tantalizing taste of the sea. You have to taste it to understand what I mean. Gaia is a winery owned by Yiannis Paraskevopoulos.

Moschofilero is a pink grape variety that thrives in Mantinia in the Peloponnese. This produces grapey whites with aromas of rose petals and a touch of spice. One of the best is produced by the Tselepos Winery.

There are other white wines to look out for including Gerovassiliou Malagousia (made not far from Salonika) or Gentilini Robola from Cephalonia (Ionian Islands), but the Assyrtikos and Moschofileros will be easier to find.

For reds, there is the Xinomavro. This is at its truest in the Naoussa region of Macedonia in the north. The wines are real originals. They are high in acidity and very tannic, with earthy aromas of truffles, and olives. Near maybe to an older Pinot Noir or Nebbiolo. Difficult to grow and an acquired taste to like, but certainly different and unique. The finest examples are produced by Boutari, Kir Yianni and Alpha Estate.

More traditional is the other great red grape of Greece, the Agiorgitiko (pronounced ‘ahiorgheetiko’). The home of this is the Nemea region in the Peloponnese. The wines are more rounded and fruit forward. The variety is capable of making fruity easy drinking or deep colored, complex wines bursting with aromas of cherries and ripe plums. The best is produced by the afore mentioned Gaia Winery. Or you can taste wines from those who blend the Greek variety with an international variety. The Skouras Megas Oenos is a good example of this fusion.

Then Greece has the most wonderful range of dessert wines. The honeyed, luscious Vinsanto made from sun dried Assyrtiko grapes on Santorini is legendary. King of all is the range produced by Argyros Winery. The best are released only after aging for 20 years. These are some of the world’s greatest sweet wines.

There are also the high quality range of Muscats from the Island of Samos in the northern Aegean, not far from Turkey and the unique Mavrodaphne, a port style wine from Patras in the Peleponnese.

I have done Greece an injustice by focusing on a few headlines, but Greek wines with a history & credibility are produced everywhere from Crete to Thrace. Maybe their whites are better than their reds. Many would say the opposite about Israeli wines. They also have all international varieties we do. The one with the best outlook is Syrah, (try the Gerovassiliou Syrah.) The Syrah or Shiraz has really become the international variety of our region. A latecomer, not yet widely planted, but it really does seem to have an affinity with the Eastern Mediterranean.

So there you have Greek wines in a very small nutshell. The wine intelligentsia in Israel has only recently discovered them. Soon they will arrive in these shores. Whether you meet them here or there, make a point of seeking them out.

adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery and regularly writes about wine for both Israeli and international publications.

This article first appeared in the Wine Talk column in the Weekend Supplement of the Jerusalem Post

The Negev is a desert area that comprises 60 percent of Israel. In historical times it was a major center of winemaking on a commercial scale. The Nabateans and Byzantines each had wine presses of a scale designed to produce large quantities of wine, much of which was sold for export. Simply visit the old wine presses at Shivta and Avdat to appreciate that even then, or especially then, Negev was a thriving wine country.

It was the fervent wish of David Ben Gurion, Israel’s first prime minister, that the Negev would be settled and agriculturists would learn to conquer the desert. He wanted the desert to bloom and set a personal example by retiring to Kibbutz Sde Boker when he resigned as prime minister.

He had started his career in Israel working for Carmel Winery at Rishon Le Zion Cellars. There he challenged his fellow harvest workers to see who could tread grapes for the longest time. He won his bet, but the smell of wine during fermentation made him feel so nauseous, he was not able to enjoy wine for years afterwards.

The folklore says he organized the first strike there and was eventually fired for his efforts. Fortunately, for the State of Israel that is, he was better at state building and politics.

In fact, it was Carmel Winery who were the first modern pioneers of the Negev. They planted their Ramat Arad vineyard at Tel Arad in 1988, in the northeastern Negev. I remember when Carmel first came out with their Merlot from its desert vineyard in 1992. Today the vineyard, surrounded by Bedouin and camels, is alongside an agricultural looking building housing one of Israel’s most technologically advanced wineries, Yatir.

Yatir Winery is Israel’s most famous desert winery, but their grapes come from the high altitude Yatir Forest. Ben-Gurion decided in the early 1960’s, that he wanted to plant a forest on the hills north of Arad and south of Hebron.

His advisers told him, “The scientists say it is just not possible.” Ben-Gurion retorted; “So, change the scientists!” The forest was planted in 1964 and became Israel’s largest planted forest. This initiative stopped the encroachment of the desert and Yatir Forest, a meeting place between the the Judean Hills, the Negev, and the Judean Desert, became one of Israel’s most interesting ‘new’ quality wine growing areas in the 2000’s.

Then Tishbi and Barkan wineries began using vineyards at Sde Boker and Mitzpe Ramon respectively. However, the real pioneers of the Negev wine country are Alon & Nira Zadok. They were firstly pioneers in the Sinai, and when that was evacuated for peace they moved across the border to Moshav Kadesh Barnea, near Nitzana, and became pioneers again.

The original Kadesh Barnea is where the Children of Israel camped, when Moses sent the twelve spies to scout out the Promised Land. Two of them returned with a bunch of grapes so large, it had to be held on a pole between them, and then uttered the immortal quote: “it is a land of milk and honey and this is its fruit…”

Alon & Nira helped settle the area, planting vegetables & table grapes. They looked back in history and gained strength from the agricultural activities of times gone by, and decided if the Nabateans had made wine so successfully, it was something they could do. So they became pioneers for a third time. This time wine pioneers.

They planted Cabernet Sauvignon grapes in the sandy soil in 1997, and founded the Kadesh Barnea Winery in 2000. Alon took wine courses at the Derech Ha’Yain Wine Store, Sorek Winery Winemaking School and at the Faculty of Agriculture under the tutelage of Dr. Yair Margalit. In that first year they produced 3,000 bottles. The enthusiastic amateur transformed into a wine professional and fulfilled his dream of making wine in his beloved Negev.

In 2010 he passed the winemaking baton on to his eldest son, appropriately named Yogev. (The word ‘Yogev’ means a worker of the land). Now, he is an internationally trained winemaker. He learnt Italian so he could study in Florence. Most Israelis go to learn winemaking in California, Adelaide, Montpelier or maybe Milan…but Florence! Can there be a more beautiful place to study winemaking Uniquely, he was accompanied by his wife, Eden. She did not only go with him to Italy, but also into the class room and laboratory. She also took the three year course.

Both Yogev and Eden were inspired by the Italian style of reds. Good acidity, not overoaked and wines that are designed to go with food.

Today the winery has reached production of 90,000 bottles. Their grapes are harvested from vineyards all over the Negev Heights region from Haluza to Sde Boker and Ein Avdat down to Mitzpe Ramon. Not forgetting, of course, their own Nitzana vineyards.

Recently they have renamed the winery ‘The Ramat Negev Winery’. This is to emphasize their unique wine region and the labels have been modernized to reflect the needs of a more commercial winery. The wines may be recognized by the initials RN, stylishly written in metallic bronze on all their labels. They have taken ownership for this newest of the developing wine regions in modern Israel.

Yogev Zadok believes passionately in the Negev Heights. He now has the knowledge and expertise to match with the pioneering dreams and enthusiasm of his parents. He says the altitudes are high, up to 900 meters above sea level. Temperatures are hot, but averages out cooler than what you would expect, because nighttime temperatures can be very cold. There is no humidity and vine diseases are at a minimum. There is also no rain, but drip feed irrigation allows him total control.

David Ben Gurion would be proud. The Negev is sprouting vineyards. There is nothing like coming across an expanse of green vineyard in a sparse, sandy, scrubby desert where nothing else grows. See what I mean on the way down to Eilat. Look out for the vineyards at Sde Boker or Mitzpe Ramon.

Within the last 10 years, new farms have sprung up with boutique dairies, vineyards, olive groves, farm animals and horses. There are new small wineries joining in the Israeli wine boom, in this most exacting wine-growing region of all. Midbar Winery has joined Yatir in the northeastern Negev and Carmei Avdat amongst others, is off Route 40 in the central Negev. However the Ramat Negev Winery is the one showcasing the terroir of the Negev Heights and reviving a 2,000 year old tradition.

Ramat Negev has three labels. The basic label is called Kadesh Barnea. Neve Midbar is mid way blends and the Ramon label is their premium varietals. My favorite wines I tasted were as follows:

Neve Midbar White 2013

Dry White Wine

An intriguing blend of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Franc. The wine is dry. It is made like a Blanc de Noir, and there is a faint blush color from the red grapes. It has tropical fruit notes and a delicate acidity. Good value.

Price: 69 shekels

Neve Midbar Red 2011

A Bordeaux style blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot and Merlot. Aged in a combination of American and French oak barrels. Quite oaky & full bodied, with aromas of ripe black fruits and vanilla. A full flavor in the mouth with good length.

Price: 89 shekels

Ramon Petit Verdot 2011

This is a single vineyard estate wine from their own vineyards. It is a rare varietal Petit Verdot, but one of the best. Deep colored with a nose of blueberry, blackberry and black cherry, a chewy mid palate and a long finish that remains long after swallowing. This may well be their calling card.

Price: 120 shekels

Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery and regularly writes about wine for both Israeliand international publications.

This article first appeared in the Wine Talk column in the Weekend Supplement of the Jerusalem Post

I entered this world of wine through the door of Bass Charrington. It was once the largest drinks company and pub owner in Britain, the largest brewery in Europe and the largest hotelier in the world. Bass Charrington Vintners owned Alexis Lichine, Château Lascombes and a three hundred year old wine & spirits shippers called Hedges & Butler, with cellars under London’s Regent Street.
One of the companies represented by ‘H&B’, as we called it, were the Bordeaux wines of Baron Philippe de Rothschild. This was how I was introduced to

Château Mouton Rothschild, the premier wine from the same stable.

I remember being invited to Mouton to participate in the grape picking harvest. It was backbreaking work. At lunch we were encouraged us to drink too much Fine de Bordeaux (local brandy). As a result the afternoon was even more difficult.

At the end of the day, the winery showed its style and flair for public relations. The guest pickers were presented with a signed certificate and a few years later we were sent magnums of their three Château wines: Mouton Rothschild, Clerc Milon and Mouton Baronne Philippe, (later renamed d’Armailhac). Of course, of the vintage we had harvested. Not bad for a day’s work.

At dinner, we were served wine from the Baron’s famous long necked decanters, tied with a red serviette to catch drips. We drank Château Mouton Rothschild 1971. I remember the depth of color, the fruit concentration and the whiff of cigar box until today. It was my first really high quality wine and remains a reference point for me.

Funnily enough Mouton was purchased in 1853 by one of the English Rothschilds, Nathanial, who was a nephew of my distinguished forebear, Sir Moses Montefiore. He was also a first cousin of Baron Edmond de Rothschild who founded Carmel Winery.

Sadly, each of the companies that brought me to wine no longer exists. Hedges & Butler had been founded in 1667, Charrington in 1757 and Bass in 1777. Despite a past so long and distinguished, they just disappeared. Pouff! Nothing remains of their history and heritage. Across the Atlantic, another disappearing act was Seagram, founded in 1857. When taken over by the Jewish Canadian family, the Bronfmans, it became one of the largest spirits companies in the world producing global brands like Chivas Regal and also, of more interest to Israelis, Sabra. However this great company lasted just three generations of family ownership.

All these companies are part of the trash can of history, apart from the odd brand that still carries their name like Bass Ale or Seagram’s Gin. Whilst working for Carmel Winery, Israel’s oldest and most historic company, I am always conscious of how important it is to preserve the history and heritage for future generations.

This is why I want to pay special tribute to Baroness Philippine de Rothschild (1833-2014), who passed away in August. She was owner of both Château Mouton Rothschild and the negociant company Baron Philippe de Rothschild SA, named after her father.

Baron Philippe de Rothschild was a poet, playboy & womanizer who loved fast cars and the theatre. He was imprisoned during World War Two and then fought in the resistance. I once wrote an article in Al Hashulchan, (the Israeli Bon Appetit), claiming he was the outstanding wine personality of the 20th century and he really was that influential.

He was the first person to introduce château bottling. He was the first to create a wine brand, Mouton Cadet. He was first to understand the label was an extension of the image & marketing of the wine. He commissioned artists such as Picasso, Andy Warhol, Chagall, Salvador Dali and the Israeli Yaacov Agam to create his labels each year.

Rothschild was the first to sign the front label as a personal guarantee of quality. He was the first to undertake a high profile joint venture when he created Opus One in Napa Valley with Robert Mondavi. He was the first to create both a dramatically lit, showroom barrel cellar and a unique wine art museum at a winery.

Finally after a lifetime of campaigning, he succeeded to raise his beloved Mouton Rothschild to a Premier Cru Classé in the historic Bordeaux classification. He fell into wine in his twenties and by the time he died in 1988, he was the most visible icon of the world’s most famous wine region, Bordeaux.

His daughter, Philippine, had it tough taking over from a legend who was both eccentric, (he held most meetings from his bed) and a dominating character. At ten years old, she had the trauma of watching her mother, who was a Catholic, dragged away by the Nazis, simply because she was married to a Jewish Rothschild. She was put on one of the last trains to the death camps, and died in the Ravensbruck gas chambers days before liberation. Philippine grew up as a successful actress. Yet, at over fifty years of age, she found herself, a woman in a man’s world, in charge of her father’s wine interests.

Looking back at her wine career, it is possible to say she built on her father’s creativity and further developed the company. She polished the jewel and advanced the business. She refurbished Château Mouton Rothschild and retained and enhanced its position as one of the greatest wines in the world. She brought in a younger winemaker up to date with modern techniques. She produced a second wine to Mouton called Le Petit Mouton and introduced a high quality white, Aile d’Argent. She built a winery for Château Clerc Milon. She brought content to the Opus One partnership. She made her own joint venture with Concha Y Toro, Chile’s most famous winery, producing Almaviva. She expanded into the Languedoc and enlarged the Bordeaux business.

She organized a travelling exhibition of the Mouton labels around the world and it has now settled in the refurbished museum at the Château. I always have the latest framed poster of all their labels in my office. I believe this is the ultimate in stylishness reminding that wine is art and so much more than just a drink.

Philippine was charming , vivacious, outgoing with coiffured hair, big junky jewelry and an outsize personality. Once we shared a podium together when she was President of the IWSC and I was representing a sponsoring winery. However the ‘always the actress’ exterior belied a finely tuned business instinct, a fierce attention to detail and a drive to be the best. Now she has been taken from us too suddenly, it is most impressive to see that she has already incorporated two of her children, Philippe (junior) and Julien into the business, so there will be a seamless continuation of her and her father’s legacy.

So when you have companies like Hedges & Butler, Bass, Charrington and Seagram virtually vanishing without trace, despite hundreds of years of heritage, it is to her credit that her Mouton Rothschild and Baron Philippe de Rothschild SA continue from strength to strength and remain beacons in their industry.

Incidentally, all the labels between 1945 and today are printed on their website, except one. The 1984 wine, with the Agam label, is not there. I don’t know why the only one missing is the one with an Israel connection. However as a nod to their Jewish roots, they do produce a kosher cuvée of Mouton Cadet. Hopefully this impressive company will continue to lead the way by being a symbol of quality, style and panache for many years to come. Bravo to the Baroness, et merci!

The ultimate community winery is one that is born out of a community for people with special needs, who contribute to the production. This is a wine that needs extra respect. There are two unique and special wineries in Israel that come into this category.

Tulip Winery is a gem situated to the east of Mount Carmel. It may be found in a small village called Kfar Tikvah, or the Village of Hope, near Kyriat Tivon. The village was founded in the 1960’s, designed to help those with special needs. The objective is to care for those people that society sometimes forgets or pretends do not exist. Kfar Tikvah allows them to live a full and normal life with dignity. It provides each of its residents with a home, a livelihood and the opportunity to contribute to the community. Everyone is given the chance to reach their full potential.

The Yitzhaki family started a winery there in 2003. A cynic may have said in the beginning, that it was a good hearted gimmick, but any thoughts like this have been swept away by the winery’s commitment to the village and its inhabitants, and the seriousness and quality of the winery.

The manager of Tulip Winery is Roy Yitzhaki. He is young, dynamic and good looking. He seemed to start in the wine business as a bit of fun, but became more and more drawn in as sales and recognition grew. His devotion to the winery, the principles of the village and his workers is heartwarming. He has built a team in his image and is always looking forward.

Some of Tulip’s labels are very innovative. The varietals, made from one grape variety, are name ‘Just’. So the Cabernet Sauvignon is called Just Cabernet Sauvignon. The blends are called ‘Mostly’. This is followed by the name of the dominant variety. It is all very clear and obvious when it is explained, though a little confusing if not.

They source grapes from all over but mainly from the Galilee. From the beginning, Tulip’s wines gained a name for quality and value. The wines were priced very reasonably, even when the wines were scarce. This was an early sign of Yitzhaki’s wisdom, beyond his years. Today they are no longer a small boutique winery. They produce nearly 200,000 bottles a year.

The winemaker is David Bar Ilan, who took over in 2012. He a dreamy-eyed wine lover, who, initially, wanted to do anything to do with wine, even if it meant working in sales. I got to know him when he worked for Carmel Winery in the Restaurant Division.

However he was always determined to get in to the messy side of the wine business. He travelled to Australia for a harvest and worked at Amphorae Vineyards. When needed, he has the advice of Arkady Papikian, once of Carmel Winery at Rishon Le Zion and Dalton Winery. Arkady has really been the dominant wine consultant in the 2000’s, advising a long list of Israeli wineries. He is now the winemaker at Amphorae, but spares time to keep a fatherly look over Bar Ilan’s shoulder.

For David Bar Ilan, to work in wine is fulfilment of a dream. He is at his happiest when making wine. As a result he makes happy, consumer friendly wines, which are very good quality and offer great value for money. The world’s most famous wine critic would agree. On three occasions, a Tulip wine has scored 90 points in Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate.

Kishor Vineyards is situated at Kishorit, which is a special residential community for adults with special needs. The community was founded in 1997 by parents and professionals on the site of the Kishor Kibbutz. Members can work in a wooden toy factory, dog kennels, riding stable, organic vegetable garden, a bakery, free-range egg farm or organic goat dairy. Or they can work in the vineyard and winery.

In 2007 they planted their first vineyard. In 2010 they harvested their first grapes. They produce over 35,000 bottles a year from their own vineyards, which are 500 meters above sea level. They are cared for by the members of the community.

The winery represents a reasonably new wine growing region. When we talk about the Galilee as one of Israel’s finest appellations, the reference is mainly to the Upper Galilee. Most of the vineyards and wineries are in the Kedesh Valley on the Lebanese border or near Mount Meron and the Merom Galil region. Then there is the Lower Galilee near Kfar Tabor. However, Kishor is situated in the Western Galilee, an area already famous for its olive groves, but less so, for vineyards.

Though new, they gained immediate notice because of their very stylish, ‘less is more’ labels. They were obviously designed by someone with a good notion of ‘perception of quality.’ Yet, it is the quality of wines that has really put them on the map.

They are the responsibility of Richard Davies. He is a big guy with a rough beard and a ready smile. He has great experience in agricultural management, particularly from South Africa. He arrived at Kishorit in 2007 and started the vegetable garden and fruit orchard. Now he has the wine bug and manages the vineyard and winery.

He was savvy enough to get good advice. Itay Lahat, one of the country’s most talented winemakers and a prolific wine consultant, is there to assist when required.

The first quality recognition was almost immediate. In Eshkol Zahav 2014, Kishor had an outstanding result winning a gold, silver and bronze medal. Eshkol Hazahav, (The Golden Cluster), is Israel’s premier wine tasting competition. Not bad for a newish winery.

Tulip and Kishor both have visitors centers, (Kishor’s is new), and both are well worth a visit, though it is best to book in advance.

They are both kosher wineries. Tulip since the 2010 vintage, and Kishorit since its founding. If Kashrut had an ethical element, then these two wineries, would have the highest level of Kashrut possible. Y’shar Koach!

Tulip White Tulip 2012

A super summer wine made from Gewurztraminer and Sauvignon Blanc. An attractive, enticing aroma, a touch of apparent sweetness and a refreshing balancing acidity from the Sauvignon, make this a popular wine.

Tulip Syrah Reserve 2010

This Syrah and the Mostly Shiraz are arguably Tulip’s best wines. It is a grape variety that Tulip handles really well. The Reserve Syrah is quite a big wine with aromas of blackberry, plum and spicy notes, a middle palate of chewy fruit and soft tannins. A very good, new world style example of this variety.

Tulip Black Tulip 2011

This is not an elegant wine. It is full bodied, powerful, concentrated and oaky, but it is well-balanced. It is made from the main Bordeaux varieties led by Cabernet Sauvignon. Deeply colored, it has lashings of black fruit, in a vanilla blanket. Mouthfilling flavor and a long finish.

Kerem Kishor White 2013

One of the most enjoyable young white wines I have tasted recently. It is made from Sauvignon Blanc and Viognier. It is grassy, aromatic and very sauvignon, but with a little tropical fruit in the background from the Viognier. A refreshing, high quality wine.

Kishor Savant Red 2012

A Bordeaux style blend made mainly from Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot grapes. The varieties were fermented and aged separately. The wine is elegant with good depth of fruit, an attractive green character that I like and a well-balanced finish.

Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery & regularly writes about wine in international & Israeli publications.

The wine world is divided into four totally different worlds, which never really meet. There is a massive bulk wine market under the radar, where wines cross oceans in large container sized bags. The wines are then sold at extraordinarily low prices in cut price supermarket chains.

Then there is the more visible and more conventional mass market which is price sensitive. Most wines sold are under 40 shekels a bottle and this is where most of the wine is sold and bought. In this arena, usually a supermarket, wine is more of a commodity. The prettiness of the label, promotions or brand recognition are what prompts a purchase.

There is then the added value wine market where the winery story, the place where it was made & the people who made it, become more relevant. Wine is suddenly considered more of an agricultural and artisanal product. More often than not, these wines are sold in restaurants and quality wine shops. Most of the sales lie in the retail price range of 50 to 100 shekels.

Finally there is the hidden world where wine is a luxury item for the super-rich. We are talking Château Lafite Rothschild, Domaine Romanée-Conti, and the like. Such a wine from a rare vintage in a large format bottle, may be for speculators and investors, or the object of desire for collectors. It is designed to amuse and titillate the purchaser or to impress. Once, the British ruled the world’s fine wine market. Then America took over the mantle. Today the hub of fine wine has moved east and the Chinese are swallowing up much of the world’s finest wines.

Now in most wine shops, the expensive wines are kept discreetly far from prying eyes and touchy fingers. This in a way adds to the perceived value because the wines are inaccessible and to the most part, invisible.

Well, there is a newish wine shop in Mayfair, London, called Hedonism, (www.hedonism.co.uk), which provides a gilded window into this luxury world of wine. It flaunts its wines in such a way that it is worth a visit just to gawk and take it all in. It is beautifully designed, visually striking and covers two floors. There are over 3,500 wines and a further 1,000 spirits, and not just any old wines & spirits. Here are some of the most expensive and sought after liquids in glass on the planet.

There is, for instance, a Château Mouton Rothschild room which displays every vintage from 1945 to 2004. The amounts to sixty bottles in all and is available as a job lot for a mere £131,000. Of course it is not just the wine, but the artistic labels that make this such a unique collection.

There is a wall display of Chateu d’Yquem, the word’s most sublime dessert wine. The earliest vintage available, if you are interested, is 1811! However most impressive or outrageous, (depending on your world view), is the rare almost priceless ampoule of Penfold’s 2004 Kalimna Block 42 Cabernet Sauvignon. The glass and surround are design stories in themselves. There are only 12 of these in the world. If you buy one it will cost £ 120,000, but the winemaker of Penfolds will fly over to open it for you, wherever you are! The design, rarity and unique experience are what will encourage someone to part with 720,000 shekels for what is basically 750 ml. of wine. It really is a different world.

Of course Hedonism is not just wine. If whisky is your bag, you can buy a 55 year old Glenfiddich for around £123,000.

I loved the quote from the Victoria Moore of the Daily Telegraph “If Tutankhamen had…died in the 21st century, this is what his tomb might have looked like.”

The concept of this wine shop was the brainchild of Evgeny Chichvarkin, the mobile phone tycoon. When seeking a rare cult wine, he approached in turn the leading purveyors of fine wines in London. He contacted Berry Bros. first, and then Harrods, Harvey Nicholls, Fortnum & Mason and Selfridges, but his search for help & service was unsuccessful. So he decided to build his own wine shop where the emphasis was on service and where the answer ‘no’ was just not an option. He was quoted as saying: “we decided to take wine retailing to the next level. It is not just about product, but also the level of service, with nothing being too difficult.”

This is a shop for the super-rich and London is the right venue. Today there are apparently more multi-millionaire residents there, than any other city in the world. The staff at Hedonism are highly trained wine professionals equipped to guide the prospective buyer through this wonderland of wines. If you speak Russian, French, Spanish, Japanese, Chinese, Portuguese, there is a likelihood someone will be able to talk to you in your own tongue.

Chichvarkin did not only have the vision and the drive and finance to implement it, he also brought in the right person to source the wines. Alistair Viner is the Head Buyer, responsible for filling this extravagant mecca with content. He was for many years the wine buyer for Harrods previously. He is a quiet, modest person, immensely knowledgeable, ultra professional and super discreet. He also has a fantastic palate.

At wine events he can be seen tasting quietly, efficiently without undue comment. He walks quickly between winery stands and tastes with absolute concentration. He does not waste time on unnecessary small talk or rely on hearsay or winemaker talk. He tastes, spits, scribbles, decides and even if some choices are unconventional, he backs his palate and with his record, it is the right way to go.

Why would this shop be of any interest to Jerusalem Post readers The answer is there is also a comprehensive list of Israeli wines. When Viner decided to purchase wines from Israel, he did not rely on second hand information. He took the trouble to visit Israel, taste a wide range of wines and he bought according to his palate, choosing wines he preferred. All the usual suspects are there, Castel Grand Vin, Carmel Limited Edition, Clos de Gat Sycra, Yatir Forest and Flam, showing the best of Israel.

However, if this is too standard for you, there are also wines from Gat Shomron, Ben Haim, Alexander and 1848 wineries. So it is an Israeli list which will be of interest, even for those who are familiar with Israeli wines.

Most of the Israeli wines happen to be kosher. (Clos de Gat flies the non-kosher flag). If kosher is what you want, there is also a selection of the finest kosher wines in the world outside Israel. Argentina, France, New Zealand, Spain and the USA are the countries featured. For instance the kosher customer can buy from Capcanes Peraj Habib, Covenant, Herzog Clone Six, or a kosher cuvée of Château Léoville Poyferré and Château Pontet Canet from Bordeaux.

The super-rich hedonistic image is not strictly fair. The Israeli wines are priced from £17 upwards (100 shekels) and there are something like 500 other wines under £30 a bottle. The staff are passionate and knowledgeable and geared to satisfying the wine collector who has everything. Yet they are neither pretentious nor patronizing, in the slightest. They give full attention to the regular guy who is simply looking for a wine to drink tonight or a gift for the boss. To their great credit, they take no end of time to explain, whatever your budget and buying potential.

If ever there was a shop to browse in. to look around and even take a selfie alongside a priceless bottle, this is it. This is also the place to get the maximum help to find exactly what you are looking for. For a special purchase, it is definitely worth a visit. In other words, it is of interest to wine tourists and wine buyers alike. Next time you are in London (3-7 Davies Street, Mayfair, London), go and submerge yourself in the world of wine luxury. You may, (we hope), even come out with a bottle of Israeli wine!

Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery and regularly writes about wine in both Israeli and international publications.

Greater Jaffa of the 19th century contained the roots of Israeli agriculture. The Montefiore Orchard bought by Moses Montefiore in 1855 was the beginning of an Israeli citrus industry. It is now known as the Montefiore quarter of Tel Aviv. Mikveh Israel founded in 1870 was the agricultural school founded by Karl Netter. This was the first place to plant European grape varieties. It also trained many of the new wine growers that laid the foundations of a new wine industry. In modern times these areas once referred to as Jaffa, have been absorbed into moderrn Tel Aviv and Holon respectively. Then there is Sarona.

Sarona is an oasis of green amidst the bustle of modern Tel Aviv. It is adjacent to the Montefiore Quarter and is sandwiched in between the Tel Aviv Cinematheque, the Kyria military base and the Azrielli Towers. There in the center of Tel Aviv, it is still possible to see the remains of a winery, olive press and wine cellar. The area has been renovated and preserved. The fast growing new towers of apartments grate somewhat, seeming so much at odds with the pastoral atmosphere. However this special space retains its uniqueness and beauty.

Sarona was the community built by the Templers from Germany at the end of the 19th century. They settled there in 1871. They were innovative, being the first to build stone houses, and very advanced technologically. They were one of the first communities in Israel to use agriculture for commerce rather than just supplying their own families. Revealingly, it was engineers from the Templer community who built not only the wineries at Mikveh Israel and Sarona but also the cellars at Rishon Le Zion and Zichron Ya’acov.

They planted vineyards using German varieties such as Sylvaner and built a large winery and distillery. These were connected by a tunnel. Eventually with the founding of Carmel, Sarona could not compete, and citrus gradually replaced viticulture. This resulted in the development of the Jaffa brand for oranges.

To cut a long story short, because the Templers were considered Nazi sympathizers, they disappeared by the onset of the Second World War. As a result Sarona’s fascinating story was almost air brushed from the consciousness.

The new Sarona gradually unfolding before our eyes has thankfully brought back the good memories. Furthermore, in its latest reincarnation, it has become a mecca for wine lovers and connoisseurs.

Claro

Claro is a restaurant worth visiting. It operates in the original distillery building which was built in 1886. The distillery was rented out firstly to the Teperberg family and later to the Segals for producing arak, brandy and liqueurs. Neither succeeded in making a success commercially of spirit production at Sarona, but both companies eventually specialized in wine and lasted the test of time. Teperberg is today Israel’s largest family winery and the Segal brand is an important part of Barkan’s portfolio.

The food of Claro is Mediterranean Israeli. Service is easy, relaxed yet very professional. Ran Shmueli, who needs no introduction, is the chef. However what interests me is an unusually interesting wine list. Firstly it is short and therefore easy to navigate. Secondly it is priced very reasonably.

It is divided into innovative sections. Wines are categorized as Spicy, Classic or Funky. Spicy refers to Mediterranean style wines. Classic lists wines made from the noble varieties and the Funky wines are unique, unusual and tempting. The wines I look for on a list are those offering something different.

For instance I recommend the Tabor 652 Sparkling, a rare sparkling red wine. The Cremisan Hamdani Jandali is a must if you have not tasted it. Made from the Cremisan Monastery, it is an authentic Palestine wine, fascinating for wine people, because it is made from indigenous varieties.

The Shvo Rose is a super wine for our climate. The Carmel Sumaka Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon is an example of a cooler climate Cabernet. Less jammy and concentrated than many Israeli reds. Bar-Maor’s Red Moon is a great wine for the curious. I could go on.

Jajo Wine Bar

Across the way, is the old Sarona Winery, which is connected by tunnel to the distillery. It has now been transformed into one of Israel’s finest new wine bars. Wine lovers will already be familiar with the smaller, intimate Jajo wine bars in Neve Tzedek, but this new branch of Jajo is on a different scale altogether.

It is situated in the vast winery cellar. In shape, size and feel, it is not dissimilar to the cellars I am familiar with at Carmel’s Zichron Ya’acov Winery. Jajo Wine Bar is a place to see and be seen in. It is one of the ‘in’ meeting places in Tel Aviv, but be sure to book far in advance as it is usually teeming.

There is a long bar that runs the length of the cellar. The food is high quality, innovative but it is the wines that are more interesting to me. They have purchased well to provide an interesting list of 180 wines. Culled from this is a practical recommended list of thirty wines that regularly changes.

I recommend perching on the bar, watching the slick bar staff, and ordering a number of different small dishes. Alongside there is the possibility of ordering a few different wines by the glass. Of course, don’t forget to appreciate the atmosphere of being in a nearly 150 year old wine cellar.

Tasting Room

However, the most innovative new wine outlet in Sarona is Tasting Room. This is a small new wine bar that has opened in what used to be the Community Center of Sarona. Visitors can taste no less than forty wines at any one time, all kept at the maximum quality and freshness.

They can buy glasses of varying sizes, using a smart card similar to those used in hotels these days. A full glass is 125 cl, but there are also options of a half glass or a tasting measure of 25 cl. Here is a place to taste a wine you would not normally be able to afford. For example the Yarden Katzrin 2008 is offered by the glass.

Seventy percent of the wines stocked are Israeli and some of Israel’s largest wineries and highest quality small wineries are also represented. It provides a wonderful opportunity for the wine guy or tourist to taste, compare and evaluate a number of wines at one sitting.

It is also an innovative place for an evening out or a small event. There is good range of wine bar style food available for those wanting to make an evening of it. Options include bruschetta, charcuterie or a cheese platter.

Tasting Room is the brainchild of Avi (Avshalom) Cohen, who also has his own winery. The smiling face that may greet you is Roni Saslove, ex of Saslove Winery. She is the manager.

This outlet reflects the wine revolution that has happened in Israel. There is no place quite like it. Go there to sniff, swirl and sip whilst you talk wine with likeminded friends.

Of course Sarona is not just about wine. For the thirsty there is also a Molly Blooms Irish Pub and Paulaner beer garden. There is also a Little Italy section where you can thumb your nose at Tel Aviv, fill a picnic basket, sit on the grass and enjoy a picnic with easy drinking glass of Italian wine. The new Sarona is going to be very popular. However don’t forget that the wine tastes better when you take time to sit and consider the fascinating history of this jewel wedged in the middle of Tel Aviv.

Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery and regularly writes about wine

in both Israeli & international publications.

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The winner of the Regional Trophy in this year’s Decanter World Wine Awards was a surprise. Firstly it was Israeli, which is always good news, but the name of the winery will be un-known to many. The winning wine was ‘Special Cuvee’ from a winery called Trio.

Other Israeli winners of this prestigious award over the years’, include wineries such as Clos de Gat, Carmel, Adir, Golan Heights and Recanati. Incidentally to date, only Carmel Winery with their Kayoumi Vineyard Shiraz has succeeded to go the whole way, managing to win the International Trophy against all comers. However Trio has joined a very distinguished group of

Israeli wineries.

The fact it is Decanter’s competition demands immediate respect. Decanter is the quality wine magazine of the United Kingdom and their annual competition is without doubt one of the most prestigious in the world. So an award in this forum carries far more credibility than many of the other competitions there are.

Trio is a winery founded in 2006 by three of the younger generation of the Shaked family, Tal, Oran and Koby. They grew up as part of Israel’s number one wine retailer and one of Israel’s leading distributors of fine wines. The young

Shakeds thought, that if you are already working in importing, distributing and retailing, why not go the extra stage and learn about production. They decided make wine for educational purposes. Simply, to learn more. It was one of the few things in wine they had not done and it was something they could create of their own.

So they initially sort help from Ronnie James, z”l, of Tzora Vineyards, a legendary figure in Israeli wine who is much missed. They produced 4,000 bottles in the first year.

The Shakeds created a winery logo which featured themselves as foxes. Three foxes. Like the foxes depicted on the labels, they are alert, swift, streetwise and shrewd.  Each of them manages to contribute by offering something different to the partnership. Tal Shaked, 38, is the quieter, more cerebral type. The thinker.  He looks after the marketing. Oran Shaked, 35 years old, is the hands on perfectionist, who is most interested in the production side. Koby Shaked, 38, is the hyperactive creative one, impatient, thinking out of the box, always onto the next deal. The three of them make a team of contrasting abilities, which are in fact totally complimentary.

They made their first wines and steadily grew the business. Their entry level wines are labelled ‘Spirit’. These wines celebrate regionality. The region from where the grapes come, is considered more important than the variety or blend.  There is a Spirit of Jerusalem wine, a Spirit of Galilee and a Spirit of Alona Valley.

The next level is their reserve wines, are called ‘Secret’. These are blends of different regions. Finally there is the Special Cuvee, which is a prestige blend.

Recently they decided to anchor the business by making some smart decisions. Firstly they moved production to the Ramot Naftaly Winery in the Kedesh Valley of the Upper Galilee. There they have their own space & equipment. 

Then they appointed Yotam Sharon as winemaker. He is one of quiet, knowledgeable types. I am not a great fan of winemakers who start to tell you what they have done and how good they are. Sharon is the antithesis of this type of winemaker, but he is someone who really does know. He studied in Montpelier France, and worked at Chateau Mouton Rothschild and in Roussillon, before joining Barkan in 1999.

There he was primarily responsible for the winery move to Hulda and for the top level wines, like the successful Assemblage label. He has great experience and would be an asset in any winery. To choose the combination of Yotam Sharon and Ramat Naftaly reflects on the seriousness & professionalism of the three foxes.

The younger Shakeds were not born into wine, but as teenagers, they were thrust into this new world as a result of their parents. Nearly thirty years ago, the Shaked family decided to switch to wine. They became distributors of the Golan Heights Winery and became an important part of the success in building that brand.

In 1993, the Shakeds changed wine retailing in Israel for ever by opening the Derech Ha’Yayin wine store, in Hashmonaim Street, Tel Aviv. Fast forward twenty years and there are now ten stores and they have just opened the biggest monster of them all at Derech Hashalom 9, Tel Aviv. Well worth a visit

They then went into importing & distributing wine both for their own stores and for distribution to restaurants. The first big success was the Gato Negro brand from Chile which for a time became one of the biggest selling wines in Israel. They now import a full range of wines from some of the finest wines in the world for private collectors, famous brands for their retail business and quality, value wines for the wholesale business.

The success of the family in wine was due to the two patriarchal figures, Uri & Eli Shaked, who are brothers. Yet it is the children that have managed to take it all to the next stage by conversing at ease & with knowledge with the wine world outside the island of Israel. Oran & Tal are the children of Uri, and Koby is the son of Eli.

After army service, whereas the usual path of young Israeli is to travel to exotic places like India or South America, the young Shakeds travelled to Bordeaux and other wine regions. They wanted to absorb themselves in wine to gain expertise and take the family business further. This they have succeeded to do, but despite the importance of Derech Hayayin and the Shaked ‘family of brands’, the importing & distribution arm, it is the small family winery owned by the next generation which has now put this distinguished wine family on the world map.

My favorite wines produced by Trio Winery, available in Derech Hayayin of course, are:

Trio ‘Spirit of Galilee’ Rose 2013

The ultimate summer wine. Quite full in color, light red, as opposed to delicate pink. It has beautiful red berry fruit, with some lifted aromatic notes, a piercing refreshing acidity and a clean, refreshing finish.

NIS 69

Trio ‘Spirit of Alona Valley’  2011

My favorite.  This is a well-focussed Carignan, made from old vines from a vineyard not far from Zichron Ya’acov. The wine has a nose of blueberry, plum with a hint of Mediterranean herbs, a touch of sweet vanilla and a full flavoured finish.

NIS 89

Trio Secret 2011

This is a blend of 88% Cabernet Sauvignon and 12% Syrah. A third of the wine was matured in new oak barrels. The wine has aromas of blackberry, blackcurrant, and ripe plum. Soft and velvety in texture. Despite the oak aging, it is more elegant than the Spirit wines.

NIS 109

Trio Special Cuvee 2011

This is the prize winning wine. It is made from Cabernet Sauvignon from the Jerusalem Hills  and Syrah from the Galilee. The wine is understated, elegant, with good black fruit aromas and a certain smokiness. It has a soft intriguing mouth feel and a long well balanced finish.

NIS 145

Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery & regularly writes about wine in international & Israeli publications.

I first met Lewis Pasco seventeen years ago. He was new in Israel, quite raw, talking non-stop in that very fast way of his. He gave an impression of being super confident, and full of himself. He certainly talked a good wine and knew how to put forward all his qualities. However, we were to learn, even though he was not a shrinking violet, that Lewis Pasco really could make great wine.

He arrived here after studying viticulture and oenology at UC Davis, with experience as a head chef and work experience at some pretty good Californian wineries under his belt. He became the winemaker for Tishbi, a veteran family of wine growers. I knew him, because in those days I worked for the Golan Heights Winery and for a few years they had a distribution agreement with Tishbi. I used therefore to be at Tishbi Winery quite a lot, bringing overseas customers or wine journalists to visit. They met this winemaker who was not slow to quote his background and achievements. One food writer from England said to him after talking to him for five minutes: “Young man, for someone who has been so little time in Israel, you have become very Israeli.”

However Pasco went from those beginnings to better things. The raw talent began to be fulfilled. He was head hunted by a new winery which was codenamed Jasmin Winery. We in the trade were all waiting anxiously to know what this was. When it was founded in 2000, Lewis Pasco became the winemaker of what we now know as Recanati Winery.

There he put his medals where his mouth was, because Recanati began winning gold medals all over the place, including some very prestigious competitions abroad. Suddenly he started to make wines that even his peers thought were good. He was most proud of the Vinexpo Gold medals when the winery also received the prize for ‘Best of Country’ on three separate occasions.

He found a wife here, and they had two beautiful children, and then he disappeared as suddenly as he had come, back to the Golden State of California.

I met him again on his return to Israel and found a calmer person, more modest and more at peace with himself. He was in fact charming, more reflective, and also generous in praise to others.

He has always been a fascinating person to meet and talk to. Warm and friendly, he is very generous with sharing his knowledge. He oozes with the passion that singles out the wine lover from the wine drinker.

I now realize I misjudged him before. He is simply an artist with an emotional artist’s temperament. When he describes his latest wine or the dish he cooked last Shabbat with all the intimate details, the reason is not arrogance. It is just a generosity of spirit that means he has to share his feelings, including decisions and reasons. He is overflowing with enthusiasm. One feels if he could not share & communicate, he would burst.

Two things brought him back, Beit El Winery and the Pasco Project. He returned to what politicians call Judea & Samaria or the West Bank, depending where they sit. I prefer to call the region from a wine point of view, the Central Mountains. These run from, again from a wine point of you, from Har Bracha down to the Hebron Hills. The country’s official wine regions are divided horizontally, which makes them confusing and meaningless, when in fact the country’s topography is vertical. There is a coastal plain, rolling hills…and then the Central Mountains, which fall away to the Jordan Valley. So it is Central Mountains for me! It does not make sense to split them in to two regions.

I was curious why he chose to come to this region for his return.

He made quite clear this was a winemaking decision rather than a political wine. He says it is simply a fantastic region for growing wine. “From my extensive experience in Israel, I knew the Central Mountains possesses ideal red soils, terra rossa on a limestone basis, along with the topography, altitude and microclimate tailor made for production of outstanding red wines.”

He went on to say he was surprised to the extent to which the area had been planted with wine grapes whilst he was away, and the dedication to quality of the wineries.

One of these growers was Hillel Manne. When he moved to Beit-El, he was already experienced in agriculture and viticulture. His analysis of the area immediately helped him see the potential. It excited him that this was the very place where Jacob wrestled with the angel, but also that there was evidence there of thousands of years of winemaking. The connection with Lewis Pasco filled the gap in his dream. He could satisfy his instinct not only to make good wine, but the best wine possible with the help of a proven internationally trained winemaker. Beith-El Winery’s has just released a Carignan which was their first wine together. Pasco believes it is the best Carignan in the country.

This is always a variety that interests me because it spans the modern history of wine in Israel. Cuttings were first brought here by the Mikveh Israel Agricultural School in the 1870’s. The first plantings of Carignan were in Rishon Le Zion and Zichron Ya’acov in 1882 and 1883.

In addition to making the wine at Beth-El, Pasco also became the consultant winemaker to Mount Hevron Winery, which is the largest winery in the Central Mountains.

However it is the Pasco Project that really gets the Pasco enthusiasm bubbling over. He has chosen a catchy label with the name Lewis Pasco written on big letters on an artist’s easel. The first wine, Pasco Project No.1, has been released made from Cabernet Sauvignon from Shilo, Merlot from Har Bracha and Petite Sirah from Givat Yeshayahu in the Judean Hills. Interestingly, and this is where we benefit from the Pasco full disclosure of all the details and thought processes, he originally wanted to make two different wines, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Through tinkering as winemakers do, he found blending them together with a small amount of Petite Sirah vastly improved the wine. This was an instance in which the final blend was better quality than the individual components. He is very pleased with the results. We eagerly await further developments as his project develops.

Whilst talking to him, it was interesting to hear his views on grape varieties. He thinks Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot are still the best basis for the finest Israeli wines. However he loves Israeli Cabernet Franc, believing that the ripeness achieved in Israel offsets the wine being too green and herbaceous. He is also a great fan of Petite Sirah, which he believes it is the most suited of the older Israeli varieties to the climate. He believes in aromatic whites in Israel and would love to try the revived Greek variety Malagousia here.

And, what of his peers He greatly respects the wines of Psagot, Gvaot and Shilo. He has seen a big improvement in Israeli whites since he has been away, complimenting the new Gamla Sauvignon Blanc and Shilo Chardonnay. For favorite reds he picks out the Shilo Legend Shiraz Cabernet, the Yarden El Rom Cabernet Sauvignon and Yatir Forest. He admires winemakers like Victor Schoenfeld of the Golan Heights Winery, Eran Goldwasser of Yatir Winery and Eyal Rotem from Clos de Gat.

Certainly Israeli wine is more colorful and professional for Lewis Pasco’s return. Do the wines match up to the Pasco punch You will have to taste them & see for yourselves!

Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery in Israel. He regularly writes about wine for Israeli & international publications.

To the question how many wineries are there in Israel, it is very hard to give a concrete answer. I know that the largest three wineries have something like 70% of the Israeli wine market. Furthermore, the largest ten have well over 90% of the market. These are: Carmel, Barkan-Segal, Golan,Teperberg, Tabor, Binyamina, Tishbi, Recanati, Dalton and Galil Mountain.

There are by my reckoning about forty, what I call, commercial wineries, harvesting over 50 tons of grapes a year. Beyond this there are hundreds of boutique wineries, garagistes and domestic wineries. Literally, hundreds. No-one can possibly be up to date, as new wineries are opening every day.

The small winery phenomenon is spreading like the fiercest epidemic. It is not enough for some wine lovers to enjoy drinking wine, it seems many also want to get their hands dirty and to go through the unique experience of making wine.

There is a quiet, unassuming person in the Judean Shefela, who is more responsible for fanning the flames of this epidemic, than anyone else. This is Nir Shaham. He is a rare animal for an Israeli, being quiet and modest. Many would not know his name or recognize him. Yet he has arguably had more influence on the plethora of new wineries than anyone else. Thousands of students have passed through his hands, and 150 of them he estimates have continued to make wine.

Many people like food, but have never been chefs. I love wine but have never made wine myself. However, do you yearn to be a winemaker or to have the experience of following the winemaking process from the vineyard to the bottle Do you get excited at the camaraderie and the sense of optimism that pervades the harvest Or yearn for the smells of the fermenting wines during fermentation Or do you simply like the idea of juggling different components of a blend, and coming up with a definite result in a bottle which solely belongs to you

If the answer to any of these questions is yes, then I recommend you to the Soreq Winery Winemaking School, owned and managed by Nir Shaham.

There you will learn not only to make wine, but also to enjoy and appreciate it in the most fundamental way. You will work in the vineyard, winery and laboratory. There is the necessary theory but much of the work is practical. The courses even touch on marketing and on how to sell the wine you have produced.

Nir Shaham is not a winemaking evangelist saying look at me or follow me. Rather he is more interested in finding the truth and essence in each individual wine and he is interested in helping his students to find their own truth. He wants everyone to find within themselves the wine they want to make. That is the true strength of a successful teacher. This is where his uniqueness shines.

He organizes the longest running wine course in Israel, which existed well before Tel Hai College’s Cellar Master Course or Ramat Gan College’s Wine Academy Course.

The story started in Tal Shahar, a charming moshav, not far from Latroun. There his father Yossi, owned a vineyard that grew Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. The fruit was normally sold to Carmel and Tishbi. He was simply an agriculturist, who had a vineyard. However this was not a wine drinking family yearning to make wine. Shaham remembers they used to add grapefruit juice to wine to make it drinkable.

One day, Barry Saslove, another remarkable wine personality, came to his father and suggested they start a winery and hold winemaking classes. Now Saslove was also a very influential educationalist of Israeli wine and Shaham is quick to give credit to him for steering the family in a new direction.

So suddenly this family that does not really like wine, but has a very good vineyard, became a winery, almost by default. Winemaking is not something one wakes up in the morning wanting to do. Most people remember their first wine, and it is usually a simple one. The journey to become wine lovers is a gradual progression. Then they eventually work up to the stage where they actually want to make the stuff! It is a step by step process.

With the Shaham it was the opposite. The family was an antithesis of a wine drinking family. They had to learn to make wine and become winemakers and yet it was only through this process, that they learnt to love wine & appreciate it.

After Barry Saslove moved on to begin his own boutique winery, the family was assisted by the consultant winemaker Arkadi Papikian. These two people helped set Nir Shaham on his way as a winemaker and winemaking teacher from the mid to late nineties onwards. In 2004 he took over ownership of the school and winery.

There are many wine courses in Israel but none encourages the student winemaker or passionate wine lover to get so close to the earth, tank and barrel. So when they receive a wine at the end of the process and they put their own label on it, it really is their own, with their own fingerprint.

Shaham encourages individuality. He cajoles students to think for themselves. To decide what they want to do with what nature has given them. He wants wines of passion, creativity and individuality.

For example in 2013, his school harvested 48 tons of grapes, from seven separate vineyards in four different wine growing regions, ranging from the hills of the Upper Galilee down to Mitzpe Ramon, in the deepest desert. He made wine from eleven different grape varieties. This is not someone who has the luxury of teaching out of a book. Nor is it a finite learning process with an end. Shaham says: “when a student starts to learn with us, he begins a journey that lasts a lifetime.”

The unpretentious Shoham has some innovative projects. Foremost is the one where he makes wine on an annual basis for the quality restaurant chain R2M (Coffee Bar, Brasserie, Montefiore Hotel, Delicatessen etc.) The difference is that he is not the winemaker. It is the employees who make the wine from deciding on the vineyard, physically harvesting the grapes, until the final blending. Instead Shaham is the coach or conductor, encouraging and prompting the group to reach the end result they want.

He organizes an annual festival for domestic wineries. It is a wonderful day out for wine lovers and an opportunity to meet the real wine enthusiasts and the winemakers of tomorrow. It is also an opportunity for home winemakers to get feedback on their wines.

Now he is also working in a project called ‘Three Corners’ with winemakers from totally different areas of the globe, (California, Costa Rica & Israel), in a particular way.

He also has another project in the works with Japan.

No-one should forget Soreq is also a very fine winery, not just a school. It is situated at Kibbutz Nachshon. It was founded in 1994, and so is celebrating twenty years. I enjoyed having the opportunity to taste the current wines.

Soreq Rose 2013

Made from Grenache and Carignan, this rose has a beautiful, delicate salmon pink color. It has an enchanting but understated berry nose, but with a fresh, crisp acidity.

Soreq Syrah 2010

A well balanced Syrah, from the Safsufa vineyard, in the Upper Galilee. The wine has a very nice aroma of red berry fruits, cherries and an understated backdrop of oak. It has a chewy smoothness which I liked.

Soreq Cabernet Sauvignon 2010

Best of all is this well balanced Cabernet Sauvignon from the Judean foothills. It has good blackberry and blackcurrant fruit, with a green bell pepper tone. There is a full mouth feel in the middle palate, and nice length on the finish. Well defined.

Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery in Israel. He regularly writes about wine

for Israeli & international publications.

There is a great deal of domestic and international tourism. Israelis themselves are great, casual tourists. I recommend you join them and become a wine tourist. It is fascinating to see this country of ours in new ways, and it is possible to get to know the country afresh through the prism of its vineyards, wineries and wines. Whether your interest is history, people, religion, gastronomy, agriculture, archaeology, architecture… or even wine, your interest will be satisfied by travelling Israel’s wine route.

The country is covered with vineyards and there are hundreds, literally hundreds, of wineries. These range from large commercial operations producing millions of bottles, to small domestic wineries producing a few thousand bottles for family and friends. There are state of the art wineries, where the technology ranks with anywhere else in the world, and others where a lack of expertise is made up by boundless enthusiasm.

There are Moshav wineries and Kibbutz wineries. There are wineries run by Ultra Orthodox Jews, Christian Monks and Israeli Arabs….. and so on.

So it is a deep pool. Take time to plan a wine tour to make sure you don’t waste any time in a winery you did not really want to visit. Use books like ‘The Wine Route of Israel’ or ‘Israeli Wines’, if they help you. They are both available in Steimatzky, Tsomet Sefarim and the Ben Gurion Airport bookshops. There is also the recently published Wine Map of Israel, (published by Cordinata, Tel Aviv.), which will be useful.

Note that the larger wineries are more likely to have proper visitors’ centers. This will mean there are tours on a regular basis. Smaller wineries however, are more likely to open only when needed. In both instances it is essential to book in advance. Don’t leave it to chance.

I strongly suggest that you avoid trying to fit in too many wineries into a day. If you try and visit four wineries for instance, you may find you have four unsatisfactory visits. Better to do two wineries a day, giving time for a relaxed, unhurried journey.

If you only do two a day, then you want to choose them carefully so that they compliment each other. If you go to Carmel for instance, which is Israel’s largest and oldest existing winery, then balance it by maybe going to a small boutique winery. You don’t want to hear the same story in two wineries, and cynically speaking, a stainless steel tank and wooden barrel look the same wherever they are.

Check out if the wineries are Kosher or not beforehand. The larger wineries are more likely to be kosher. That means that they will be closed on Friday afternoons, Shabbat, Festivals and Memorial days. The smaller wineries may not be kosher. If not, they will be more likely to be open on Saturdays.

Of course it goes without saying that each group should have a designated driver, whose job is to drive. It is recommended this person does not drink at all.

It is strongly recommended that you arrive at winery at the time you have booked. Hard to say this to Jews and Israelis, whose watches that don’t work like they do in the rest of the world, but it will avoid disappointment. This means planning your day with enough time to spare for delays, traffic problems, food and natural breaks.

When you taste wine, and on a wine trip, hopefully you will be able to taste a lot, be sure to spit, not drink. In a winery it is the sensible thing to do and it is also acceptable. Only if people taste sensibly can they enjoy and benefit from a full days tasting. Wineries will have a spittoon or receptacle for this purpose. Don’t be ashamed to use it and if you dribble, just ask for a paper napkin. It is okay. Everyone does it, including those experienced in spitting!

Make the most of the opportunity of tasting, to try and taste something new. You obviously don’t lose the right to buy what you know and like. However if you are offered something to taste, this is the time to be curious.

It goes without saying, drink lots of water throughout the day. This stops you drying out and means you will be able to taste more without feeling the effects.

It is better to buy wine at the winery than anywhere else. There is something special about drinking a wine from a winery you have visited. Also it is likely that the wine is in the best quality possible condition. It will not have deteriorated, or prematurely aged, because of the way it was cared for, either during delivery or whilst languishing on the shop shelf.

Beware not every winery shop will offer the cheapest prices, because wineries don’t like to undercut their customers. However you will find good bin ends there which may not be available elsewhere.

If you buy a wine, then don’t leave it in the car. The heat in Israel can be hot enough to ruin a wine in minutes. However if you have no choice, put it under the seat and out of direct sunlight.

Become an active participant in the blooming world of Israeli wine and as soon as you have completed one wine tour, you can begin to prepare the next one!

The main wine routes in Israel are listed below. I have only listed the more prominent wineries, but of course there are many, many more.

NORTH

Galilee – Tabor, Dalton, Adir, Ramat Naftaly, Galil Mountain

Golan Heights – Chateau Golan, Golan Heights Winery, Bazelet Hagolan, Odem Mountain

COAST

Mount Carmel – Binyamina, Margalit, Tishbi, Carmel–Zichron Ya’acov, Somek, Amphorae, Tulip

CENTER

Judean Plain/ Lowlands – Barkan-Segal, Latoun, Karmei Zion – Bravdo, Clos de Gat

Judean Foothills – Mony, Teperberg, Tzora, Flam, Ella Valley

Judean Hills – Castel, Tzuba, Sea Horse, Gush Etzion

CENTRAL MOUNTAINS

Shomron Hills – Psagot, Shilo, Gvaot, Tanya,Tura, Har Bracha

SOUTH

Negev – Yatir, Midbar, Carmey Avdat, Kadesh Barnea

RECOMMENDED FOR A VISIT

I recommend these wineries, either for the quality of the tour they provide, an unusually i innovative shop or the beauty of the place and its surroundings. Sometimes, for all three reasons together.

GOLAN HEIGHTS WINERY, Katzrin, Golan Heights.

www.golanwines.co.il<span style=”vertical-align: bottom;”> (http://www.golanwines.co.il/)</span>

This is the Napa Valley in Israel, with great wines and also produce of the Golan including beer, olive oil and honey. Visit here to celebrate the blessing of the Golan Heights.

ADIR WINERY, Ramat Dalton, Upper Galilee

www.adir-winery.co.il<span style=”vertical-align: bottom;”> (http://www.adir-winery.co.il/)</span>

One of the most innovative and stylish visitors’ centers in Israel combining not only a winery but also a dairy.

TABOR WINERY, Kfar Tabor, Lower Galilee

www.taborwinery.co.il<span style=”vertical-align: bottom;”> (http://www.taborwinery.co.il/)</span>

Fun informative visit for the family and excellent value wines. The nearby marzipan factory is a must for bored children and hungry parents.

CARMEL WINERY, Winery St., Zichron Ya’acov

www.carmelwines.co.il<span style=”vertical-align: bottom;”> (http://www.carmelwines.co.il/)</span>

Israel’s historic winery. Visit the underground cellars built by Rothschild. During a tour it is possible to understand the history of Israeli wine & the recent quality revolution, all in one setting.

TISHBI WINERY, Industrial Area, Binyamina

www.tishbi.com<span style=”vertical-align: bottom;”> (http://www.tishbi.com/)</span>

The most tasty visitors’ center. Home cooking, local cheeses, freshly baked bread and locally produced jams, jellies and olive oil. Also top quality chocolates…and wines.

PSAGOT WINERY – Nachalat Binyamin, Psagot, Mizrach Binyamin

www.psagotwines.com<span style=”vertical-align: bottom;”> (http://www.psagotwines.com/)</span>

Technically advanced winery visitors’ centers, showing the Biblical roots of Israeli wine. Very good audio visual presentations, not to be missed.

GUSH ETZION WINERY, Gush Etzion Junction

www.gushetzion-winery.co.il<span style=”vertical-align: bottom;”> (http://www.gushetzion-winery.co.il/)</span>

A beautiful stone building, which houses a winery and cafe. A excellent place to meet, eat & taste wine.

YATIR WINERY, Tel Arad, Northeastern Negev

www.yatir.net<span style=”vertical-align: bottom;”> (http://www.yatir.net/)</span>

A hike or picnic in Yatir Forest, a visit to Tel Arad, and a tasting at one of Israel’s most advanced wineries make this one of the most interesting places to visit.

Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery and regularly writes on wine

for both international and Israeli publications.

[email protected]<span style=”vertical-align: bottom;”> (mailto:[email protected])</span>

For me, Seder Night is like a Roman Banquet, with a focus on wine. Like in a real banquet there are a number of courses and the compulsory glasses of wine are spread throughout the evening.

Why four glasses (Arba Kossot) of wine This is attributed to the four expressions by G-d about the Exodus: ‘I will bring you out… … I will deliver you…. I will redeem you…I will take you…’ These are otherwise known as the Cup of Sanctification (Kiddush), the Cup of Deliverance, the Cup of Redemption and the Cup of Praise.

Wine was a symbol of freedom and reclining whilst drinking seems to fit in very well with the Roman banquet idea. The Mishnah says that ‘even the poorest…must be given not less than four cups.’ Far be it for me to disobey a request such as this, but there is no danger of it in our family!

Wine has always played an exaggerated role in our Seder Nights. For us, Passover is a time when I get out my finest cut glass decanters, which belonged to my grandfather. The meal is like a real banquet and the matching of wines to different stages, is also very banquet-like. You could choose a sparkling wine for the first glass, and a white, red & dessert wine for the second, third and fourth glasses. The second & third wines may also be used to accompany the meal.

In my family of wine lovers, we do go a little over the top. We always take the opportunity of the get together to arrange a special tasting in advance, an hour or two before the Seder Night begins. Each time there is a theme. Two years ago, we had a vertical tasting of Yatir Forest, the prestige wine of Yatir Winery, tasting successive years from 2001 to 2008. Last year we had a tasting of the best Shiraz, Syrahs, and Petite Sirahs in Israel. The tasting was blind, the bottles wrapped in silver paper, but apart from that it was meant to be informal and fun.

Then for the four glasses, we always find something special. It may be one of the original Yarden Katzrins, an old magnum or an old vintage of Carmel Limited Edition or Yatir Forest. My wife prefers white wines, so there is something for her like Carmel Kayoumi Riesling, Yatir Viognier or C Blanc du Castel. My only rules are that the wine must be kosher, obviously, and they must be Israeli. The fact we are a small family in Israel, works to our advantage. We can therefore make a special effort with the wines. I am sure if we had twenty guests, we would think differently!

I have been in the drinks industry all my working life. After time in the English wine trade, my wife and I made Aliyah with three young children in 1989, and I suppose since then I devoted myself to advancing Israeli wine.

Today I work for Carmel Winery, the historic winery of Israel, founded by Baron Edmond de Rothschild in 1882. This has been the national winery of Israel in three different centuries, under the Turks, the British Mandate and finally the State of Israel. Despite local strife in the form of World Wars, regional wars and terrorism, Carmel has never missed a single vintage.

Carmel also owns Yatir, one of the most famous Israeli boutique wineries, in a unique growing area. This is why it is always highly likely, that Carmel & Yatir both feature prominently chez-nous, on this annual wine evening.

The problem is this year. Why is this year different from other years Well, my two children living in Israel, (a third lives in England), both now work for wineries, and of course expect their wines to feature.

How they got into wine, I have no idea. Where they got it from is obvious, but they showed no interest when young. My son David, studied Classics and English Literature at Tel Aviv University, and fast forward a few years and he was a sommelier and wines & spirits manager in some of Israel’s leading wine restaurants. He studied wine at the WSET in London, and travelled to do harvests in the Barossa Valley in Australia and Monsant in Spain. Hey presto! He now works for Tabor Winery as Wine Culture Manager.

My daughter Rachel, whilst studying Nutrition & Chinese Medicine, suddenly started working at wine stores like Vino Cigar & Derech Ha’yayin. She took an eight month wine course, became sommelier in celebrity chef restaurants and then marketed Austrian, Sicilian & Israeli wines. Now she has become a partner in a new, start-up winery called Kerem Montefiore. (Nothing to do with me, but a nice name!)

So suddenly, instead of me being able to choose wines at will, I now have to be sure each winery is represented. Four wineries. Carmel, Montefiore, Tabor, Yatir. How fortunate there are four glasses!

Of course the wineries are very different in size. Carmel is Israel’s largest winery producing 15 million bottles a year. Tabor is fast growing and is already Israel’s fifth largest winery. Yatir is a boutique winery and Montefiore is tiny, producing only 20,000 bottles.

The four wineries really do cover the map of Israel. Tabor Winery is situated at Kfar Tabor in the Galilee, in the shadow of Mount Tabor. The center of Carmel’s winemaking operations is at Zichron Ya’acov, on the southern slopes of Mount Carmel. Montefiore Winery takes its fruit from the Judean Hills on the way to Jerusalem. Yatir Winery is situated in the north eastern Negev dessert. This makes it interesting as wine has a sense of place.

The winemakers also bring variety as they honed their skills in different places. Carmel’s winemaker studied in France, Tabor’s in Russia, Yatir’s in Australia and Montefiore’s is Canadian.

So David, Rachel & I each decided to make our own selections, on the principle of one wine only from each of the four wineries. If there were any duplications, that is what we would choose.

Of course, we all came up with different suggestions!

David chose: First glass – Carmel Kayoumi Riesling 2012; 2nd – Montefiore Red 2013; 3rd – Tabor Adama II Lehava (Flame) 2010; 4th – Yatir Forest 2007

Rachel’s selection was: First glass – Tabor Sauvignon Blanc 2013; 2nd – Yatir Merlot Shiraz Cabernet 2009; 3rd – Carmel Kayoumi Cabernet Sauvignon 2009; 4th: Montefiore Kerem Moshe 2011.

My choice: First glass – Tabor Roussanne 2013; 2nd – Montefiore Syrah 2011; 3rd – Carmel Mediterranean 2009; 4th – Yatir Cabernet Sauvignon 2009.

What do you do in a family where four wineries are represented Decide not to decide. At least we have an idea for our pre – Pesach tasting this year. Regarding the four glasses, let’s just say, we will keep it in the family.

The only thing we could agree on, is that after dinner, we would offer a choice of Carmel Vintage (port style) 2007 or Carmel 100 Brandy. Phew, that was easier!

Wishing you a Kosher & Happy Wine Festival!

This article was published in the Jerusalem Post. Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery

& writes the regular Wine Talk column in the Jerusalem Post and in www.jpost.com<span style=”vertical-align: bottom;”> (http://www.jpost.com/)</span>

Divine Vintage is a newly published book which provides a window into the ancient world of wine, and ends up in modern times. It follows the biblical wine route, and includes Canaan, Ancient Israel and the State of Israel. It delves into the area where wine culture was born and examines the recent quality revival in the historic but newly dynamic wine region of the Eastern Mediterranean.
The Eastern Mediterranean was the cradle of the grape. Over two thousand years ago, this was the France and Italy of ancient times. The book colorfully explains the wine cultures of the Israelites, Egyptians, Greeks and Romans. It discusses the use of wine in the burial rites of the Egyptians, and gives an explanation of the Greek Symposium, which was a glorified wine tasting and the Roman Convivium, which was a feast or banquet.
Interwoven in the book are some of the major figures of the Bible who all feature in the story of wine. It all begins with Noah, the first person to plant a vineyard. He must have taken some vine cuttings into the Ark along with all the animals. He was also the first person to drink too much wine. The first person to be blessed with bread and wine was Abraham. Lot was also infamous for becoming inebriated. Moving on to Egypt, there is the story of Joseph and Pharaohs Cup Bearer, who was the first sommelier. The most enduring wine related image of the Bible is of the spies sent by Moses to the Promised Land. They returned with a bunch of grapes so large that it had to be held on a pole by two men. All this was to illustrate that Israel was a land flowing with milk and honey. This image is kept alive in the logos of Carmel Winery & the Israel Ministry of Tourism. Isaiah?s Song of a Vineyard provided an illuminating description of the viticulture of the time.

There is the story of Naboths vineyard. He came to a sticky end at the hands of King Ahab and Queen Jezebel. Then there is Nehemiah, the Cup Bearer to Ataxerxes, King of Persia. He was the first Jewish sommelier and paved the way for the return of the Israelites, the rebuilding of Jerusalem and a revival of winemaking. King David was also a wine lover who had vineyards and cellars so vast that he needed officials to look after them.
Galilee is brought into focus in the story of Jesus, who took on the role of winemaker at Cana (in the Galilee), when he changed the water into wine. This provides a connection to Israeli wine today, because two thousand years later, the Galilee is arguably Israels finest quality wine region. The Jewish roots of the Last Supper, which was basically a Passover Seder Night, are also discussed.
For 2,000 years the Eastern Mediterranean was known for fairly dire wine. The first steps to create modern winemaking industries were taken in the mid to late 19th century. This was when wineries like Carmel in Israel, Ksara in Lebanon, Achaia Clauss and Boutari in Greece revived winemaking in their respective countries. In Turkey, Kavaklidere & Doluca were to follow suit in the early 20th century.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the Golan Heights Winery (Israel), Chteau Musar (Lebanon) and Domaine Carras (Greece) were the first wineries to show that it was possible to make world class wines. They acted as a quality catalyst in their respective countries. In recent years something close to wine fever has taken root throughout the region. Numerous new boutique wineries suddenly appeared and the larger wineries changed direction and invested in quality. The wine revolution gathered pace in Greece and Israel in the 1990s and continues until today. In Lebanon and Turkey the new winery boom has been more recent, getting under way in the 2000s.
The two authors are the ideal people to tell this fascinating story. In a way, both have dabbled in the others field. Randall Heskett Phd is an expert on the Hebrew Bible, who has also worked in wine. Joel Butler MW has a degree in history and has devoted his life to wine education.
Dr. Randall Heskett is a Biblical Scholar and author, who has taught at the University of Toronto, Queens University and Denver Seminary. He is presently founding president of Boulder University in Boulder, Colorado. Quite apart from his expertise in the Old Testament, he is also a wine lover and wine importer. His scholarship makes a fascinating read as he delves into the sources to give a rich background spanning from the origins of wine to the Roman Wine Empire.
Joel Butler MW is currently the president of the Institute of Masters of Wine, North America Ltd. He was one of only the first two Americans to become a Master of Wine. He is one of the most experienced people one could hope to meet having worked in every aspect of the wine trade. He is a highly respected wine judge in competitions from as far away as London and Australia and writes regularly about wine in international publications. Currently he is the owner of WineKnow, a wine education company in Seattle.
Joel Butler took the time to painstakingly travel the Biblical wine route, driving many thousands of miles. He visited Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan, Israel and Greece, faithfully recording what he saw in the many hours he spent in the company of winery owners and winemakers. His descriptions of wineries and expert tasting notes bring to life the dynamic story of the regions revival as a quality wine producer.
Divine Vintage clearly positions Israel as being a central part of this modern, but ancient wine region. Israel is a little schizophrenic with regard to where it positioned. Politically it is considered part of the problematical Middle East. In sporting events it competes as part of Europe. In wine competitions it is regarded as being in Asia. Visit the wine shelves in some countries, and it would appear Israel is part of a wine country called Kosher. Culturally it is nearer to being the 51st State of America. The cuisine is a fusion of North Africa, Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Mediterranean. However as far as wine is concerned, Israel is an integral part of the Eastern Mediterranean. The Mediterranean Sea runs along much of the west coast of the country, and the climate of most of the countrys wine growing regions is Mediterranean.
Decanter Magazine would appear to agree. A recent feature article on Israel was headlined: Israel Eastern Med, not Mid East. If only wine retailers were encouraged to display the Eastern Med countries together, it would mean Israeli wines were not left languishing on the kosher shelves, disregarded by most of the general wine drinking world.
Therefore it would make sense if the wines of Carmel (Israel), Kavaklidere (Turkey), Kourtaki (Greece) and Ksara (Lebanon), appeared together under the heading Eastern Mediterranean on the shelves of wine & liquor stores. Likewise on restaurant wine lists, whenever wines are listed by region, the neighboring wines should be bracketed together. It would be ideal if, say, Gaia or Gerovassiliou (from Greece), Musar or Massaya (Lebanon), Corvus or Kayra (Turkey), and Yatir or Yarden (Israel), were all listed as being part of the same region.
There are many similarities and differences in the Eastern Med. It is an area where matters of wine, war and religion permeate every aspect of the countries concerned. The Greek and Lebanese winemakers tend to be Christian, the Israelis are mainly Jewish and the Turkish are Moslems. Also Greece & Turkey and Israel & Lebanon have each had a turbulent even violent history, even in recent times. However eat the mezze or drink the coffee in these countries, and you begin to see the regional similarities.
It is a region with so much variety. The Greeks have their indigenous varieties. The Turkish wine roots go back to the beginnings of civilization and they also have some unpronounceable grape varieties of their own. The Lebanese wine industry is very Francophile, with strong French winemaking influences. Israel is more New World with state of the art technology in the wineries and very advanced agricultural & viticultural techniques in the vineyards.
The uninformed observer may have in the past considered wines from these countries to be only suitable for the ethnic market. That is to say, Israeli wines only for the religious Jewish (kosher) market, Greek wines for ex patriot Greek Cypriots, Turkish wines for Turkish communities and Lebanese wines for Lebanese restaurants. This outdated idea is misguided as each of these countries is producing their best quality wines for 2,000 years. Furthermore the wines of today are winning trophies and gold medals in the major wine tasting competitions and receiving high scores and quality recognition from international critics.
This is a book not only to read and enjoy, but also to study and learn from. It will explain the beginnings of the worlds wine culture, and the importance of wine in Judeo Christian society. It will also introduce the reader to the exciting modern world of Eastern Mediterranean wine. It is the ultimate guide to the wines of the Eastern Mediterranean, past and present. It will appeal to historians, scholars, wine lovers and connoisseurs alike.
Divine Vintage: Following the Wine Trail from Genesis to the Modern Age is published by Palgrave Macmillan. Price $ 26.

I first met Daniel Rogov in 1990 when he was still writing for the Jerusalem Post (the leading English language newspaper in Israel). In those days I considered him primarily a food writer rather than critic, and his writing was full of anecdotal, historical references. He was in a way showing Israelis that food and wine were not subjects that just entailed eating and drinking, but that they could be discussed, talked about and debated. It was in a sense an introduction to European style culinary culture and gastronomy.

Gradually he transformed from being a food writer into being a critic. He became unreservedly the leading restaurant critic in the country. He exhibited professionalism, knowledge and was both curious and passionate. He was not just interested in the food, but also the ambiance, the background and beliefs of the chef and the quality of the service received equal coverage. All the while he was educating Israelis about the total restaurant experience.

During the time he worked for Haaretz, (the quality newspaper of Israel), he had metamorphosed into becoming more a wine critic. He brought the scoring system of 100 points to Israel and kept up a massive data base of wine scores covering large to small wineries, which he managed to maintain, albeit with a few understandable errors, even as the number of wineries and wines grew year by year.

As a critic he set high international standards for Israeli wine. However, when the wineries started producing what he considered international and world class wines, he was quick to reward them with high scores. Sometimes he was criticized for giving too high scores, but he was a patriot as well as a critic and was biased in favor of his own country. (The same phenomena are not unknown in other wine media, where local critics sometimes may be seen to favor their local wines.) As Israel began to gain third party international credit for the quality of its wines, so the stock of Rogov rose. He became a brand as important as any in the wine industry and became credited abroad as being the voice of the Israel wine renaissance.

He wrote a few books. Like his career, initially they were on food and then later were focused on wine. Some foodies may remember the fun, irreverent Rogovs Guide To Israeli Cuisine and To Jewish Cuisine, amongst others. His last book on food was Rogov at his best: Rogues, Writers & Whores. This was a gastronomical review, of the Rich & Infamous, by the master story teller.

It was his wine books which gave Rogov international fame. Rogovs Guide To Israeli Wines 2005 was first published in the autumn of 2004. This book has reappeared annually seven times. The 2012 edition is already written and it will be the last one in the series. Tom Stevenson regarded it as one of the best country wine guides.

Those who know me, will know that I can scarcely pass a book shop without entering it, and I have created wine libraries wherever I have worked (including at the Golan Heights Winery and now at Carmel Winery at Zichron). Whilst browsing in bookshops around the world, I have found Rogovs Guide To Israeli Wines in the most unlikely places, often representing Israel where Israeli wines were not on the shelves of local wine shops. As such he became a wonderful and effective wine ambassador for Israeli wines.

He also did the work. He visited the large, medium and even many small wineries each year without fail. When he visited wineries the comments about the coffee could be as biting as the reviews of wine. The person changing ashtrays was likely to be the busiest person. However, tastings were conducted in silence, the winemaker was listened to without interruptions and Rogov would write notes that only he could understand in tiny scrawl. He was bringing the standards of the international wine critic to Israel.

I remember hosting Robert Mondavi with Daniel Rogov at Tapuach Zahav Restaurant in 1995. Two pioneers together. At the next table we watched as someone was seen unfolding a grubby, torn copy of a newspaper article. He was then heard to order the exact meal Rogov had reviewed. Even on a recent visit to my local Supersol supermarket, I saw someone with Rogovs Wine Guide in hand, checking reviews as he perused the wine shelves. Rogov had a guru like following from his readers.
This was never more so than on his Wine Discussion Forum. It had a truly international audience, but became more an outlet for kosher wine lovers in time. It was ironic that Rogov the high priest of secularism, became like a Hassidic Rebbe to many in his forum. I always marveled at his willingness to provide the maximum, tireless service to even the most basic of queries.

We really worked together to represent Israeli wine abroad and shared not only the writing responsibilities, but also the objective. We were always looking to advance brand Israel. We shared the writing for major international publications. For instance he wrote for Tom Stevensons Wine Report and I wrote for Jancis Robinsons Oxford Wine Companion. In 2000, I invited him to share with me the responsibility of contributing to Hugh Johnsons Pocket Wine Book and he later invited me to write the foreword to Rogovs Guide To World Kosher Wines.

Daniel Rogov was charming in an old world sort of way, quiet but at the same time always charismatic. Even the most casual conversation was, both, intellectually stimulating, entertaining and informative. Poised with the ever present cigarette in one hand, and a strong coffee in the other, he would relish a discussion or debate, and he would always be ready with a story to cover any situation. He was the ultimate story teller, a raconteur par excellence, and he only needed an audience of one to perform.
Within Israel he set new standards for wine and culinary discourse. His writing created the new aspirational standards, his reviews were a commentary on the progress and then he faithfully reflected the wine & culinary revolutions that took place. He was also scrupulously honest and straight in dealings with wineries. Again, acting as an example to his colleagues. He was always the first to arrive at exhibitions and wine events, and usually the first to leave, preferring a one on one with the wine and winemaker rather than the crowd.

When he rang me from hospital in July I was shocked to hear the diagnosis. When we met at the Basel Street Arcaffe on July 20th, I found the usual spirity Rogov. However he was thinner, walking with a stick and complaining he had lost his palate. He was totally realistic, knew what would be and understood absolutely what the future held.

The tribute evening on August 29th 2011 was the most complete gathering of the Israeli wine trade I can remember. The evening was a wonderful opportunity for everyone to salute Rogov, to show him love and, as it was to turn out, say farewell. Each person lining up to give Rogov a kiss or a hug had his own personal memory to make the particular moment poignant. When the organizer Tal Cohen asked me to make a speech representing Israeli wine along with Victor Schoenfeld, much as I hate public speaking, (especially in Hebrew), I could not say no.

When Tal asked me to be in contact with some International wine writers I was pleased to help. The task was easier than I thought. Some of the worlds most famous wine writers & critics were eager to pay their respects. When I drove him and Rahel, his wife, back to their home after the event, I understood how much the event had meant to him. One of the last things he said to me was Even Hugh Johnson wrote to me!

The real Rogov was David Joroff, a quiet, extraordinarily private even quite humble individual. I always felt privileged to be able to call him David. The public persona of Daniel Rogov was his alter ego. Daniel Rogov was a giant who will be remembered as an integral part of the wine and food revolutions in Israel. As for David, the person and friend, I miss him immensely.

My sincere condolences to his wife Rahel, daughter Libby and brother.

Adam Montefiore works for Carmel Winery and writes a weekly column for the Jerusalem Post.

These were the words of an English wine journalist who visited Israel four times in the last 15 years and claimed to know to what was good for the Israeli wine industry.

He parting advice was: Learn to love Carignan. Every country has a grape they are known for as their signature variety. Why not make some old vine Carignan, it’s your cheapest variety, it’s not unknown, and such a wine could be unique, interesting, and (hopefully) more sensibly priced.

Carignan hails from the town of Carinena in Spain. It is known as Carignane in California, Carignano in Italy and Carinena or Mazuelo in Spain. It is most prominent in Languedoc-Roussillon, the Catalan regions of Spain, Sardinia, North Africa and the Eastern Mediterranean. It is fairly well distributed in Cyprus, less so in Turkey and is barely seen in Greece. However it is more respected in Lebanon.

Traditionally, it is a variety that has always been most appreciated in blends. Mazuelo is usually a component in the Rioja blend. In Priorat it is often blended with Grenache. In the better Carignan regions of the Languedoc, like Corbieres, Fitou, Faugeres, it is often blended with Syrah, Grenache or Mourvedre. The legendary Paul Draper from Ridge Winery in California, produces a rare old vine Carignan and also uses it in one of his Zinfandel blends. It is also an integral part of the famous Lebanese wine, Chateau Musar, where it is blended with Cinsault and Cabernet Sauvignon.

Carignan has also been the backbone of the Israeli wine industry for nearly 130 years, being ever present since the 1880s, until today. When the first tentative steps to viticulture were taken in 1882 by a small number of farmers in the Rishon Le Zion area, they planted some local Arab varieties but also a grape they called Corignan. They received their cuttings from the Mikveh Israel Agricultural School.

Amongst the other varieties planted were Alicante (a synonym of Grenache), Espart (aka Mourvedre) and Bordolo (aka Cinsault), so there was a distinct bias to vines from the South of France. The reasons for this were not only that Mikveh Israel was founded and funded by the French but also they obviously thought the climate in Palestine was similar to that of the South of France.

So the presence of Carignan in Israel preceded even the involvement of Baron Edmond de Rothschild, the founder of the modern Israel wine industry. However, when the Baron came on his first visit to Israel in 1887, he insisted on concentrating more on Bordeaux varieties such as Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec. This was the beginning of a debate that is still going on today: What are better for Israel, Bordeaux or Mediterranean varieties

Back then, in the 1890s and into the first decade of the 20th century, the Mediterranean varieties won the argument. The growers complained about the low yields of the Bordeaux varieties. Furthermore the early wineries discovered the market was not yet ready for a more expensive, higher quality Palestine wine. So, when the vines in Israel became affected by phylloxera, they all had to be grubbed up and the vineyards replanted. By that time the growers knew what the market wanted basic sacramental wines and inexpensive bulk wine. Carignan and Alicante were selected instead and these two varieties were systematically planted throughout Israel.

By the 1940s, Carignan had a 20% share of the wine grapes planted in Israel. This grew to 28% in the 1950s and to 35% in the 1960s. By the 1970s the harvest of Carignan amounted to nearly 25,000 tons and at one stage, even reached 55% of all the grapes planted in Israel.

Even then, the Carignan vine was considered to be most at home in the area around the town of Zichron Yaacov. More than half of the countrys Carignan vineyards were planted in the valleys either side of the southern part of Mount Carmel. This was in those days the largest wine growing region in Israel. All the Carignan vineyards were planted in the goblet, bush vine style that was in vogue at the time. Harvesting was by hand and with the older vineyards, drip feed irrigation was not always absolutely necessary.

Why was Carignan so popular Firstly it was ideal for the Israels Mediterranean climate. Though susceptible to powdery mildew, it proved easy to ripen and produced consistent results even during the hottest, most humid vintage. It was versatile and could be used to make grape juice, sweet sacramental wines or dry red table wines and growers could get very high yields, up to 4 tons per dunam. What was important was volume production and suitability to the climate. Quality was not then an issue.

Over the years, two attempts were made to improve the simple Carignan grape. The Ruby Cabernet variety was developed in California in 1949. This was a cross between Carignan & Cabernet Sauvignon. Today, it is only sparsely grown in Israel, where there are approximately 100 tons harvested each year. The only commercial winery using it to good effect is Tishbi Winery, with their Ruby M, a blend of Ruby Cabernet and Merlot.

More prevalent is the Argaman variety, which was developed in Israel in the early 1990s. It is a cross between Carignan and Souzao, and there are about 2,000 tons harvested in Israel. The most successful varietal Argaman to date, is a single vineyard wine produced by Segal Wines. However neither Ruby Cabernet nor Argaman were successful in replacing Carignan as the volume grape of Israel.

Since then, Israel has gone through a well-documented quality revolution. Wineries now plant noble varieties in cooler, higher altitude vineyards, with the express objective of making quality wines. As a result of this change, it is the Bordeaux varieties that have returned, fulfilling the original vision of Baron Edmond de Rothschild. Today, the finest wine from most Israeli wineries is either a Bordeaux style blend or a varietal Cabernet Sauvignon. These are the wines receiving the highest scores and bringing Israel a new name for quality.

Yet the marketing people and some winemakers still believe a return to Mediterranean varieties is inevitable. Shiraz/ Syrah has been heavily planted in the last 10 years and is thought by many to be ideal for Israel and there are plantings of new clones of Grenache and Mourvedre etc.

In the 1990s, there was a revival in Carignan, led by regions such as Priorat and Fitou. The use of old vines and reduction in yields was seen as the key to getting the maximum from the variety. Also in Israel, winemakers began to look at their productive Carignan vineyards differently. Individual plots in old vine vineyards were identified and yields were drastically reduced. The stage was set to produce some good, quality, old vine Carignans.

Margalit Winery made a one off Carignan in 2001 and since then Carmel has been the leading the way producing its Appellation Carignan Old Vines from Zichron Yaacov vineyards since the 2004 vintage. The vineyards used are around 35 years old and yields have been drastically reduced to as little as 0.3 tons per dunam or 20hl/ha. Carmel also produce an easy drinking red called Carmel Ridge (known as Reches in Hebrew), which is a blend of Carignan and Shiraz from the Zichron Yaacov region.

Apart from Carmel, there are other wineries now producing some excellent Carignans. There is a newly released Barkan Reserve Carignan from their Hulda vineyard, in the Judean plain and the grapevine says that there may soon be a Tishbi Estate Carignan. There are also a few smaller wineries specializing in Carignan. For example the Vitkin and Somek Carignans have had very good reviews. The English wine journalist quoted earlier, would be satisfied to see the revival of Israels oldest variety.

Carignan was the first international variety planted in Israel and it has been a permanent fixture since the earliest vineyards of Rishon Le Zion in 1882 and Zichron Yaacov in 1883. Today it is true that there are more hectares of Cabernet Sauvignon planted, but because of overall higher average yields, Carignan is still the leading variety in terms of tons harvested with approximately 20% of the total wine grape harvest.

The fact that vineyards once used for sacramental wine are now producing quality varietal Carignans is symbolic for the changes in priorities in the Israel wine industry as whole. Certainly the wine critic, sommelier or retailer from abroad is more interested in tasting wines that are edgier, more exotic or unusual. The world is awash with Cabernets and Merlots. The wine professional may turn up his nose at the opportunity to taste yet another Cabernet or Merlot. However an Old Vine Carignan from Israel that could be really interesting!

I have asked Adam Montefiore to answer some of the most frequently asked questions about Israeli wine. Since making aliyah 20 years ago, he has been a passionate advocate of Israeli wine and has witnessed or participated in many of the positive changes that have occurred. He is therefore well qualified, on behalf of wines-israel, to answer the following 20 questions.

Israel Preker

Chief Editor
Wines-Israel.co.il

1. DOES ISRAEL REALLY PRODUCE WINE
AM: “It is always a surprise to me how many people have no idea that Israel produces wine. We have to give the message that Israel has been producing wine for over 5,000 years and was doing so over 2,000 years before the vine even reached Italy and France.
We talk about the ‘New’ and ‘Old’ World of winemaking. Well, Israel belongs to the ‘Ancient’ World. No-one who knows stories from the Bible should be surprised that Israel is a wine producer.”

2. ARE ALL ISRAELI WINES KOSHER
AM: “Not all Israeli wine is kosher. In fact the majority of smaller wineries in Israel do not produce kosher wine.
As the larger wineries produce kosher wine, it is also true to say that most of the wine produced in Israel is kosher.
However, Israeli wine should be judged as any other wine. Whether it is kosher or not is a detail that should only interest the religious Jews it is intended for.”

3. AREN’T ALL ISRAELI WINES SWEET LIKE MANISCHEVITZ
AM: “Israel makes sparkling wine, red and white table wines, dessert wines and fortified wines like any other wine producing country. These wines are quality wines in every regard and bear no relationship to the sweet sacramental wine mentioned.
Kiddush wines are a separate category and they should be separated from regular wines that happen to be kosher both on the retail shelves and in the minds of the consumer.”

4. IS THE MIDDLE EAST A SUITABLE PLACE TO MAKE WINE
AM: “Many people think Israel is a land of sand and camels and in political talk, Israel is always referred to as being part of the Middle East. However Israel is in fact a Mediterranean country. The climate of most of the country is Mediterranean, much of the food is Mediterranean, and so it should not be a surprise that Israel produces wine and olive oil like other Mediterranean countries.
Israel is in fact part of the Eastern Mediterranean which includes Greece, Turkey, Lebanon & Cyprus. These countries were the cradle of the grape and where wine culture was born.”

5. HOW CAN A KOSHER WINE BE GOOD
AM: “Winemaking for kosher and non kosher wine is the same. So there is no reason why a kosher wine should not be a world class wine. If a kosher wine is not good, it is because it has been badly made, not because it is kosher.
Robert Parker’s Wine Buyer’s Guide No.7 says it best: ‘The… more important issue is what significance a kosher certification has for the non kosher consumer…The simple answer is that no one should avoid wines simply because they have a kosher certification….Kosher designation seems irrelevant.’
Obviously this statement does not include Kiddush wines, which are a totally separate category or Mevushal wines, which is a different discussion.”

6. AREN’T KOSHER WINES MORE EXPENSIVE
AM: “Let’s put it this way. Making kosher wines is certainly not cheaper than making non kosher wines. However in Israel the framework and infrastructure exist. A regular orthodox work force is readily available. The Mashgiach can dual as a regular worker. The people working in Israeli wineries are trained regulars, and used to working with wine and the winemaker. Making kosher wine in Israel is less expensive than anywhere else.”

7. WHY ARE ISRAELI WINES SO EXPENSIVE
AM: “I don’t accept that Israeli wines are so expensive. Unfortunately most of the discussion about price relates to trophy wines, which are usually produced in tiny amounts, and are only available on a very strict allocation. These can be expensive, but have given Israel an unfair name for expensive wines.
I agree that Israel does not have the volume of production or the low prices to take worldwide supermarkets by storm, where heavy discounting is the norm. It is costly to make wine in Israel. Manpower is not cheap and water is both scarce and very expensive.
However visit an Israeli supermarket. There, most of the wines sold are under $12 and many of them are excellent for the price. ”

8. WHY IS THERE NO VARIETY IN ISRAEL
AM: “I don’t agree with the question. There is immense variety in Israel despite its small size. Like many long, thin countries (ie. Italy & Chile), Israel has many different micro-climates. There is a long list of different grape varieties being used here and wineries themselves vary in terms of the equipment they have and style of wine they produce.
Most of the medium to large wineries have internationally trained winemakers, who have studied at UC Davis , Adelaide University or the leading wine schools of France & Italy. They also have work experience in many of world’s most famous wine regions and are modern in outlook and up to date in the latest technologies of winemaking. So far from being dull, Israeli wine has enormous variety and offers an exciting number of options to the consumer.”

9. WHY ARE THERE NO INDIGENOUS VARIETIES IN ISRAEL
AM: “It is disappointing that we don’t have indigenous varieties and slightly strange when you consider nearby Cyprus, where there are so many. It appears that the long period of Muslim rule was not kind to those grapes varieties that were suitable for making wine.
We do have Argaman, a variety first planted in the early 1990’s. It is across between Souzao and Carignan and was intended to replace Carignan as a blending grape. However its quality is poor, and Carignan has made a comeback.
Apart from this, the nearest we have are Emerald Riesling and Muscat of Alexandria.
Emerald Riesling, a cross between Riesling and Muscadelle ,was created at UC Davis in 1948, the year the State of Israel was founded. It has only really succeeded in Israel, producing ‘less expensive’ semi dry wines. Muscat of Alexandria, responsible for many dessert wines here, is a grape indigenous to the Eastern & Southern Mediterranean.
We do have indigenous food grapes like Dabuki and indigenous olives like the Souri, but we have to make do with the main international wine grape varieties here. However we can comfort ourselves. It is also true that even those countries that do have indigenous grapes, like Italy, Greece & Portugal, seem to be planting more & more of the noble varieties too. ”

10. WHY BUY ISRAELI WINE
AM: “For those religious Jews who buy Israeli wine for its kashrut, Israel produces outstandingly the best quality and largest range of kosher wines in the world.
For the wine lover & connoisseur, Israel wine represents something different, something new, and is seen even as slightly ‘exotic.’
For the sommelier, wine store owner or supermarket buyer, Israel represents the finest wines from the Eastern Mediterranean. Many restaurants and wine shops want a representative from our region on their wine lists or shelves.
Certainly Jews buy Israeli wine because it is from ‘Eretz Hakodesh’ or they want to drink ‘blue & white’ and support Israel. There is nothing wrong in that as the Italian in New York will often drink Italian wine. Religious Christians are also supportive of Israeli wine, because it is wine from The Holy Land.”

11. WHY SUPPORT ISRAEL CONSIDERING THE POLITICAL SITUATION
AM: “The political situation is always an issue, and this is a regular question, particularly from European countries.
Our problems are often not considered by those who are basically against the Israeli position, whatever it is. However sometimes we are continuing with normal lives under intolerable circumstances.
During the second intifada a bus full of people exploded next to an Upper Galilee vineyard during the wave of suicide bombings and the resulting carnage affected the vineyard. The vineyards on the northern border are often turned into closed military zones by the Army due to safety & kidnap fears and wine growers are prevented from tending to their vines. The 2006 harvest was nearly ruined by the rocket attacks by Hezbollah into the Galilee. Vines were damaged, wineries in the area were closed and winemakers were prevented from visiting vineyards. This year the rocket attacks in the south from Hamas caused some winery workers to have to put their children in bomb shelters before going to work. This is not a regular situation for most of the wine producing world.
What do we do We concentrate on making wine and try not to mix wine with politics. There is nothing more peaceful or productive than planting vineyards and making wine. This should be encouraged and it is always disappointing if the wine industry is singled out for political purposes.
Tim Atkin, a Master of Wine, visited Israel in 2008. He makes the point far better than I can. He wrote, in the London Observer: ‘In such a climate, tending vineyards and producing wine is an act of courage and of optimism. I have enormous admiration for the majority of Israel’s winemakers…. Surrounded by anger, dogma, devastation, deprivation, mutual suspicion and….politics, they offer the possibility of hope for a better future.’ ”

12. HOW MANY BOTTLES OF WINE DOES ISRAEL PRODUCE A YEAR
AM: “In my estimation about 35 million bottles of wine (and this includes sacramental wine). This is more than Lebanon but less than Cyprus. It is not much and puts Israel at something like number 35 in the list of wine producing countries! Gallo’s so called boutique winery, Gallo of Sonoma, and one particular vineyard in Monterey, California, both produce more wine than the whole of Israel! When you go to Vinexpo and see countries like Brazil, Mexico & Uruguay with a larger stand than Israel, you begin to understand Israel’s place in the wine world.”

13. WHAT IS THE CONSUMPTION OF WINE IN ISRAEL
AM: “Believe it or not there are no official figures and the statistics submitted to the OIV have been incorrect for years. My educated guess is that consumption for wine only, taking out the figures for grape juice, is less than 4 liters per head, which is not a figure to shout about. Clearly we have a great deal work – and potential!”

14. DOES ISRAEL HAVE A SIGNATURE WINE OR GRAPE VARIETY YET
AM: “Clearly our finest wines seem to be Cabernet Sauvignons or Bordeaux style blends. These tend to be the wines receiving the most compliments from major wine critics. Clearly red wines blends from Bordeaux varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc are so far our most successful wines. Malbec is the latest newcomer and Petit Verdot is proving highly influential in some prestigious blends. There are also some promising varietal Cabernet Francs.
However Israel has also won major recognition for Sparkling wines, Dessert wines and Chardonnays. Furthermore our other white wines have improved no end, and our Sauvignon Blancs, Gewurztraminers and White Rieslings show far more varietal character than was the case ten years ago.
The future may well be Mediterranean varieties. Shiraz and Viognier are already showing some success, and grapes like Mourvedre and Grenache are being planted (or replanted because they have been in Israel before.)
It is too early to judge if Israel will become known for a particular grape variety. Certainly Carignan is a candidate. It was one of the first varieties planted in 1882/3, and has been the mainstay of Israeli wine for 120+ years because it was suitable for the Mediterranean climate and was capable of high yields . Recently it has been reborn with a combination of old vine vineyards, very low yields and a new determination to make a quality wine. Another candidate is Petite Sirah, which came to Israel in the 1970’s. Certainly Carignan and Petite Sirah provide Israel with more ethnicity than Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot!

15. SHOULDN’T ISRAEL FOLLOW AUSTRALIA’S EXAMPLE IN MARKETING THEIR WINES
AM: “The export success of Australian wines is admirable, but it has little relevance to Israel because of the difference in size and scale. Also the success of Chile, South Africa and Argentina is irrelevant to Israel. They all have the volume, marketing budgets, government support , competitive prices and the ability to heavily discount to allow sustained campaigns in supermarkets. Israel is lacking in each of these requirements.
A country like New Zealand which is relatively small and tends to have a higher average price than the other countries mentioned, is a more realistic role model. What we can learn from Australia is the importance of the country as a brand. It is as important to market Brand Israel as it is to market the brands of the individual wineries.”

16. TO WHICH COUNTRIES ARE MOST ISRAELI WINES EXPORTED
AM: “North America is by far the largest market for Israeli wines. America and Canada together account for over 50% of Israeli exports. The next largest market is Western Europe, where England, France, Germany and Holland are the main importers of Israeli wine.

17. HOW MANY ISRAELI WINERIES ARE THERE”
AM: “Again there are no official figures. I estimate there are 30 commercial wineries. In ‘Rogov’s Wine Guide 2009’’ there are 138 wineries are listed, but many of these are small wineries or garagistes. There are many more home based wineries, producing under 10,000 bottles of wine a year.”

18. ARE KOSHER WINES SUITABLE FOR VEGETARIANS AND VEGANS
AM: “Israeli Kosher wines are suitable for vegetarians, though only one or two wineries to date, bother to confirm this on the back label. If egg whites are not used for fining, then they are also suitable for vegans and I don’t know of an Israeli winery that uses egg whites.”

19. WHERE CAN I FIND OUT MORE ABOUT ISRAELI WINE
AM: “One of the best sources of information in English is Israel Preker’s website
www.wines-israel.com<span style=”vertical-align: bottom;”> (http://www.wines-israel.com)</span>
Apart from this there are three books I recommend.
‘Rogov’s Guide To Israeli Wines’ published by Toby Press, is an annual guide to the wines of Israel. Wines are rated and scored by Daniel Rogov, wine and food writer of Haaretz Newspaper, and Israel’s number one wine critic.
Another book, which is more a tourist guide to the wineries, is ‘The Wine Route of Israel’, published by Cordinata.
The third book is ‘The Bible of Israeli Wines’ by Michael Ben Joseph, published by Modan. Ben Joseph an ex El Al pilot, wrote the first serious books on Israeli wine in Hebrew & English.

20. ARE ISRAELI WINES ANY GOOD AND DOES ISRAEL HAVE ANYTHING TO OFFER THE WINE WORLD
AM: “I suggest anyone interested looks up Israel in Robert Parker’s Wine Buyer’s Guide No 7, Hugh Johnson’s Pocket Wine Book 2008/9 or Tom Stevenson’s Wine Report 2009. Their comments & recommendations count for far more than anything I can say.
There have also been recent features in the Wine Advocate, Wine Spectator and Decanter magazines.
There is no doubt that Israel is making its best wine for 2,000 years. That is not to say we have arrived or are the best, but if you compare where we were 10 or 20 years ago, the rate of improvement has been astonishing. It is matched by a pursuit of quality, and a hunger for success, which will ensure the improvement curve continues upwards. Anyone visiting Israel’s wineries is always struck by the passion, professionalism and dynamism of the Israeli wine scene.
Israel is well-known for its technology, its creativeness and agriculture are amongst the best in the world. For instance drip feed irrigation found in most new world wine countries, was an Israeli invention. Many countries are observing how Israel copes with high temperatures and a lack of water with interest. Whether it is the meteorological stations on the Golan or planting successful vineyards in the middle of the desert, Israeli viticulture is as up to date as tomorrow.”

Lets destroy some popular misconceptions: Not all kosher wine is made in Israel and not all Israeli wine is kosher! Nowadays nearly every wine producing country in the world produces kosher wine and in Israel, just to be confusing, many of the newer, smaller wineries make non-kosher wine.

However it is true to say that the majority of wine made in Israel is kosher.

This should not be regarded as unusual. In the same way you would expect a French winemaker to speak with a French accent, or an Italian winery to have an i at the end its name, you should not be surprised that Israel makes kosher wine. Likewise in the same way New Zealand specializes in Sauvignon Blanc and Argentina in Malbec, Israel specializes in kosher wine. Nothing wrong in that. Unfortunately the word kosher, where wine is concerned, is almost a pejorative term. If it is kosher, there are those who believe it cant be good.

Usually Israeli wineries prefer to ignore the k word. It is obviously supremely important for those that need it, but apart from this, wineries want to be known for producing great wines, whether kosher or not. However for many wine lovers and others ignorant about its effect, the kosher certificate is seen as nothing less than a mark of Cain. So lets meet the k word head on.

Oldest Wine Laws

The kosher wine laws are the oldest wine laws in the world. France may boast about its Appellation Controlle system and Cru Class classification, which have roots that may go back hundreds of years, but the Kosher wine laws are measured in thousands. Some of these laws (orla, kilai hakerem) still make sound agricultural sense.. Others (like shmittah, trumot & maserot) are today regarded as more symbolic. In Biblical times though, they were revolutionary, addressing the profoundest issues of spirituality vs materialism, economic justice and ecological sustainability. One thing is for certain, not one of the kosher wine laws may be held as a reason for making poor wine.

The kosher designation should not be thought as a quality defining process. Think of kosher certification more like a quality assurance program, similar to the ISO systems. All raw materials like yeasts, barrels and fining agents have to be prepared under the strictest quality and hygiene standards. Origin and traceability are key and there is an exaggerated emphasis on cleanliness. However there is nothing which alters the basic way of making wine and traditional methods are followed throughout the process.

As fining agents from animal or diary sources are not permitted, most kosher wine is suitable for vegetarians and if egg whites are not used for fining, for vegans too. In a world where all things organic become more important, kosher wine has a virtue that anything added or utilized in the winemaking process has to be strictly and rigorously checked before permission is given.

Regrettably, kosher wine is often confused with the Kiddush wine category. These are the sweet, red sacramental wines that have given kosher such a bad name. However in reality, a wine can be well-made or poorly made. In terms of quality, it is irrelevant whether it is kosher or not.

The other category which receives a bad press are mevushal (pasteurized) wines. Without exception, the finest kosher wines are not mevushal. However those wineries that need to make mevushal wine, usually for kosher caterers or kosher restaurants in the United States, are improving techniques by using flash pasteurization or pasteurizing the must and not the finished wine.

However strict observance of kashrut does not prohibit the possibility of either making great wine or drinking a fine wine for purposes of religious ritual. Even one of Judaism greatest sages, The Rambam, aka Maimonides, gives guidance here. He was a proponent of quality wines and insisted that sweetened or pasteurized wines should not be used either for Kiddush or Arba Kossot (The Four Glasses) at Passover.

Thirty years ago most kosher wine was sweet, or at best semi dry. The first wineries to make world class kosher wines were the Golan Heights Winery from Israel and Herzog Cellars of California. The Golans Yarden brand won more trophies and medals in major competitions than any kosher winery and Herzogs Reserve wines received higher scores in the Wine Spectator than any other kosher brands at that time. Since then they have been followed by a host of other wineries, many of them have proved that kosher can be synonymous with quality.

Castel Becomes Kosher

Domaine du Castel is a winery founded in 1992, which for ten years made wine that was not kosher. From 2003, the winery became kosher. Owner Eli Ben Zaken said: Although I am not a religious Jew, I am a patriotic one and the fact that I was producing a wine some of my fellow Jews couldnt drink was bothering me.

Proof of the pudding is in the eating. Kosher Castel has won even greater international acclaim than Castel did previously. This is the best example yet that the kosher stamp does not affect quality. As Ben Zaken explained: We decided to make all our production kosher. After all, its as easy to employ an observant Jew as it is to employ a non-observant one. The change did not adversely affect quality. Maybe the opposite, the winery has not stopped receiving recognition at the highest level since.

Carmel Quality Revolution

A mere six years ago all Carmels wines were mevushal or flash pasteurized. Since then Carmel has gone through a revolution. New cooler vineyards were planted, modern state of the art wineries were built and young dynamic French and Australian trained winemakers were employed. A new management strategy changed the company from volume to quality and from sacramental to single vineyard wine.

Today Carmel is making some of the finest wines in Israel. All are 100% kosher, but they are no longer mevushal. It is now possible to say Carmel makes great wines, that just happen also to be kosher.

Carmel, the oldest and arguably most famous Jewish brand worldwide, used to symbolize everything nostalgic about Jewish wine. Now it represents the revolution in Israeli wine. Carmel are winning awards and new recognition. The Carmel Limited Edition, Single Vineyard wines like Kayoumi and Appellation wines are all having rave reviews. Also Yatir, Carmels boutique winery, is Israels most exciting new quality winery in the last 10 years. The message is that it is possible for kosher wineries to seek excellence, whilst still maintaining a very strict level of kashrut.

Kosher Wines Outside Israel

Kosher wine may also be made well outside the land of Israel. Jeff Morgan, a wine writer with the Wine Spectator, started producing his kosher wine in answer to a challenge. On being asked why there were no great kosher wines, he could not think of a reason. The winery workers were trained like any others. The winery equipment was the same as other wineries and the Cabernet Sauvignon grapes were the same quality as some of the best in California. The winemaking procedures were the same. So he set out to make one. When he launched a Napa Valley wine by the name of Covenant to great acclaim, he had proved his point. It was possible to make world class wine, which was also kosher.

Celler de Capcanes in fact became a quality winery because of the success of an initiative to make a kosher wine! It was previously a large co-operative making bulk, non kosher wine in the Montsant region of Spain, near Priorat. Then, in order to be good neighbours, they decided to make a kosher wine for the local Jewish community in Barcelona. This entailed purchasing new equipment.

The success of the resulting kosher wine, Flor de Primavera – Peraj Haabib, encouraged a whole change in direction. Like Carmel they decided to change the emphasis of their production from bulk to quality. In this unique instance it was the success of the kosher wine, which encouraged Capcanes to improve its non kosher wines! At the same time they proved that it is possible to make a quality product, adhering to the rules and restrictions, at what is basically a non kosher winery.

There are other famous wine labels that also make a kosher cuve. Laurent Perrier, Chteau Giscours, Chteau Pontet Canet , Chteau Loville Poyferr and Chteau Smith Haut Lafitte are examples. There are also big brands that have a kosher version like Fortant de France and Mouton Cadet. Even some of the worlds most famous winemakers, like Ricardo Cotarella from Italy, are also now making kosher wine. Many produce very good wines but do not always succeed to match the non kosher version. The reason may be logistics, the need to sometimes pre-determine the timing of the harvest or to train a special, new workforce on the job.

Most Expensive Kosher Wine

The most ambitious kosher wine was produced by Jean-Luc Thunevin. His Chteau Valandraud was one of new garagistes that upset the old order in Bordeaux in the 1990s. Thunevin, though not Jewish, decided to make a kosher wine alongside his highly priced Grand Cru St. Emilion wine. As Christian Dalhavie, the export manager, explained: Valandraud is made out of 40 to 50 different vats. The kosher is only made from two vats.

Where Thunevin differed from some of the other big names was that he personally chose to market and put his name behind the kosher wine. He wanted the kosher & non kosher wine to be of similar quality and gave tastings of the two together. The kosher and non kosher editions even cost the same price just under US$ 300 a bottle! The result was a wonderful advertisement for kosher wine, which also happened to be the most expensive kosher wine in the world.

Enter Robert Parker

It is often the Jewish community itself, that is the most cynical with regard to the acceptance of the possibility of quality kosher wine. A lifetime of Palwin, Manischevitz, or pasteurized wine at Simchas, Shabbats and Seders has had an effect

One particular connoisseur was not swayed by the k word. Robert Parker, the most famous and influential wine critic on the planet, tasted Israeli wines for the first time recently. Obviously he was tasting for quality and potential and the issue of kashrut was not considered relevant. Revealingly, the top six wines receiving the best scores, between 91 to 93 points, all just happened also to be kosher. No less than 12 Israeli kosher wines scored 90 points or over, a much sought after score by wineries all over the world. Any wine receiving between 90 and 95 points is categorized by Parker as an outstanding wine of exceptional complexity and character. In short, these are terrific wines.

Mark Squires, Parkers Israel specialist, summed up his views in Parkers Wine Buyers Guide, on whether the kosher certification had any significance for the non kosher consumer: The simple answer is that no one should avoid wines simply because they have kosher certifications. Based on my tastings, kosher wines were amongst the best in this report, such as those from Domaine du Castel and Yatir. Kosher designation seems irrelevant, as long as the wines are not also Mevushal.

He goes on to say:The most important thing to understand is that those sickly sweet Passover wines Americans are used to have nothing to do with the types of wine Israel is bragging about these days. Israeli wine isnt an oddity anymore, and it is certainly not just for those who keep kosher.

Best Kosher Wines in the World

So if kosher wines are so good, which are the best
The leading Israeli kosher wineries according to Hugh Johnsons Pocket Wine Book 2009 are Castel, Yatir, Yarden, followed by Carmel, and Galil Mountain. Interestingly this view was supported by the Robert Parker/ Mark Squires viewpoint. In the Wine Advocate, the four Israeli wineries which succeeded in getting at least two wines with 90 or more points were the same names: Carmel, Castel, Yarden and Yatir.

The top kosher red wines to receive 90+ points from Robert Parker are:

1. Yatir Forest 2003, Judean Hills, Israel, with 93 points
2. Covenant 2003, Napa Valley, California 2003, 93 points
3. Castel Grand Vin 2004, Judean Hills, Israel, 92 points
4. Chateau Valandraud 2005, St Emilion, Bordeaux, 90-92 points
5. Yarden Katzrin 2003, Galilee. Israel, 91 points
6. Carmel Limited Edition 2004, Israel, 90 points
7. Yatir Forest 2005, Judean Hills, Israel, with 90 points
8. Capcanes Flor Primavera Peraj Haabib 2000, Montsant, Spain, 90 points
9. Castel Grand Vin 2003, Judean Hills, Israel, 90 points
10. Castel Grand Vin 2005, Judean Hills, Israel, 90 points
11. Yatir Cabernet Merlot Shiraz 2003, Judean Hills, Israel, 90 points
12. Petit Castel 2005, Judean Hills, Israel, 90 points
13. Galil Mountain Yiron 2003, Upper Galilee, Israel, 90 points

It is interesting to note the number of Israeli wines on the list. Castel has four wines in the top 13. Carmel also has four, taking Carmel & Yatir wineries together. The Golan Heights and its subsidiary, Galil Mountain, have two between them.

Incidentally the best kosher white wine was the Castel C Blanc du Castel, Judean Hills, Israel 2005 (91 points) and the best kosher dessert wine was the Yarden HeightsWine, Galilee, Israel 2005 (93 points). The scores are taken from The Wine Advocate and Parkers Wine Buyers Guide.

Conclusions

This article draws me to three conclusions.

It is clear that a kosher wine may be a genuine world class wine. The kosher designation is no bar to quality.
It is far easier for a winery which observes kashrut to produce kosher wines of real quality, than it is for a non kosher winery to produce the occasional kosher batch of the same quality.
It is obvious to me that outstandingly the best quality and best range of kosher wines made today come from Israel. So in the same way, it can be said that many countries make very good sparkling wine, but the best is still thought to be Champagne in France, it is no contradiction to say the finest kosher wines come from Israel.

Let us face it, kosher wines have a bad reputation because once they were pretty awful. Now they are not. The public have taken time to catch up to the new reality and the k word stigma still exists. The worlds leading wine critic has given them his approval, it is time the wine drinking public did the same.

The story of kosher wine is a journey from sweet sacramental wines to world class single vineyard wines. There are now so many kosher wineries of every possible wine style. Virtually every wine producing country produces kosher wine and in Israel alone, over 90 percent of the wine produced is kosher. Yet up to twenty five years ago, most of the kosher wine was sweet red wine and a quality kosher wine was rare.
Of all the kosher wineries, Carmel perhaps best symbolizes the history and development of kosher wine. Theirs was the wine our grandfathers and great grandfathers drank. Founded in 1882 by Baron Edmond de Rothschild, an owner of Chateau Lafite, the famous Bordeaux winery, the history of Carmel matches the story of Israel. Carmel was Israels first exporter. Carmel and Palwin were first sold in England in 1898 and remain Israels oldest brands, known in every Jewish home.
Rothschild built the wine cellars at Zichron Yaacov, south of Haifa and Rishon Le Zion, south of Tel Aviv, which remain until today, the largest wineries in Israel. The wines were mainly sweet, red and inexpensive as demanded by the market.
The first serious quality wine in the kosher world was the Carmel Cabernet Sauvignon Special Reserve 1976. This was a beacon followed by the kosher wine world as it started, to produce international quality wine. In the 1980s and 1990s the Golan Heights Winery in Israel and Baron Herzog in California led the charge from sweet to dry.
In the last ten years, Carmel began its own programme of renewal and rejuvenation, which reflected the quality revolution in Israel. The first move was to plant new vineyards in the higher altitude, cooler climate areas of Israel. These vineyards in the Upper Galilee, Golan Heights and Judean Hills were managed directly by the winemakers and the growers payment schedules were changed to incentivize quality.
In 2003 and 2004 Carmel built new state of the art boutique wineries close to key vineyards, at Ramat Dalton, in the Upper Galilee in the north, on the coast within the existing Zichron Yaacov Wine Cellars and they launched Yatir Winery, at Tel Arad in the south. These wineries permitted the winemakers to isolate various vineyards, or even special plots within vineyards, so they could make small quantities of handcrafted wines.
Next Carmel recruited some new young, highly qualified winemakers. Lior Laxer, who studied in Bordeaux and Burgundy became chief winemaker of Carmel Winery and Sam Soroka, who studied in Australia took charge of the Zichron boutique winery. Eran Goldwasser became winemaker of Yatir Winery. The three of them are amongst the finest talents in Israeli winemaking today.
The new management took further steps to promote quality. Production was halved and Carmel stopped production of all non grape products like spirits, olive oil and gourmet food products in order to concentrate on wine.
The results have been impressive. In the now famous tasting by Robert Pakers Wine Advocate, the worlds most influential wine publication, Carmel had four wines scoring 90+ points, more than any other Israeli winery.
The Appellation series of regional wines was launched with modern attractive labels showing Israeli fauna. Al Hashulchan, an Israeli food and wine magazine, referred to it as the best value label in Israel. The Appellation Merlot was a double gold medal winner but the Appellation Carignan Old Vines was the best example of the new attitude. The Carignan grapes had previously been used for Kiddush wine, but by drastically lowering yields and selected two special old vine vineyards, small quantities of an award winning wine was produced.
Carmels has a range of Single Vineyard wines. The Kayoumi Cabernet Sauvignon won the gold medal as Israels finest Cabernet Sauvignon in two consecutive years in Eshkol Hazahav, Israels premier wine competition. The Shaal Gewurztraminer Late Harvest dessert wine scored 95 points from Howard Goldberg of Decanter and The New York times. The highest score awarded to any Israeli wine by an international critic.
Top of the range is the Bordeaux blend, Carmel Limited Edition, which scored 93 points and was ranked by Israeli critic Daniel Rogov as one of the finest Israeli wines. It was selected by Tom Stevensons Wine Report as one of the most exciting wine finds of the year. This wine was in a sense fulfilling the vision of Baron Edmond de Rothschild, the founder of the modern Israeli wine industry. His dream was to make a serious Israeli wine from Bordeaux grape varieties.
Yatir Winery, launched in 2004, is now regarded as one of the very finest boutique wineries in Israel. Situated at Tel Arad in the north east Negev, the vineyards lie in Israels largest forest Yatir Forest, in the southern Judean Hills. The winery is owned by Carmel but managed independently. Yatir finished in first place in recent tastings of Israeli wines in both Robert Parkers Wine Advocate (93 points) and the Wine Spectator (92 points).
The final piece in the jigsaw was closed in 2008 when Enotria, one of the finest wine importers, chose to represent both Carmel, the historic winery of Israel and Yatir, the hottest boutique winery, in the United Kingdom. Their interest was more in the quality end of the general market, rather than in the kosher market.
So Carmel has travelled the journey experienced by kosher wines the world over. New technology, international expertise and a new drive for quality have combined to turn this most conservative sector, into a dynamic market brimming with variety and quality.

(This article was first published in The Jewish Chronicle, London)