Many families still use Kiddush wines for Shabbat because of tradition. These are the sweet red sacramental wines that really gave kosher wines a bad name. Those in wine education have always tried to upgrade these, reminding people that there is nothing written that a wine for Kiddush has to be sweet and poor quality. In fact, I remember a Haredi wine lover who taught me a lesson. He would buy 52 bottles of Yarden Cabernet Sauvignon each year and make Kiddush using a Riedel glass just to honor Shabbat.
On Rosh Hashanah though, I recommend a sweet wine. This like the apple and honey and tzimmes, confirms the hope for a sweet year, but because it is the beginning of the Jewish New Year, it demands an upgrade over the regular Kedem, King David, Manishchevitz or Palwin. In the list of wines below are three recommendations of totally different sweet wines for the occasion: Yarden HeightsWine, Alma do Mar Port or Carmel Sparkling Buzz. They can be used for the blessings, as an aperitif, with the first courses and then consumed with the desserts or after dinner. The other wines listed below are to accompany the main courses of the celebratory meal. Every buyer has their preferred price point. The recommendations below are divided so you can focus on where your interest lies. The golden mean of course is the Wine Lovers category, which have the best QPR (quality per price ratio.)
WINE DRINKERS: Up to NIS 50
Derech Eretz Sauvignon Blanc 2023. Good value wines are made under this label. The brand is owned by Shaked the importer-distributor-retailer, and this wine is made at Recanati Winery, in which they are also partners. The wine shows good typicity and is a good buy. No doubt it will be on promotion as the holidays approach.
Grand Cape. Kosher wines from South Africa. If you want something more ethnic go for the Chenin Blanc or Pinotage; for something sweeter the Gewurztraminer. For traditionalists, they also have a Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. It is a good addition to the list of kosher imports. Available in Tiv Ta’am.
Carmel, Private Collection Cabernet Sauvignon 2024. A medium bodied varietal Cabernet which is very well rounded, soft, yet very drinkable. It is well made and at a good price. There were days when this label represented Carmel’s finest wines, but these days they offer some of the best value on the supermarket shelves.
Carmel, Buzz. This the budget choice for those requiring a sweet wine for Rosh Hashanah and there are a few options. The grapey Moscato and red Carignano, are the obvious choices. They also have fruit infused wines and wine cocktails, all on a base of lightly sparkling, low alcohol white wine. Those that like these wines, like them very much. The new Buzz Mojito is the latest product in the range.
WINE LOVERS: NIS 51-99
Hayotzer, Lyrika Chardonnay 2023. This is a modern style Chardonnay which combines freshness with only a light oak influence. They play on the connection between art, culture and wine, and their wines normally hit the mark.
Yealands Sauvignon Blanc 2024. There are those that love New Zealand Sauvignon Blancs. For them, this fits the bill. The wine is so aromatic, crisp, zesty and refreshing, it is amazing how much fruit that can be squeezed into a glass. It may be found in Tiv Ta’am.
Masei White by Netofa 2024. Netofa from the Lower Galilee was a pioneer of quality Chenin Blanc. Now they aim to the same with Rolle, a little-known grape used in Provence and Languedoc. You will most likely know it as Vermentino from Italy, especially Sardinia. Fresh with delicate fruit, it has a savory character and good acidity. Nice…and new!
Teperberg, Essence Chenin Blanc 2024. Tart, refreshing with aromas of white flowers, this is a lovely wine. We drank the bottle without noticing. It was just yummy. Teperberg Winery, our largest family winery, is over-performing these days.
Tzuba Cabernet Sauvignon 2022. Cabernet Sauvignon is both the most planted grape variety in Israel and the most popular brand. This is a good one from the Judean Hills. It is a classic Cab: blackberry fruit, full flavor, good structure with a ripe fruit flavor against a backdrop of vanilla from oak aging.
Golan Heights Winery, Yarden HeightsWine 2021. One of Israel’s most prolific award-winning wines, this is possibly Israel’s finest dessert wine. It has a tantalizing aroma, is sweet but with an underlying freshness. An outstanding wine made from Gewurztraminer grapes grown in the Northern Golan, which are frozen at the winery. The perfect choice of the sweet wine for Rosh Hashanah for those looking for quality, but note it comes in a half bottle.
Alma do Mar Ruby Port NV. An authentic Ruby Port made in the Douro Valley…and it is Kosher! I tasted it preparing to be skeptical, but it shows good characteristics for a Ruby Port – ripe, rich fruit, fruit forward taste and great length. It may be a suitable and original choice as the sweet wine for the holidays. It is sold in the Derech Ha’Yayin wine stores.
CONNOISSEURS: NIS 100-149
Binyamina, Avnei Choshen Barkat Sauvignon Blanc 2024. An aromatic dry wine redolent of tropical fruit, with good acidity and a refreshing finish. A good addition to Binyamina Winery’s premier label. Binyamina have just appointed a highly respected new head winemaker, Yotam Sharon. This in itself is a promising sign.
Lahat Garrigue 2024. This is a gourmet rose made with the precision and focus expected from Lahat Winery. A blend of four varieties (mainly Syrah and Mourvedre) from five blocks in two vineyards, both in the Western Upper Galilee, the wine was fermented and aged in large, used 500 liter barrels. It has a taught texture, with a complex and refreshing mouth feel.
Maia x Tulip Catom – Orange Wine 2024. A new release in a new style. An orange or amber wine is a white wine fermented on its skins. It is a production of two sister wineries: Tulip is modern, innovative and New World; Maia is focused more on seeking a Mediterranean-Israeli message in a bottle. It is a good buy, because wine geeks love something new and different, while the regular drinker will like it because it is not astringent like a red, or with pronounced acidity like a white. Made from Gewurztraminer, it has apricot and citrus notes with firm minerality. Different but of definite interest.
Feldstein Grenache 2022. Grenache is the Pinot Noir of a hot climate country. It is a variety with unfulfilled potential here. This is a light wine. Once quality was associated only with high alcohol, over oaked and over extracted fruit bombs. Today the wine consumer is wiser. This wine is in the category of summer red: light in color, attractive red cherry-berry fruit, with complexity in the flavor and a refreshing texture.
Shiloh, Secret Reserve Pinot Noir 2023. Pinot Noir is the nirvana all Israeli winemakers yearn for, but it is reasonably illusive in our climate. This is the expression from Shiloh Winery from the Central Mountains Region. Shiloh wines tend to be full throttle which win many awards. This is opposite to their normal style. It is light, elegant and vibrant. Not a classic Pinot yet (early days), but a very nice wine.
Jezreel Valley, Jezreel Carignan 2023. Jezreel Valley Winery promotes Israeliness. They work with the Israeli variety, Argaman; Israel’s adopted variety, Carignan and what I believe is the variety of the Eastern Mediterranean, Syrah. Carignan has a special place in Israel having been brought here before Baron Rothschild founded an Israel wine industry. This is one of the best. Nice fruit, spicy with good tannins and a solid oak structure. Always shows well.
Jerusalem VW, the Windmill Project Petite Sirah 2020. One of my favorite wines from the Jerusalem Vineyard Winery. They are based in Atarot, but their visitors’ center is at the Montefiore Windmill in the Mishkenot Sha’ananim- Yemin Moshe neighborhood in the heart of Jerusalem. This single vineyard wine is big, full bodied with aromas of violets and ripe black fruit, an earthiness and a long, lingering finish. With a little bottle age, it is showing really nicely just now.
Ramat Negev Ramon Petit Verdot 2023. This is from one of our leading desert wineries. Petit Verdot is a variety that seems to do well throughout the country, and it also thrives in the Negev. This wine is expressive, full flavored but not bombastic at all. It is well made, showing good balance and is a great example of a very good red wine from the desert.
Vitkin Carignan 2021. An Israeli classic by Vitkin Winery, the leader of the ABC revolution (anything but Cabernet, Chardonnay) and the father of quality Carignan in Israel. It has ripe fruit, spice, a raw earthy, rustic character and leathery notes; followed by a long well-balanced finish. You don’t have to drink Cab and Merlot all the time!
FEINSCHMECKERS: NIS 150 +
Lallier R21 Brut Champagne. An oleh hadash to Israel. A small artisan Champagne producer from Ay. This is a good champagne made from Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Ideal as an aperitif or with seafood, but it is also the classic wine for a celebration. If you want to toast the New Year with a quality champagne, this would be a good choice.
Dalton Shiraz, Elkosh Vineyard 2021. Dalton Winery was founded in 1995, thirty years ago. It was the pioneer of the Galilee. Add the fact the trauma they faced being under attack by Hezbollah for over a year, then they are worthy of support on two accounts. The winery is a proven specialist in Shiraz at every price point, but this single vineyard wine is top of the tree. It has great fruit, a chewy, meaty flavor, and a long lingering finish.
Tel Shifon 915 Sauvignon Blanc 2024. Tel Shifon is a winery in the northern Golan Heights, at the entrance to Kibbutz Ortal, surrounded by its own vineyard. It has become a mecca for wine tourism, with many visitors. Their wine is less known because they have been quite bashful about bringing it to the general public. However, this is a very serious varietal Sauvignon Blanc. Crisp, aromatic, flavorful and refreshing. Certainly, it is expensive, but if you want a white to impress your wine knowledgeable friends, it is an excellent wine. Their Ortal vineyard has always excelled with Sauvignon Blanc.
1848 Winery, 7th Generation Maratheftiko 2022. This is a lovely wine made by 1848 Winery in Cyprus during the Shmittah year. Maratheftiko arguably produces the best Cypriot reds and this is a rare kosher cuvee, produced from dry farmed vineyard in the high elevation Troodos Mountains. It has a sensual floral nose, is full bodied, plush with complexity and with a tannic finish which to me refreshes, but it will be negated if matched to a nice steak. I am so pleased kosher wine imbibers have the opportunity to sample this gem.
Benhaim Manara Grande Reserve 2019. This a monster…as a wine and as a package. Heavy bottle, wax closure, extravagant trimmings including a medal. I am especially cynical with over coated, over-dressed wines. However, the wine is good. Though big, bold and bombastic, it is in balance and in its style, it is extremely well made. Rich fruit, full bodied, mouth filling flavors of fruit and oak. Actually, it is a wine to enjoy on a very special occasion and take plenty of time over.
Wishing you all, a Sweet and Happy, and more peaceful New Year, ideally with a glass of good wine in hand. Shana Tova!
The writer is a wine trade veteran and winery insider turned wine writer, who has advanced Israeli wines for 38 years. He is referred to as the English voice of Israeli wine and is the Wine Writer for the Jerusalem Post. www.adammontefiore.com
