Why Kosher, Israeli Wine?

Americans love wine, and the west coast seems to consume almost twice as much wine as the east coast. In recent times there has been an increasing demand for kosher certified wine and several countries now produce kosher wine to ship throughout the world.  In recent months our family has tasted several of the kosher wines available in our area, trying to find a kosher wine that we like.  When my husband and son returned from their trip to Israel this winter, they brought with them a few bottles of kosher Israeli wine.  Oh.wow! Now that the wine they brought home is gone and we are back to locally available wines, we are feeling like we have become a sort of “wine snob”.  Nothing compares to the wines they brought home, nothing we’ve found here anyway.  Now our snobery might not have the proper terminology or flare, but our palates have all but rejected what we used to think was good wine.  Let me tell you a little about what we’ve learned and suggest some good wines for you to consider.

A Little About Kosher Wine

For many the first thing they think of when one says “kosher wine” is the super sweet Manischewitz or Mogen David wine that you might find in your local grocery store.  Not all kosher wine is equal.  Kosher wine comes in all varieties, for all palates.  Years ago “kosher wine” simply meant any sweet deep-red liquid, but that has all changed now!  

Some people believe that in order for a food to be certified kosher it just needs to be blessed by a Rabbi.  That’s not true.  In the Torah HaShem outlines the dietary standards for His children and these provide the foundation for kosher certification.  Judaism has a long history with wine.  We read throughout the Scriptures that wine played an important part in Tabernacle and Temple worship, celebrations and at festivals as well as in common daily life.  In the Scriptures, wine symbolizes joy and has remained an important part of Jewish life even today.  In ancient days it was common for pagans to also use wine as they worshiped their gods and unless you processed the wine yourself or you knew who did, chances were great that any wine you might find in the market place was indeed dedicated to, or used in the worship of, a pagan god.  This was not acceptable to the Jewish people and it became necessary to identify wine that was not tainted by idolatry.  Because of this, non-Jews are not allowed to participate in the processing of kosher wine because they might be idolators.  Consuming wine that has been dedicated to a pagan god is not something that the children of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob are willing to do.

But there is more to kosher wine than keeping the gentiles out of the process.  It begins in the vineyards.  No fruit from vines younger than 5 years may be used, according to the Torah.  All the equipment, utensils and facilities must be kosher.  A portion of the kosher wine is always poured out as a reminder of the tithe of the produce that would be taken to the Temple were it standing today.  And here’s a big one, during the production of the wine no animal products may be used.  What animal products are used in non-kosher wine?  To make a short, but gross list, things like fish bladders, skin and connective tissue of swine and ruminants, gelatin and/or egg whites.  Who wants that in their wine anyway?  eeww…

A Little About Israeli Wine

I’m sure you’ve enjoyed good wines from various places:  California, Washington, Canada, South America, Portugal, France, Italy, etc.  Specific types of wine come from specific types of grapes.  Vintners even in the same region will often have a slightly different process or technique from one another which allows the same variety of wine from the same kind of grape to have flavors unique to each vintner.  In our area there are two winemakers who produce the same types of wine, but they each have a distinct taste.

One primary factor in the making of wine is the growing of the grapes.  Here in the USA we think of vineyards in mild climates with plenty of rainfall and sunshine, green grass and even beautiful rolling hills.  Think of the climate between central California up through the lower parts of British Columbia, adequate rainfall and adequate sunshine to produce flourishing vines, thereby wonderful grapes.  Israel boasts of a Mediterranean climate in the north and west to an arid climate in the south that often does not receive adequate rainfall but sure does have plenty of sunshine.  One would think that grapes might not grow so well when it looks like this:

Vineyard in Samaria at pruning time

But that is where we had some learning to do!  You see, when the vines search for adequate nutrients and water it puts a particular stress on the vine.  While we might think that stress is a bad thing, it is actually a very good thing.  As those vines send their roots deep and wide searching for nourishment, it produces a hearty vine and yields amazingly flavorful fruit.  The stress of the vine produces a fruit with tremendous flavor, making for a wonderful wine in the end.  We have tried wines from various parts of the world and nothing we have found can compare to the wine from Israel.

Vineyard in Samaria at harvest time

But there’s more to Israeli vineyards than just semi-stressed out vines.  As the Jewish people have returned to the homeland of their ancestors, the land has blossomed.  It really is amazing.  HaShem has blessed His land and His people living in His land.  What this long deserted wasteland has now awakened and is blossoming with incredible joy as her children have returned.  Israel’s economy is growing and their agricultural exports are an important part of that GDP.  The hand of G-d is on this land, this people, these plants and it is a wonder to behold!  The tremendous flavor of Israeli wine is not just because the vines need to work hard to produce amazing fruit, but because the blessing of the King of the Universe rests on this place.

Specific Israeli Wine Recommendations

Our family has not yet had an opportunity to sample all the Israeli wines, but we aim to do so in time.  For now, let me share with you about the wines we’ve enjoyed the most and are on our list for our next KosherWine order.

Mount Blessing (Har Bracha) Winery owned by Nir Lavi, is a new winery as far as winery’s go.  Located in the Shomron Mountain Region, Mount Blessing Winery is on Har Bracha, the mount of blessing.  This wine is only recently available in the United States and we’re excited about this, because this is truly one of our favorites!!   A review written this past fall said:  ”Mount Blessing might have people beating down their doors sonner than later once the word gets out how interesting their wine can be”.  This news article from February 2012 gives you an indication of what this wine is like.   You can acquire Har Bracha Highlander wine for yourself here.

Tura Estate Winery, founded by Erez Ben Saadoun and located in Rechalim in the Shomron Mountain region.  A photo-tour of their winery shows the bottling process and you can read about the Tura Merlot (2005) here.  The first vineyards planted by the family in 1997 are in Har Bracha and have been proved to be among the finest quality vineyards in the country.  The winery was founded in 2003 after the vineyards reached the appropriate age for harvest and winemaking.  The winery has been awarded many prizes and honors for their excellent winemaking.  You can acquire Tura Estate Merlot for yourself here.

Shiloh Winery was established in 2005 in the vicinity of the ancient Biblical city of Shiloh, in the Mateh Binyamin Region of Judea and Samaria.  Entrepreneur Dr. Mayer Chomer could not resist founding the Shiloh winery in this region because gapes and wine have been strongly associated with the Shiloh area for millennia, and it is fitting that the Shiloh Winery would produce wonderful wines today.  This growing winery has received many top-ranking international awards and positive reviews. The winery’s greatest pleasure is for wine lovers to experience Shiloh’s blessings for themselves.  You can acquire Shiloh Wine for yourself here.

Psagot Wine is what my husband and son brought back the most of.  Nestled in the Judean Hills of the Mateh Binyamin Region, just a few miles north of Jerusalem, the region has a history of winemaking dating back thousands of years.  Planting the first vineyards for wine in 1998, Yaakov Berg and Psagot Winery have grown to become a premier winery in Israel.  At the Vinalies competition in Paris this past March, the Psagot winery was awarded a gold medal and a silver medal for their wines.  ”The prestigious gold medal was awarded for its Cabernet Sauvignon and the silver medal was for its Edom wine. Both wines were entered in the ‘Single Vineyard 2009′ category” says Israel National News.  Their Edom wine is their signature wine and in 2006 was the winner of gold medals in the 2006 Eshkol Hazahav Competition and the 2006 International Terravino Competition.  Their wines have been winning many awards for the past several years and they keep improving with each passing year.  You can acquire Psagot wines for yourself here, or you can go to your local shops and ask them to carry this wonderful award winning wine.

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