This article was originally published in ESRA Magazine Ido Lewinsohn has been part of the winemaking team at the Recanati Winery since 2007 when he worked with founding winemaker Lewis Pasco. He stayed on at the winery when a new senior winemaker, Gil Shatsberg, took over the helm in 2008. Before joining Recanati, Ido had studied winemaking and viticulture at the University of Milan in Italy and worked at wineries in Tuscany (Italy), the Rhone Valley (France) and Australia. One […]

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Recently, I participated in an unprecedented tasting of Israeli Cabernet Sauvignon wines in Tel Aviv in the garden of Chef Alon Gonen’s home. We had all been invited by wine writer Rani Rogel of Food & Beverage/Israel. Three panels of wine writers, enthusiasts and wine makers sampled 37 wines so each panel averaged about 12 wines with the wines divided into three price categories, under 70 NIS (under $20), 70 to 120 NIS   ( $20 to $35) and over 120 […]

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The following is a guest post from wines-israel and reprinted with permission Many Israeli wineries win awards, many win gold medals. There are even wineries which ‘collect’ awards, sending wines to any competition where medals are generously given. This is because to the general consumer, a gold medal looks the same whether it is a competition in Panama or London. However the weight & value of the gold medal can be vastly different according to the credentials of the competition. […]

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In the Decanter World Wine Awards, Israeli Syrahs or Shiraz’s were put under the microscope and came out well. It was only a decade ago that there was no Syrah in Israel and it seemed nothing would stand in the way of Cabernet Sauvignon being regarded as the best variety for quality wines in Israel. However, many winemakers are being converted to Mediterranean rather than Bordeaux varieties, and Syrah, or Shiraz, is becoming more prominent with Israel’s quality wineries. The […]

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While this site is not a kosher wine site, with many Israeli wine not being kosher and much kosher wine not being Israeli, I know it’s of interest to some readers and so I’m reviewing a new book out on the market, written by a New York real estate expert, The Kosher Grapevine: Exploring the World of Fine Wine Disclaimer: I received the book as a review copy Irving Langer’s The Kosher Grapevine: Exploring the World of Fine Wine is […]

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The ‘New Israel Wine Guide’ has published its preview. Interestingly, it lists ‘The Top Twenty Israeli Wines’, divided into red and white wines. The best two whites on the list were from the same winery.  Tzora Winery’s Shoresh, a Sauvignon Blanc, and the Neve Ilan, a Chardonnay, were in first and second place. The best three red wines were Lewinsohn Garage de Papa, Flam Noble and Carmel Kayoumi Shiraz. One a Mediterranean blend, another a Bordeaux blend and the third […]

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Syrah is a grape native to France’s Rhône Valley, I believe this varietal has great potential to be among those most appropriate to showcase Israel’s unique terroir (in my opinion, Grenache, Carignan and Cabernet Franc also top that list of potentials). However, as Syrah continues to make inroads within the Israeli market, sales of California Syrah in the United States have crashed and burned, dashing the hopes of many for the varietal to become the US’s next big thing. While […]

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Although there are wine events and festivals all year long in Israel, the largest tend to happen outside during our dry season (which happens historically between Passover in the spring and Sukkot in the fall). In the beautiful climate of a Mediterranean region, enjoying wine outside during the evening seems a natural inclination and entitlement whether you are in Israel, Italy, the south of France, California or South Africa (among others). This year there are several interesting opportunities to try […]

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The following is from wines-israel.com and reprinted with permission.  The Wine Advocate has published its annual December tasting of Israeli wines. The three most successful wines were Yatir Forest, Castel Grand Vin and Carmel Limited Edition. The target of any winery is to receive 90 points or more in the Wine Advocate. The wines which succeeded in this objective were: Castel Grand Vin 2009                                                        92 points Yatir Forest 2008                                                                  92 Carmel Limited Edition 2008                                             91 Carmel Mediterranean 2008                                             90 Carmel […]

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Decanting Israel, which I spoke about previously, seems to be trying to channel Gary Vaynerchuk with their second video: Gvaot Herodion Cabernet – Merlot 2006, which is a wine that I’ve found to be quite enjoyable too.

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