SCOOP: The latest issue of Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate has a new tasting of Israeli wines by Mark Squires. This is important because it means that the Wine Advocate is paying continued attention to Israeli wine. As I said, the secret’s out. Israeli wine is good and not just for kosher-keepers.
Here are Squire’s scores from the latest issue of Wine Advocate:
2005 Carmel Limited Edition 87 2006 Carmel Carignan Old Vines 85 2005 Carmel Shiraz 88 Early 30 2005 Carmel Gewurztraminer Sha’Al Vineyard 87 2007 Carmel Gewurztraminer Sha’Al Vineyard 88 2007 Carmel White Riesling 85 2006 Carmel Petite Sirah Old Vines 87 2005 Dalton Zinfandel 81 30 2006 Galil Mountain Avivim 86 2006 Galil Mountain Chardonnay 87 2004 Galil Mountain Syrah Yiron 87 2007 Galil Mountain Viognier 86 2004 Galil Mountain Yiron 87 2003 Golan Heights Winery Cabernet Sauvignon El Rom Vineyard (Yarden) 89 2004 Golan Heights Winery Cabernet Sauvignon El Rom Vineyard (Yarden) 88
2006 Golan Heights Winery Cabernet Sauvignon Golan 84
2004 Golan Heights Winery Cabernet Sauvignon (Yarden) 87 2005 Golan Heights Winery Chardonnay Katzrin Yarden 87 2005 Golan Heights Winery Chardonnay Odem Organic (Yarden) 86 2005 Golan Heights Winery Chardonnay Yarden 84 2005 Golan Heights Winery Gewurztraminer Heights Wine Late Harvest (Yarden) 91 2007 Golan Heights Winery Gewurztraminer Yarden 86 2003 Golan Heights Winery Merlot Yarden 86 2004 Golan Heights Winery Syrah Ortal Vineyard Yarden 88 2006 Golan Heights Winery Viognier (Yarden) 85 2007 Recanati Cabernet Sauvignon 80 2007 Recanati Chardonnay 86 2006 Recanati Merlot 82 2005 Recanati Merlot Reserve 85 2005 Recanati Syrah 82 Red Wine 2007 Recanati Yasmin 79 White Wine 2007 Recanati Yasmin 81 2005 Yatir Cabernet Sauvignon 87 2005 Yatir Merlot Shiraz Cabernet 88
2005 Yatir Yatir Forest 90
In this week’s Ha’aretz, Israeli wine critic Daniel Rogov tastes wines from the Alexander Winery, Gat Shomron Winery, and Tishbi winery.
Wine and Spirits / Greats from Alexander
Located on Moshav Beit Yitzhak in the Sharon region, the Alexander winery, founded in 1996 by Yoram Shalom, receives grapes largely from contract vineyards it controls at Kerem Ben Zimra in the Upper Galilee. It has mainly produced Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc, and now coming on line are Syrah and Grenache. Growth has been steady, increasing from about 12,000 bottles in 2002 to 45,000 in 2005 and 2006. With the 2006 vintage the winery switched over to kosher production. In addition to producing two top-of-the-line series, Alexander the Great and The Wine of Alexander, the winery also releases two blended red wines, Sandro and Gaston as well as white Liza wines.
Alexander, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2005: Medium to full-bodied, dark ruby in color, with soft tannins; showing vanilla and spices from the casks in which it aged. On the nose and palate, rich black currant and blackberry fruits along with hints of earthiness.
Drink now-2010. NIS 135. Score 88.
Alexander, Syrah, 2006: Medium-bodied, soft and round, showing gently spicy, rich wood and vanilla notes, and opening on the palate to reveal red berries and plums, supported nicely by a light meaty hint and a milk-chocolate finish. Very nice. Drink now-2010. NIS 135. Score 88. K.
Alexander, Gaston, GMS, 2005: Despite the order and hint of its labeling, a blend of 76% Merlot and 12% each of Grenache and Syrah. Dark garnet, medium- to full-bodied, aged in barriques for 12 months. On first attack generous wood on both nose and palate, which recedes nicely to reveal currant, wild berry and plum fruits on a just spicy enough background. Well balanced and long. Drink now-2010. NIS 155. Score 88.
Alexander, Sandro, 2006: A medium- to full-bodied blend of 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot and 5% Sauvignon Blanc. Dark ruby in color, reflecting its 14 months in barriques with dusty wood and soft, gently gripping tannins. Opens to reveal appealing currant, wild berry and orange peel notes, with tannins and fruits rising on the finish. Drink now-2010. NIS 100. Score 87.
Continue reading Rogov’s Reviews: Alexander, Gat Shomron, Ruth, Tishbi
One of the great things about living in Israel, is that some of the greatest and most surprising wineries are only a short drive away. In America, you have to go to California or Washington State to get America’s best wineries, but in Israel, a great winery is no more than 3 or 4 hours away — and, often, just a 15 minute drive. Blogger treppenwitz, a lover of fine drink, just discovered that 15 minutes from his home in Efrat is the amazing Katlav winery. This is what he has to say:
No, not Alice’s Restaurant (if anyone still remembers Arlo Guthrie’s well-loved anthem), but rather a tiny winery that is literally 15 minutes from our house.
This past Friday, one of Zahava’s business contacts invited us to join him, his wife and a small group of friends at a winery located in Moshav Nes Harim. He knew that we enjoyed good wine (and spirits) and figured that despite Fridays being a crazy day for most people, that the close proximity to our home would offer enough of an enticement.
Little did he know that for a nice wine tasting, Zahava and I will gladly forgo most of the usual Friday routine.
This place is not the typical pretentious yuppy winery with polished wood and a carefully landscaped setting. It is a rough-hewn building on a tiny moshav. And if you miss the lone wooden sign pointing the way down a dirt track once you are inside the moshav… you’ll will miss it.
The meet-up at the winery was called for 10:00AM, so naturally when Zahava and I pulled up at the stroke of ten, nobody was there but the proprietor who was just opening the place and stoking the rustic wood-burning stove against the chill of the morning mountain air. He directed us to drive around the back and received us with the warmth and sincerity of someone who genuinely loves what he does and who wants to share his good fortune with others.
It was nearly 30 minutes before the rest of the group showed up, but it was long enough for us to have a leisurely espresso with the proprietor and to find some of the inevitable connections that exist between all Jews… provided they have enough time to talk, of course.
Once everyone was there (we were a small group of 7 or 8 couples) he set out a bunch of pristine wine glasses and proceeded to bring out one wine after another. Each wine was introduced with many apologies that it wasn’t quite ready… or that it “really needs another year in the bottle to reach its peak“. But IMHO, the wines were incredible. The Cabernet Savignon, in particular, was the best I’ve ever had!
Rather than allow himself to become the center of attention, the proprietor was happy to tell a bit about the grapes, the characteristics of the wine and maybe his own thoughts on the tonal accents… and then let us talk amongst ourselves. In short, he was the perfect host.
In addition to the unbelievable Cab, there was a really special Port-like wine that he brought out at the end almost as an afterthought. I had already told him which wines I wanted to buy, but when I tasted the label-less Port, I told him I wanted a case of that. He smiled and said he’d be happy to give me a bottle… but that he wasn’t really selling it yet. When I pressed him, he asked me if I had children. When I said yes, he offered the following:
“Sometimes your children ask you for permission to do something that your life experience tells you is a big mistake. The more you try to explain to them the reason behind your refusal, the less they seem to understand. Finally you have to say “The answer is no. Some day you’ll understand why I’m right and you’re wrong… but right now you simply have to trust me because I’m your father“. I’m not your father, but you’re going to have to trust me about this wine. Right now it is pretty good, but in two or three years it will be incredible. If I sold you (and everyone else who wanted some) a case, there will be nothing left in a year, much less two. You can take a bottle home now… and you can even come back once in a while to pick up another. But you’ll have to trust me when I tell you that you’ll thank me in two years that there is still some of this stuff in the world.”
As we left the little winery perched on the side of an evergreen dappled mountain, I was delighted to have been introduced to this little treasure so close to home. You won’t see their wine here in Israel as they sell most of it in the US to the upscale wine crowd. But if you are under the mistaken impression that you have to go to the Golan heights or Zichron Yaakov to find decent wine in its natural habitat, you should set your sights a little closer to home:
Katlav Winery, Ltd. Moshav Ness Harim
Tel: 972 2 570 1404
Ask for Yossi Yittach. He can open the place for you on a Friday morning for intimate private tastings… and if you can commit to a group of 25 adults, he opens the place a couple of times a week (maximum) to private wine and grill parties (all strictly kosher).
Enjoy!
Katlav Winery’s production is distributed in the United States by Abarbanel Wines.
Israel is the original “old world” wine region. The Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean was the cradle of the world’s wine culture thousands of years before the vine reached Europe.
Wine has been produced in the Land of Israel since Biblical times. Whether you call it the Tanakh, Hebrew Bible, or the Old Testament, surely you are familiar with the story of the spies, Noah’s ark, or other Biblical stories that hark back to the first stories of Israeli wine.
Ancient wine presses and wine making equipment are frequently found in archaeological digs. Often, these finds have even occurred at new wineries that have opened up only in the past decade.
In fact, wine making is thought to have originated in the area between the Black Sea, Caspian Sea, and Sea of Galilee. Noah was the first recorded viticulturist who, after the flood, “planted a vineyard .”
As the vine traveled throughout the Middle East and Mediterranean, the Jewish attraction to wine was shown in the developing literature. In 1800 BCE, there was a communication that the land of Israel was “blessed with figs and with vineyards producing wine in greater quantity than water.” The prophet Micah’s vision of peace included every person sitting “under his vine and under his fig tree.”
In the book of Numbers, the story is told about how two men sent by Moses to scope out the land of Israel returned with a great cluster of grapes that they had to carry together. That image is now used by Carmel Winery and the Israeli Tourism Ministry.
The Bible also speaks of the Israelite kings have vast vineyards. King David’s wine stores were so vast that he had a special official just in charge of his wine. The vineyards of ancient Israel are mentioned throughout the Bible.
Excavations frequently uncover ancient presses and wine storage vessels from the Golan Heights to the Negev Desert. Grapes and vines were frequent motifs on coins and jars in ancient times.
During the period of the Second Temple period winemaking was at its peak. It was a major export and economic mainstay. However, upon the destruction of the Second Temple and the dispersion of the Jews, the wine industry was forsaken. The Arab conquest in 600 CE further weakened the wine industry, due to Islam’s prohibition on alcohol. The wine industry in the Land of Israel lay dormant for another thousand years, until the return to Zion.
Rabbinic texts also speak of good wine. In fact, it is a mitzvah – a sacred commandment – to drink good wine on the Sabbath and Festivals.
[Part 1 of a 3 part series about the history of Israeli wine]
One of my new favorite Israeli wineries comes from a kibbutz not far from Jerusalem. Tzuba Winery is based at 
Kibbutz Tzuba in the Judean Hills. It’s first release was only from the 2005 vintage. While that vintage was quite enjoyable, this year’s releases (of the 2006 and 2007 vintages) are absolutely amazing and a great price.
Only available in Israel, Tzuba is just another hidden gem of unique and excellent wines only available to visitors in Israel. My favorite wine is the 2006 Tel Tzuba Sangiovese, a blend of 85% Sangiovese and 15% Nebbiolo grapes. Yes, those are Italian grapes but that makes sense since Israel is in the same Mediterranean region. Italy is closer to Israel than New York is to Florida, for example. Incidentally, for my Christian readers, reports are that a cave found on Kibbutz Tzuba was used by John the Baptist (Luke 1:80). I bet he enjoyed the great wine from Kibbutz Tzuba!
Tzuba’s winemaker Paul Dubb is from South Africa, and is all the winery’s grapes come from the kibbutz’s own vineyards.
Reports are that Americans are cutting back on gifts for themselves, while the crisis in America has reached Israel. Yet, this holiday season doesn’t have to be an empty one for adults. Instead of buying wine for gifts, how about learning about a new wine region, discovering Israeli cuisine, and spreading the knowledge of the Eastern Mediterranean region. Perhaps a book about wine from the land where Jesus was born, food from the region where the Maccabees fought?
Israeli wine related gifts will please that oenophile in your family. Perhaps upgrade your stemware with value-priced, but high-quality glasses. A book about Israeli cuisine or by Israeli critic Daniel Rogov would make great unique wine gifts.
Check out HaKerem’s shop for some great holiday gift ideas here (http://astore.amazon.com/amechad-20)
Some Israeli Wine Gift Recommendations:
- Rogov’s Guide to Israeli Wines: 2009
- Rogues, Writers, and Whores by Daniel Rogov
- The Book of New Israeli Food: A Culinary Journey (with an excellent wine section by Adam Montefiore)
- Hip Tastes: The Fresh Guide to Wine
- The Oxford Companion to Wine by Janis Robinson
- Riedel Wine Glasses, Crystal Collection
- Riedel Vinum Extreme Crystal Collection
- 18-bottle Wine Cellar
If you’re still interested in a bottle of wine, how about checking out the wine clubs at Israeli Wine Direct or Israeli Wine Company – just let them know that you heard about them from HaKerem: The Israeli Wine Blog!
The European women’s magazine marie claire suggests a great Christmas gift: pomegranate dessert wine from Israel’s Rimon Winery. This healthy drink, available in Europe (including the UK) and the United States, is a great holiday gift from the Holy Land.
The healthiest red wine on the market is set to hit shelves in the build up to Christmas: Pomegranate wine, made from 100% pomegranate fruit and with no added sugar, will put your guilty conscience at bay over the festive period…well, possibly.
Produced at a winery in the north of Israel, Rimon Winery Pomegranate Dessert wine, dry white wine and port have already received worldwide accolades, thanks to their key ingredient.
The superfood fruit has long been recognized for its wide-ranging health benefits: packed with antioxidants to help blood circulation and prevent heart disease, the wonder fruit also boasts high levels of vitamins A, B and C, plus other essential minerals including iron and calcium.
Described as a full-bodied tipple, with a smooth palette that slips down easily, now you can sup on a glass of vino after work, safe in the knowledge that the ingredients are working wonders on your health and wellbeing. Just remember, everything in moderation…!
