Daniel Rogov seems to have taken a playbook from Gary Vaynerchuk and recorded a video of him tasting wine. Enjoy!
And some non-Israeli kosher wines from California and Spain
Daniel Rogov discusses how to taste wine at a wine festival or wine tasting event.
The Jerusalem Post blogger Levi Shapiro has a new post about my two favorite Israeli wine folk: Daniel Rogov, Israel’s premier wine critic, and Adam Montefiore, Israel’s premier international wine marketer, often referred to (though he humbly laughs at the claim) as “The Ambassador of Israeli Wine.” Not surprisingly, the two most important figures for promoting Israeli wine to an international audience are also olim, immigrants to Israel, from North America and the United Kingdom.
As Levi writes:
Unlike venture capital, the Israeli wine industry has adopted a bottom-up approach. A few individuals are helping introduce the Israeli Wine “brand” to an international audience. In particular, there is Daniel Rogov, author of Rogov’s Guide to Israeli Wines, and Adam Montefiore, Wine Development Director for Israel’s largest winery, Carmel and Yatir.
Rogov, as he prefers to be known, is someone who I first made acquaintance via his original Israeli wine forum, in which Rogov – who calls himself a curmudgeon and is no technoevangelist practices the most important rule of social media and content marketing (not sure he would appreciate that compliment, though!) which is simply to be open, accessible, informative, and welcoming. This premier critic always answers the questions of his forumites, always is available for tasting notes, and usually shares his views. More importantly, a man of integrity, he calls ‘em as he sees ‘em and doesn’t let his personal opinions get in the way of his tasting notes. Originally from Brooklyn, Rogov has lived in Israel for several decades.
Rogov helped popularize Israeli wines for a global audience. Now prominent wine critics Robert Parker, Hugh Johnson, Mark Squires and Oz Clarke feature sections about Israeli wines in their books. Even web sensation Gary Vaynerchuck tasted Israeli wines with Rogov on Wine Library TV.
The other important figure mentioned is Adam Montefiore, currently the Wine Development Director at Carmel. Since the 1980s, Adam has been marketing Israeli wines (not just Carmel and his former employer, Golan Heights Winery, but really promoting the entire industry) to a global market. As a marketer myself, Adam has taught me a lot about marketing – notably the first rule: be responsive to your customers. I first met Adam having criticized something at Carmel (since changed and now at world-class standards) and since then he has truly become a mentor . A true man of integrity and Zionist, Adam cares about the whole wine industry and really helping to promote the real Israel to the global audience — a true passion of mine as well.
“My career and hobby is the same- advancing Israeli wine”, says Montefiore. He contributes the Israeli wine section for several of the most famous wine guides and writes about Israeli wine for the Jewish Chronicle (UK) and Jerusalem Post.
“The best resource we have is the wine itself. Doing tastings- with sommeliers, wine press, retailers- is the way to get the message across. While the symbol of Israel was once the Jaffa orange and the kibbutz, today it is quality wine and high-tech. We want people opening a bottle of Israeli wine to think of ingenuity, climate, technology and Mediterranean sunshine. Our industry can symbolize all that is good about Israel.”
For more about Rogov and Montefiore, read the article.
The following is from wines-israel and reprinted with permission
Tishbi Winery was founded in 1985 in Binyamina . The Tishbi family were amongst the first growers to plant vineyards in the southern Mount Carmel area at the end of the 19th century. It is the sixth largest winery in Israel producing just over one million bottles a year, but remains a family operation. The owner is Yonatan (Jonathan) Tishbi. His son Golan is the winemaker, his wife, Nili, runs the visitors center and his daughter, Oshra, is responsible for the development of food products.
Two of Tishbi’s most famous products are its Jonathan Tishbi Brandy, made in an authentic alambic still as is used in Cognac, which in 1996 won the Trophy for Best Brandy World Wide at the IWSC in London. Secondly, the Jonathan Tishbi Cabernet Sauvignon Special Reserve, Sde Boker 2004, which was the only Israeli wine selected by Gary Vaynachuk of the Wine Library in his book: “101 Wines To Inspire, Delight’. He referred to it as an Israeli Bordeaux. Tishbi Winery produces wines under three labels: Jonathan Tishbi Special Reserve, Tishbi Estate and Tishbi.
The Oshra Tishbi Fine Foods line has certainly ensured that Tishbi Winery is not only associated with wine and brandy, but also with food. They produce a Tishbi line of jellies, preserves , extra virgin olive oil and pure honey. They were the first winery to merchandise Israeli cheeses on site, and they have a full range of cheeses from Yaacobs Dairy. All their foods are available in Tishbi Winery’s visitors center.
The winery also run an informal kosher dairy restaurant. Guests can sit under the pergola of vines, taste wines and enjoy a simple but good menu. The food is good and the atmosphere unique in the Israeli wine scene. They have recently added a bakery and pizza oven to add homemade products to their homey atmosphere.
Their latest venture is a step up the food scale, moving from casual to gourmet. They have a new venture with Valrona, one of the most exclusive chocolatiers in the world. Valrona is a French chocolate producer founded in the small town of Tain l’Hermitage, not far from Lyon. It was founded in 1922 by pastry chef Alberic Guironnet. In 1947 the company became known as Valrona, a name derived from ‘Rhone Valley’. The name Valrona has become a byword for quality in the rarified world of chocolate connoisseurs.
Tishbi have opened a new part of the visitors center. It is a large room with its own sliding door entrance. On one side there is a large bar and in the other, the Alambic Charentais Still used for making brandy. These are surrounded by shelves of wine and Valrona’s finest chocolates. A visit to the new Tishbi Wine & Chocolate visitors center is both educational and tasty. It is possible to learn of the similarities and complexities of wine and chocolate, to taste and of course to buy. It is also possible to match the chocolate to the appropriate wine and vice versa.
Tishbi Winery is situated midway between Carmel Winery, founded in 1882, and Binyamina Winery, founded in 1952. The three wineries all offer something different and are well worth a visit. It is the basis of Israel’s most traditional wine route. However Tishbi Winery now has something unique. This is the first wine and chocolate visitors’ center in Israel.
