In bold ‘startover,’ Israel’s wine-making more global, contemporary than ever
The modern, large-scale experiment with wine in Israel continues.
Maybe “contemporary” is a better word than “modern.” The claim could be made that the Holy Land’s modern wine industry began in 1882, when Carmel Winery was founded by Baron Edmond de Rothschild, of the legendary Château Lafite Rothschild in the Bordeaux region of France.
What’s interesting about Israel is that it has sort of started over where wine is concerned. It began “starting over” roughly 30 years ago, and an influx of talent and investment from California followed. But when you consider that the area has a multi-millennial relationship with wine, it’s as if the starting gun for the latest race has just been fired. This is the part of the world where wine was born, and for dozens of centuries, it was reserved for religious ceremony.
However, over the last three decades or so – a blink of an eye in Middle East time – Israel has been looking at itself not only as a place that can produce wine to contribute to the glory of God but also as a place capable of producing wine worthy of a spot on the dining table – wine that appeals to a much larger audience and a much wider range of usage. In other words, it’s not just for Passover anymore.
Most Israeli wine is kosher, and there is no reason to avoid kosher wine. To find the best Israeli wines, though, you probably want to avoid kosher mevushal wines. These have been boiled or flash-pasteurized to retain certain aspects of their kosher status.
Other than that, think of Israeli wines as you would think of wines from a lot of other places in the world: food-friendly, reasonably priced (not across-the-board cheap but also not overly expensive) and widely available. More than half of Israeli wine exports land in the United States.
Israeli wine is no longer a novelty, but it is interesting wine to explore. You would not raise any eyebrows among wine aficionados if you were to pull out a bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon from Israel.
Now you may be asking, “Isn’t it too hot there?” or “Isn’t it all desert?” And the answers to those questions are, respectively: “It’s not too hot at higher elevations, where many of the country’s best vineyards are,” and “No, it’s not all desert – that’s why they call it ‘The Land of Milk and Honey.’” THE HIGHER-altitude, cooler northern Galilee region (which includes Upper Galilee, Lower Galilee and the Golan Heights) could be considered the country’s most prestigious and successful wine region. Israel’s other four recognized regions are: Shomron (aka Samaria, where Rothschild made his first plantings); Shimshon (aka Samson, near Tel Aviv); the Judean Hills near Jerusalem; and the Negev, the southern, semi-arid desert region where drip irrigation has made grape-growing possible.
Today, the small country – which is a little over 420 km. north to south and about 110 km. across at its widest point – is home to about 60 commercial wineries. A handful of large wineries are responsible for the majority of Israel’s wine output, and many of those have had some success in determining what grows well on their lands. Some producers have even enjoyed recognition from the larger wine world for their efforts.
Many smaller, younger wineries, though – those whose wines do not leave Israel – are trying to figure out exactly what will work best for them in the long run. That is where the experimentation comes in. So even though 30-plus years have been enough to firmly establish a viable commercial wine industry in Israel, a sense of pioneering discovery still exists to some degree. And that is always intriguing – for producers and consumers alike.
For the most part, the aforementioned Cabernet Sauvignon has been perhaps the most successful. But, of course, it is also one of the world’s most versatile grape varieties and has the potential to grow well all over the world. Chardonnay also has been a popular grape variety in Israel. Other popular grapes include Cabernet Franc and Carignan on the red side, and Sauvignon Blanc and Gewürztraminer on the white. Traditional-method sparkling wines are also being produced, as are rosés and dessert wines. The quality of the country’s varied selection is getting increasingly better.
Some of the larger and more renowned wineries of Israel include Barkan Vineyards, Binyamina, Carmel, Clos de Gat, Dalton, Domaine du Castel, Flam, Galil Mountain Winery, Golan Heights Winery (makers of Yarden, Hermon, Golan and Gilgal wines), Margalit, Recanati, Tabor, Teperberg, Tishbi and Yatir (founded in part by Carmel Winery).
With some Israeli wine research of your own, you can expand your knowledge base to include this ancient part of the world and the (relatively) new wines it offers. (TNS)