Israeli Wine Recommendations for Passover 5776 (2016)

Israeli Wine Recommendations for Passover 5776 (2016)

If you have been following me for a while, you know that when it comes to wine, my focus is on the east, with Israeli wines.  There are more and more great kosher wines being created all over the globe (this year’s new find for me was a budget priced wine from Bulgaria) but I’m one person, and if I have to know about something, I’d rather stick to what I can reasonably get to know well.  That, combined with my desire to concentrate my wine buying on Israeli wines as a way of economically supporting Israel is why I continue to focus on Israel wines – I won’t say I don’t like an occasional Spanish Rioja or Argentinean Malbec, I just don’t know very much about them.

I’ve just completed a very concentrated period of wine tastings, and I’ve met some very nice newish wines, which I’m happy to recommend as well as some new vintages of old favorites that have undergone some changes.

As I pointed out in a response to a recent review about a Jerusalem Wine festival, there are fewer Israeli white wines available this year due to last year’s Shmitah (sabbatical year).  Because whites tend to be released within a year of their vintage year (they tend to spend less time aging, especially those that aren’t aged in oak barrels), there just aren’t as many white wines available, since 2015 produced fewer Israeli wines; those that were produced have to be handled differently than wine produced in other years (a halachic issue known as Kedushat Shvi’it – the holiness of the 7^th year).   Please contact your rabbi for details on how to treat 2015 wines from Israel.  There are still lots of 2013 and 2014 white wines to drink.

White Wines

I remain a fan of the Dalton Winery in the northern Galil, and in particular, the 2014 Reserve Wild Yeast Fermentation Viognier. I think it’s an outstanding example of the varietal, it’s been aged for 4 months in French oak so it’s not as influenced by the wood of the barrels as say an American Chardonnay would be.  I think this wine pairs beautifully with a fish course or roasted poultry, and would accompany vegetarian dishes nicely as well.  The Dalton Chardonnay Unoaked is another favorite in our house, and the 2014 continues the fine reputation of this wine; the combination of citrus and tropical fruit notes makes it a really delightful wine. Both of these wines should be available for $18-$22.

The Tishbi Winery in Binyamina makes a variety of very drinkable whites, and while their entry level wines are not always valued by experts (and they sell at very budget-friendly prices, particularly in Israel) many people discount them.  For people not accustomed to fine dry wine, the Tishbi whites: Emerald Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc and Chenin Blanc, offer a nice gateway into drinking dryer wines that tend to be more fruit forward, particularly with citrusy notes of flavor.  These wines sell in the US for $12-$18 a bottle (in Israel you can find them on sale at 4/100NIS).  I find them to be very pleasant and approachable wines.

One more source for whites that regularly please my guests is the Gush Etzion Winery.  They produce some Semi-Dry whites (their 2012 Spring River White is a blend of 5 different varietals, including Gewürztraminer, Viognier and Chardonnay and they also occasionally release a Semi-Dry Chardonnay) and their dryer Blessed Valley white (a blend of two-thirds Viognier and one-third Chardonnay) is also extraordinary.  These wines offer outstanding quality for the price and usually are available for less than $24.

Red Wines

As I mentioned in my introduction, I made some new friends this year; I’ll start with two of those, then move on to an old acquaintance renewed and finish with a wine I met just last spring.

I’m a big fan of the Tulip Winery in Kfar Tikvah – they are good people, making excellent wine and doing great things.  In recognition of honoring their host village, they released a new blend called Espero (Esperanto for Hope) and it is an outstanding blend of Syrah, Merlot and Cabernet Franc.  This wine has a lot of dark fruit characteristics (particularly black plum) and the merlot gives the wine very soft tannins (not leaving you with an astringent dry mouth feel).  I was able to find this wine on sale for around $27, and it would normally sell legitimately for around $36 so if you find it at a lower price, I recommend buying a few.  This wine will drink well with beef (think brisket or roast), lamb or roasted poultry (I’ve always liked Syrah or Shiraz with turkey).  I’m putting some on my seder table and I have some in reserve.

Another new friend from a favorite winery is also a blend (I’m sensing a trend), the Psagot Sinai.  Ya’akov Burg has been making outstanding wines for about a dozen years, and I’ve been a fan of his Shiraz, Cabernet, Edom Blend and Viognier for years.  His wines have gotten pricey in recent years, and mostly out of my price range (I aim for $30 or less per bottle, but sometimes I splurge).  When I saw a new Psagot blend for under $20, I just had to try it. The Sinai is 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 45% Shiraz made from grapes grown at relatively high altitude (900 meters above sea level).  It is delicious, it will be great with beef or poultry, and you should buy it if you find it because I don’t think it will last long at this price.

About 10 years ago the Golan Heights Winery released an atypical varietal for Israel, a Sangiovese under its Gamla label.  Due to a change in distribution, the Gamla label has now become Gilgal in the United States, and the Sangiovese is again available. This is an Italian varietal that has a great future in Israel, if this version is typical of the grape.  This is a lighter red wine, one of the standard components in many Italian red table wines, and it goes well with grilled beef or poultry, and I think it’s a great complement to vegetarian dishes with a tomato base (ratatouille, gnocchi with a red sauce).  I’ve seen the price vary from $13-$22, so shop around, but I’ve been very pleased with this wine.

Finally, last year I discovered the Galil Mountain Ela blend, a combination of Syrah (61%), Barbera (32%) and Petit Verdot (7%).  The Petit Verdot lends this wine its rich purple hue, but the Syrah and the Barbera and the fruit-forward stars of this wine. Galil Mountain is a long-time favorite of mine because they make excellent wines at budget-friendly prices.  The Ela sells for less than $20, but even their flagship blends, the Meron and Yiron, often sell for less than $30.

There may not be time to get these wines for Purim, but they are likely to be available between now and Passover.  Enjoy the holidays, drink something great and support Israel with your wine buying!