The 3rd Annual Ra'anana Wine Festival is just around the corner in a few weeks June 12th & 13th, 2013 at the scenic Park Ra'anana adjacent to the tranquil pond on the western end of the park.The Festavino group is hosting this year. The event will go 6PM to 11PM. It's best to arrive early

If you like white wines half as much as I do then you should stop by the last night of the 5th Annual White Festival at the Herzliya Marina. There is an amazing selection of Israeli and imported white wines, rosés and sparkling wines in one of the most scenic venues of any wine festival

Besides the heat and humidity, one way I can tell summer is creeping up is when Israeli wineries start releasing their new vintages of white wines and rosés. One of the first Israeli wineries to land their new wines on my doorstep this spring is the Binyamina Winery, Israel’s 5th largest winery, typically producing about

Not too long ago you may recall some rave reviews by me about some Recanati wines. Generally speaking I think they are consistently one of the best commercial wineries in Israel so when I heard they were releasing a new wine I was excited for the opportunity to taste what they crafted and when I

Here's what we know what's coming up in May 2013 for wine events and festivals in Israel May 2nd Thursday 09:00-18:00 4th Annual Israeli Wine Convention & Festival in Rosh Pina Stop by the 4th Annual Israeli Wine Convention in Rosh-Pina, at the Cinemateque- a professional convention under the theme this year of: "Growing Vineyards...

One Week of Festivities, One Great Winery If you have a chance, don’t miss the 30th Anniversary celebration for the Golan Heights Winery (Yarden, Gamla & Golan labels) being observed the next week at the port on the boardwalk in Tel Aviv. It’s free to just show up and mingle and hear the music as

The history of the Israeli wine industry is an illustrious story, beginning with the Bible and continuing today. But, the modern Israeli wine industry owes tremendous debt to the Montefiore family. Sir Moses Montefiore was the first to urge the Jews in Israel to work the land and plant vines. He made tremendous contributions to

Being the only winemaker at a winery making a million bottles of wine a year is enough work for any one man. For instance, one Israeli winery of a similar size employs three winemakers. Yet, Golan Tishbi likes challenges and keeping himself busy whether its building pizza ovens for the winery’s visitor center or tinkering

Previously, I had tasted Tabor wines on several occasions at festivals and a few times at the winery and each time I was politely presented their wines by an assistant winemaker or someone from their marketing department yet on my latest opportunity I finally got to sit a bit with the senior winemaker, which to

This article was reprinted with permission. By Joshua E. London Article published in the Kosher Wine Guide of the Jewish Week “Israeli wine is an amazing story,” says Adam Montefiore, the wine development director of the Carmel Winery, Israel’s largest wine producer. “Jews came to this land, made the desert bloom, started planting vineyards, making...

It doesn’t happen too often and definitely less than most people might imagine but I don’t typically drink much wine recreationally at home…alone. It can be a dangerous habit to get into and raised as a thrifty New Englander I’m resistant to open a bottle if I’d have to take a few sips and throw

Tel Aviv Wine Festival this week…Wednesday March 6th & Thursday March 7th (NIS 70 at the door or NIS 50 by phone: 054-437-9144 or 054-225-0144) at ZOA (Zionist Organization of America) at corner of Ibn Gvirol & Daniel Frisch 6PM t0 11 PM featuring about 30 Israeli wineries offering about 100 wines to taste… a

A consortium of investors headed by Benjamin Yeselzon and Jay Shottenstein has purchased a controlling share of Carmel Winery, Israel’s oldest commercial winery. A specially convened General Meeting of the wine growers, shareholders of the winery, approved the sale of a controlling interest in Carmel Winery by an overwhelming majority of over 90%. ...

Carmel Winery has announced, with deep regret, the untimely death of Israel Ivzan (Ishkovitz) after a short but harsh illness. Ivzan, 58 years old, was Chairman of SCV des Grandes Caves and CEO of Carmel Winery. He was born in Haifa and graduated in economics and accountancy. In 1986 he was the founder of the

I was on my way to Haifa last night (from Ra'anana) with a friend who shall remain nameless (his wife gets upset when I mention his drinking online but many of our mutual friends will guess who he his anyways). And since I've been told drinking is legal in Israel in a car (for the

Israel Ivzan, the CEO of Carmel Winery just passed away last night. Mr Ivzan played a very important role in the continuing reinvention of the winery and contributed immensely to the renaissance of the Israeli wine industry. HaKerem: The Israeli Wine Blog sends our condolences to Mr. Ivzan’s family and the entire staff at Carmel

One of my favorite ways of passing an evening in Israel is introducing visitors or newcomers to good if not great Israeli wines and dining experiences they haven’t yet encountered. Often I’m limited by different factors such as if the group keeps kosher or keeping to a budget of some kind. I don’t see those

Notes & Favorites from Day One of the 2nd Annual Jerusalem Kosher WIne Festival Even though I just started this year to score wines after spending years writing hundreds of essays and articles, I hope to refrain from scoring wines at festivals since there’s so much additional stimuli to distract from focusing in on the

For the religiously observant who do not want to attend a wine festival that also has non-certified kosher wine, and a testament to the growing sophistication of even the more observant populations, a rival wine festival that consists of solely kosher wine is now also taking place in Jerusalem. More than 40 wineries will be

Jerusalem is hosting its 2nd Annual all–Kosher Wine Festival at the International Convention Center (ICC) Binyanei Ha'Uma in Hebrew, January 28th to the 30th 3PM to 11PM, conveniently within a few minutes walking of the eJerusalem Central Bus station and new light rail trains. Its also know as Wine Seven Two, a play on 972

One of the best Israeli examples of my belief that wine can be called “philosophy in a bottle” is from the Recanati Winery. Israeli born and UC Davis trained Gil Shatsberg took over as the chief winemaker in 2008 and since then, he and his associate Ido Lewinsohn (who trained at the University of Milan

As someone who first started studying wine as a Geography student in college, I’m fond of wines that give homage to their terroir whether its the emphasis of a single vineyard from where the grapes are harvested or the altitude of the vineyard or in the case of the Ella Valley Winery’s new release, its

This post includes the best Israeli wines I tasted in 2012 (for a more comprehensive list, including non-Israeli wines, check out my website). As with prior years, in addition to the “best” wines of 2012, I have also included a list of the most interesting and exciting wines I tasted this year – many of

    During my four plus years in Israel, I’ve tried to attend the major beer events each year typically held in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. By far the one most suited for writers and insiders is the annual Beers Israel expo organized by Sommelier Israel, the same organizers of the annual Sommelier wine trade

Here are the Israeli wines that won in Terravino 2012 Special Awards Ben Haim Winery Israel Best Boutique Winery (up to 100,000 bottles) Ella Valley Vineyards Ella Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Vineyard´s Choice 2007 Israel Israel´s Grand Champion Trophy Ella Valley Vineyards Ella Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Vineyards 2007 Choice Israel Best of Category ...

There's a saying among winemakers, "it takes a lot of beer to make wine."  The point being that whether its toiling in the vineyards or moving barrels, pumps and cases of bottles at the winery, it's easy to break a sweat making wine and a mug of ice cold brew sometimes is more in order

Since 2007, there have been annual tastings of Israeli wines by the Wine Advocate, the mouthpiece of Robert Parker, the world's most influential wine critic. Mark Squires, who is the specialist on Israeli wines in Parker's wine tasting team, did the tasting as usual. There were 80 wines from 21 different wineries. The highest scores...

Earlier this month, Adam Montefiore published a list of top wine resources in his Jerusalem Post column. Looking for last-minute gifts, here are some recommendations: Wines of Israel The Ultimate Rogov's Guide to Israeli Wines Wine Route of Israel The Bible of Israeli Wines as well as several websites. Notably, this site gets a shout

Al-Manar has a translation of an article written by journalist Meni Peer in Ma'ariv. Read the full article Wine is not just another bottled beverage — [the vineyard of origin is an important factor for differentiation] and when it comes to the wines made in Israel, their marketing meets with difficulties when the question of

Golan Heights is First Israeli Winery to Win Wine Enthusiast's Prestigious Wine Star Award   On the eve of their 30th anniversary, Golan Heights Winery has won the coveted 2012 Wine Star Award from Wine Enthusiast Magazine in the New World Winery of the Year category. The award is a first for an Israeli winery

Recently, I was fortunate to be among a small group of wine writers, sommeliers and restaurateurs invited to the 12 Rothschild restaurant in Tel Aviv where we were treated to a well paired lunch with an introduction of eight wines presented by Chateau Golan’s managing director Shuki Shai and widely respected winemaker Uri Hetz. Their

So I had an idea for the holidays leading up to New Year’s Eve, how about tasting a wine range of Israeli sparkling wines and comparing them to European sparkling wines such as Champagnes from France, Cavas from Spain and Proseccos from Italy. Well, it might have just remained an idea if I hadn’t had

   With close to 300 wineries to write about, often meeting with wine makers and winery executives is based upon unexpected opportunities as much as who I want to talk to on any given day. So when I was invited to interview Motty Teperberg at the Teperberg Winery in the Judean Hills outside Beit Shemesh,

Although many wineries benefit from having their own vineyards, it can be restrictive if there’s a particularly challenging year. Ultimately you need to use what grapes you got, sell them or take a loss. Many winemakers shop year to year for their grapes on the open market or depend on contracts with growers. That can

Even in a smaller wine region such as Israel there are certain wines that have become iconic: Castel’s Gran Vin, Yarden’s Katzrin, Margalit’s Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve or Yatir’s Forest are a few good examples. These are wines that most experts and those who tasted them agree are some of the best the country can produce.

‘Divine Vintage’ is a newly published book which provides a window into the ancient world of wine, and ends up in modern times. It follows the biblical wine route, and includes Canaan, Ancient Israel and the State of Israel. It delves into the area where wine culture was born and examines the recent quality revival

Israeli wine was recently featured in several international wine publications: Wine Enthusiast featured Recanati Shiraz 2010 (90 points) in their Top 100 Best Buys for 2012. Decanter Magazine’s November 2012 issue features an article on Israeli wine. Sommelier Journal has an article on the Israeli wine industry

DR: Over the last several years, Israeli wineries have been winning more than their fair share of international recognition and awards. When visiting any of the best Israeli wineries, the recognition they seem to hold most dear is that from Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate. Robert Parker is the founder of the 100 point wine scoring

‘Wines of Israel’ is a new book published by Cordinata, which is being launched at Succot. It is really the little sister of the larger format coffee table book, The Wine Route of Israel. ‘Wines of Israel’ is in an attractive, compact, concise and practical guide giving an insight into the wines and wineries of

[Press Release] A great opportunity for those who want to learn more about wine is coming to Israel in October. The International Sommelier Guild will be starting classes in Tel Aviv at the Bin 281 Wine Shop and Bar at 281 Dizengoff Street (on the corner of Ben Yehuda). The first course, Wine Appreciation 1,

For my 5773 list of suggested wines for the High Holidays, I decided on some changes on how I picked my wines from previous years. First, I decided to try to mix up the price points a little so there were some affordable wines for everyone to choose from and I decided to suggest some

Mr. Binyamin Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, received a nice surprise when he recently visited the Windmill at Mishkenot Shaananim & Yemin Moshe in Jerusalem. He was presented with a bottle of Carmel Limited Edition 2007 in a special gift box, by Adam Montefiore of Carmel Winery. The Mayor of Jerusalem and Ambassador of

For immediate release Washington, DC August 6, 2012. The International Wine Review (IWR) announces the release of its 32nd Report “The New Wines of Israel. The report is based on extensive research and travel in Israel by a team consisting of Publisher Michael Potashnik and Editor Donald Winkler in collaboration with Joel Butler, MW, a

             The Jerusalem Wine Festival is the largest and most widely attended wine festival in Israel with tens of thousands attending over four nights. Traditionally, and now it's in its 9th year, the festival is held at Jerusalem's revered Israel Museum during the week of Tu Ba'av , which is both Jewish "Valentine's...

The London 2012 Olympics are about to start. England is known for frenetic, physical football, unique pubs, flat beer, tea with milk, fish and chips and the Queen. it is also a city which is known for being the center of the wine trade and has been so for over 200 years. It was there

Nestled amongst the vines of Israel’s largest contiguous vineyard at Kibbutz Hulda, about thirty minutes southwest of Tel Aviv, Israel’s second largest winery, Barkan, hosted a press event to inaugurate it’s new and long awaited visitor center and to launch its release of their three Cabernet Sauvignon’s in their 2009 Barkan Altitude series. Over 3...