#286 – February 26, 2015 Tabor winery is located in Kfar Tavor, a village founded by Baron Rothschild in the shadows of the famed Tabor Mountain (from which the winery derives its name) which featured prominently in the biblical story of Debora the prophetess and Sisra and later on in Napoleon’s famed battle (and was one of […]
#298 – July 9, 2015 After a short[er] newsletter last week, this week’s missive details the wonders of another boutique California winery – Shirah and as a result, is once again [ever-so-slightly] longer than usual. Hopefully you will persevere as the story behind Weiss Brothers and their wines are well worthy of your attention. My […]
#299 – July 19, 2015 After first seeing the wines at someone’s house I reached out to Elena Zimbalista in order to coordinate tasting her wines at the Sommelier Expo two years ago (given that she wasn’t an exhibitor, we met outside of the Expo at a nearby coffee shop were we tasted through her […]
#299 – July 19, 2015 With the amazing things happening at Recanati (stay tuned for an updated newsletter soon), it shouldn’t surprise anyone to know that the winery is blessed with one of the deepest “benches” of winemaking talent among Israeli wineries. Assisting über-talented chief-winemaker Gil Shatsberg are two folks, both talented winemakers in their […]
#299 – July 19, 2015 Including Lewis Pasco in a newsletter about new and unknown wineries may seem inconsistent to anyone who has been following the Israeli wine scene for more than a few years. However, despite making quite a splash on the local scene during his seven vintages at Recanati, he disappeared from the […]
#295 – June 12, 2015 (The Purest Expression of Place) This week’s topic of Pinot Noir has filled me with trepidation for years. With hundreds of options for quality Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc and numerous viable options for those seeking quality Cabernet Franc, Carignan, Petite Sirah, Petite Verdot, Viognier and even […]
#292 – May 20, 2015 Despite New York reverting back to more typical Spring weather these past few days, the recent tantalizing days of summer-like weather were sufficient to galvanize me into my annual ode to Rosé, easily one of the most glorious of all wine genres and unfortunately still snubbed by a large percentage […]
RCC was recently covered in the Jewish Week and the UK’s Jewish Chronicle. I have a problem. Within a few years after I “got into” wine at the tender age of sixteen, I started to collect wine with the intention of cellaring certain bottles. By that time I had been taught by Avi Ben, Daniel […]
#293 – June 1, 2015 (Evolution of a Giant / Tales of Brobdingnag) It was nearly five years ago when I first wrote a brief newsletter about Jonathan Hajdu and his first two wines, getting the word out on his incredible new winery – then known as Brobdingnagian. The talent was apparent with the first […]
I have long maintained a page on this site dedicated to those special wines that were only available in Israel and I felt were worth bringing back to the US, either for long-term cellaring purposes or simply to enjoy. As the geographic scope of readership has continued to expand, a significant number of readers are located in Israel […]