Yossie's Corkboard

I was happy to have the opportunity to attend the first (trade-only) day of IsraWinExpo and determined to take full advantage, arrived as early as possible for the opening press conference which included a talk by Adam Montefiore’s on the state of the Israeli wine industry to the approximately 45 visiting foreign journalists, wine buyers and other professionals (for a more-or-less complete list of foreign attendees, see here: http://www.grape-man.com/content.asp?NavigationID=684&ContentID=6023) – quite interesting. It was great to have the opportunity to chat with many of the foreign visitors who were eager to learn more about the wines, wineries and industry as a whole.

After the press conference, in order to orient myself and plan my tastings, I took a quick walk around the exhibition noticing that the entire show was substantially smaller than Sommelier (both in total space and attending wineries); exacerbated by the fact that there were a substantial number of non-winery booths. While most were at least tangentially related foodstuffs like cheeses, chocolate, oils and jams, wine fridges and wine-related gifts (which served as fillers, making the Expo seem larger than it was), Israel’s business daily Globes and others were present as well, seemingly out of place.

The wineries attending included: Alexander, Artsi, Barkan, Binyamina, Carmel, Domaine Herzberg, Domaine Netofa (who shared a booth with Royal’s Israeli representative – Zur Agencies – who had some of the more classic Royal Wines but, nothing that hadn’t been at KFWE), Domaine Ventura, Galil Mountain, Gat Shomron, Golan Heights Winery (who were only pouring a representative of their varied Chardonnay and Syrah wines; given their size and variety of offerings, I know its tough to have a representative showcase, but somehow Carmel and Barkan managed (and I would have loved to taste the 2008 Rom or the new T squared (a not-yet-released post-style wine based on the T2)), Gvaot, Hevron Heights in all their glory and labels, Har Bracha, Livni, Luria, Or HaGanuz, Ramot Naftaly, Segal, Shiloh, Tanya, Teperberg, Tishbi, Tulip, Tura, Weitzman and Yatir.

The list of missing wineries was extensive and seemed to include a disproportionate number of Judean Hills wineries. Off the top of my head, the absence of the following kosher wineries was noticed: Adir, Agur, Bazelet HaGolan, Bravdo, Castel, Dalton, Ella Valley, Flam, Gush Etzion, Katlav, Mond, Mony, Odem Mountain, Psagot, Saslove, the Shor family wineries, Tabor, Tzora, Tzuba and Yaffo (although many of the winemakers/winery reps were there however as guests).

As with Sommelier, many of the wineries had their “special wines” (older vintages, magnum format, flagship wines) off the counter available only to those deemed worthy. As I mentioned on the KFWE thread, while I understand, respect and appreciate the need of the wineries to maintain an air of exclusivity for their better wines and prefer to pour the better wines for those who would actually appreciate it, I find the practice a little unsavory and silly – especially on a trade/press-only day.

Between Sommelier, KFWE and judging the wines for the Jewish Week’s annual Kosher Wine Guide, I [thought that I would have] had fewer wines that I would want/need to taste but I was [happily] mistaken and there were tons of new wines so I ended up tasting just over 80 wines over the eight hours I attended before I had to leave to catch my flight back to NYC. My advice to those wanting to do serious tasting and take real notes at these events is arrive as early as you can, have a plan for exactly what you want to taste (including listing out the wines/vintages in advance) and get as much done as early in the day as possible. While there were a few mistakes and omissions to the list I linked to above (notably the Tanya wines), it was extremely helpful with the pre-planning allowing for a good utilization of my time. Between 12-4 there was almost nobody actually tasting anything, making quiet focused tastings relatively easy and affording a nice opportunity to have in-depth chats with the winemakers.

Keep an eye out for future newsletter in which I will provide more information on the wines and wineries, including detailed tasting notes, but for now, I’ve listed some of the highlights for me below. In general, I got the continuing impression of passion, innovation, experimentation and the continued desire to drive the industry forward – all of which is nice. This manifests itself with new varietals (a lot of Gewurztraminer and port-style wines seem to be popping up recently) although there seems to be less of a move towards the Rhone varietals than I would have expected.


Besides the few interesting wines listed below, I was also happy to “discover’ two new kosher wineries Artsi (a new winery whose first vintage is 2011 with two current offerings – a 2011 Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, made solely in stainless (with the “Reserve” wines currently in the barrel with an anticipated release of January) and Weitzman, whose first vintage was in 2007 and has been kosher since (while neither wineries had offering that were anything special, it’s always nice to see new ones pop up).

Alexander: They had a far more extensive selection at KFWE and none of their heavy-hitters were ON the counter so I just stopped by to say hello to the winery manager (Yoram and Ilana were still in the US) and taste the 2010 Sauvignon Blanc.

Binyamina: They were pouring their wines which included the new 2011 Yogev lineup and the 2010 Reserve Carignan which after some decanting opened up really nicely (although I liked the 2009 better so far). They also poured the 2011 Reserve Gewurztraminer which was delicious and a welcome addition to the rapidly expanding selection of quality available Israeli Gewurztraminer wines.

Carmel/Yatir: They had a pretty extensive lineup but I stuck to a few specifics including Carmel’s Sha’al SV Merlot and a comparative tasting between the 2007 and 2008 Limited Edition wines where I felt the 2008 was the clear winner (despite the 2007 being more ready to drink at this point).

GalilMountain: Showcasing the new line and label previously discussed, I tried the newly released Alon, 2010 Pinot Noir, 2011 Sauvignon Blanc and 2011 Rose (all pretty good, nothing blew me away although the Alon was certainly the best of them). They also had the 2008 Meron and Yiron which showed as delightfully as at Sommelier.

Gat Shomron: In addition to the wines they offered at Sommelier, they had the 2008 Merlot, 2009 Petit Verdot and a 2010 barrel sample of an “Amarone-style” wine made from 100% Cabernet Sauvignon. I also purchased a bunch of their two Icewine-style wines – a Gewurztraminer and Viognier (they will be releasing another Riesling-based one for the 2010 vintage soon).

Golan Heights Winery: Despite not having the 2008 ROM or T squared, I enjoyed tasting the 2005 and 2006 Yarden Syrah from magnums and the 2005 and 2007 Yarden Katzrin wines which showcased the benefit of time for these oaked Chardonnay wines and the 2008 Avital Syrah was delicious with tons of potential. Victor’s presence and chatting enhanced the tasting as usual.

Gvaot: Notable wines included the new 2010 Herodion Merlot and Vineyards Dance and appreciated was the 2009 Masada.

Luria: I liked their Gewurztraminer a lot and also tasted their newly released “reserve” wine – Inon (a blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Shiraz and 10% Cabernet Franc).

Ramot Naftaly: I tasted this winery for the first time at Sommelier, wrote an article about them a few weeks back and was excited to taste their newly released 2010 Barbera and try three wines that hadn’t been at Sommelier – the 2009 Petit Verdot and Malbec and 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve which I found the least impressive of the bunch.

Recanati: The 2010 vintages of both the Carignan and Syrah/Viognier were available and delightful (the Petite Sirah/Zinfandel blend now carries the same cool label) as was the 2010 White Special Reserve (the new Yasmin’s label is curiously nearly identical to its more upscale and expensive Special Reserve). Far better than the wines, was the time spent with Gil, Ido, Noam and Lenny Recanati a charming, fun, intellectual and knowledgeable a bunch as one could hope for.

Shiloh: I was happy to get the opportunity to re-taste the Legend which wasn’t showing its best at KFWE and it showed a marked improvement on its home turf. Adam N. was helping out and it was great chatting with him about the wines.

Tanya: They had a huge lineup of wines across the vintages (over 15 wines) including their newly released Ivri entry-level series (consisting of a Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cab/Merlot blend). Stay tuned for a coming piece about the winery and the wines. These are definitely wines that need serious aging time for the pieces to come together but are sometimes worth the wait.

Teperberg: After tasting a number of their newer releases including a 2011 Gewurztraminer and delightful Sauvignon Blanc, I got lucky and meet up with winemaker Shiki and Shai (from Allied – their US importer) for a tasting of their newly released series named after musical instruments – Chalil (flute) – a semi-sweet Cabernet Sauvignon ala Herzog’s Jeunesse, Kinor (harp) – a fortified blend of (~2/3) Cabernet Sauvignon & (~1/3) Merlot and Nevel (a type of harp) – a port-style wine and my favorite of the bunch. They are also following up on their initial Moscato success with two 2011 wines, a white Moscato from Muscat of Alexandria grapes and a red Moscato from Muscat Hamburg.

Tulip: Was pouring their 2011 White Tulip and White Franc (they also poured their non-kosher Black Tulip 2009 and had some non-kosher magnum format tastings as well). As with the 2010 vintage, I enjoyed the White Tulip more than the White Franc but felt that the 2010 White Tulip was a better wine.

For a few pictures of the event: http://s1105.photobucket.com/albums/h352/IsraelWines/Israwinexpo/?albumview=slideshow

So KFWE was last night and, as always, I thought it was a great event – kudos to Gary J. and Royal for the hard work and all thier efforts and wishing all the West Coast folks a tremendous event tomorrow – enjoy. My newsletter this week will hopefully have a more detailed description of the event and some of the wine tasting highlights but I wanted to give a brief rundown of the event and some of the wines, a number of which weren’t listed on the posted wine list.

In a slight departure from past years, there was a early afternoon session for the trade from 12-4 which gave those attending the ability to chat with the varied winemakers in a much more intimate setting and have a more relaxed environment to do some serious tastings. At 4 they closed shop for people to recuperate and then reopened around 6 for an hour of press (although many of the press attended the earlier event including Alice Feiring and Howard Goldberg, both delightful individuals I was super-excited to meet, chat and taste wines with) before the event was opened to the general public at 7. Despite the throngs of attendees, for the bulk of the evening it wasn’t crazy crowded and most of the wines/winery representatives were accessible to all.

There was a really long list of winemakers in attendance, all of whom are listed in the book including Assaf and Sasson from Binyamina, Yaakov Berg from Psagot, Yoram and his wife Ilana from Alexander, the entire Covenant team of Jeff, Jodie and Jonathon, Jürgen from Capcanes, Pierre from Netofa (and Royal’s French Collection), Joe from Herzog, Irit and Ed from Barkan and other winery representatives including Adam from Carmel/Yatir, Dr. Moises from Elvi, Yossi Shor from 1848, Gilad Flam and Mayer from Shiloh. As every year and despite how exhausted many of them were, they all had time for any and all questions and seemed to enjoy discussing the wines (more early on than later ).

As far as wines, the list is endless (see my Thursday newsletter for more detail) but for me, some of the highlights included:


Castel, Rose, 2011 and Grand Vin, 2009

Shilo, Legend, 2009 and Mosiac, 2006

Elvi, Clos Mesorah, 2009 – Elvi’s new flagship wine (a blend of
Carignan, Grenache and Syrah) deserving of its status

Two amazing white wines from Bokobsa – Pouilly Fumé Maltaverne and a Sancerre Chavignol – crisp and incredible.

A mini-Capcanes vertical of the 2008-2010 vintages and the new 2010 La Flor

The 2005 Le Crock and Leoville – I-N-C-R-E-D-I-B-L-E

Binyamina LH Gewurz 2009 (I tasted and wrote about this before but was very happy to see it finally here)

Psagot Prat (port-style)

Laurent Perrier Brut (I enjoyed far more than the more expensive Rose)

The new Covenant wines, especially 2011 SB which, unlike the 2010, didn’t do full Malo and was crisper w/ better acidity).

Covenant, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2003 – a surprise & welcome treat!

Yatir, Forest, 2007 – ’nuff said.

Flam, Reserve, Syrah, 2010 – a pre-release tasting of the Flam’s new level up wines

The food was great and I in my opinion has been a really successful addition, really enhancing the event and making it more inclusive. Way to much to taste (or list) everything but some favorites included the Po’ Boys from Bistro 1310, BBQ Ox Tail from ETC Steakhouse, the crazy decadent Chocolate Mousse from Finchi, Corned Beef and Pastrami from Pomegranate, Smokehouse Brisket from Gemstone Catering, Jack’s Chorizo, La Marais’ Smoked Duck Breast and off course the incredible Espresso from Noi Due, Ribeye Tartare from Downtown Brooklyn and the Dunk Confit Meatball and Veal Shepard Pie from Silverleaf Caterers.

Very little complaints other than a few listed wines were no-shows (Valendraud, Segal Unfiltered, Psagot 2011 Chardonnay, Goose Bay 2011 Pinot Grigio). All in all – really well run, managed and enjoyable.

Enjoy tomorrow’s event in LA and look forward to the reports!

Recommended by Yossie in the Month of February

(1) Newsletter #203; February 02, 2012.

Carmel, Mediterranean, 2007

Carmel, Appellation, Carignan, 2007

Binyamina, Reserve, Carignan, 2009

#200 – January 12, 2012

With your loyal support this week’s newsletter achieved another significant milestone for Yossie’s Wine recommendations – it is edition #200!  I wanted to take the opportunity to thank you all for your readership and hope you have enjoyed reading these weekly editions as much as I have enjoyed writing them (and tasting the related wines of course).  Just a quick reminder that I am also on Twitter where I post daily links to varied wine-related articles and other wine-related tidbits.  Please consider following me there as well @yossieuncorked.  As you will read below, I also anticipate a number of positive changes to my website over the coming year, many of which have been suggested by you folks and which I hope you find useful.  As always, I am very interested in any thoughts, comments or suggestions you may have to better this publication so feel free to contact me with any such suggestions.

Before we segue into some of my predictions for what 2012 will hold for the wonderful world of kosher wine and the potential impact such changes may have on our collective palates and wallets, a reminder that Royal Wine’s Kosher Food & Wine Experience (food before wine guys – really?) is rapidly approaching. The event will once again be held at Chelsea Piers, this year on February 13th. It’s an incredible annual event, offering the opportunity to taste the massive number of wines in Royal Wine Corporation’s portfolio, including some of the outrageously expensive ones you might not otherwise have opportunities to enjoy. The food component has grown in recent years and affords the ability to try the wares of many kosher food vendors, including some of the higher-end restaurants and caterers. For some folks the food component is the main draw (gasp) and it also provides welcome activity for spouses of wine-lovers who are not that interested in the wine. I attend every year and consider it money very well spent. For more information and to acquire tickets, click here. There are a number of discount codes floating around including a special one for readers of this newsletter: YOSSIE10. Use it to obtain $10 off each ticket (if purchasing multiple tickets enter the code once for each purchased ticket separated by a comma). There is also a corresponding event in LA that typically has fewer wines, winemakers and food vendors but has the added benefit of food catered by the incredible Chef Aarons at Tierra Sur. Coupon code YOSSIE will get you 10% off your tickets for the LA event. For more details/info check out the “Coming Events” page of my website.

As a follow on to newsletter #198 where I discussed many of the events and trends in the kosher wine world that occurred in 2011, this newsletter discusses some of my predictions as to the direction the world of kosher wines will be taking over the coming twelve months.  Obviously, many of these predictions are driven by the events of the prior year, with Daniel Rogov’s passing potentially having a huge impact over the next two years in many different ways.

Too Much Wine:  As interest has increased and sophistication of the kosher wine consumer has developed over the last few years, increased demand for quality kosher wines led many Israeli wineries to significantly increase the vineyard acreage under their control, increase their production and generally grow their operations (or open new ones). As discussed last week in depth, wineries also made substantial capital investments in anticipation of expected growth in the industry over the coming few years. The result of all this investment is a glut of wine for which I don’t believe there is sufficient demand either in Israel or abroad (which was the intended target of a significant portion of all this increased production). While I don’t anticipate this glut of wine to turn into the French “wine lake” of 2005 that resulted in 100,000,000 liters of AOC wine being distilled into ethanol, I do anticipate some shake-ups to the industry including some of the following:

(1) Prices:  One outcome of the capital expenditures has been an exponential increase in higher tiered wines with corresponding higher-end pricing (think about all the now near-annual single vineyard releases and Katzrin and Rom wines from the Golan Heights Winery). While the majority of these wines are truly delightful, I believe that the main pillar supporting the wineries’ exponential growth of new wines and their ability to charge high prices for said wines were the high scores of Daniel Rogov. While many (including myself) feel Rogov’s scores of Israeli wines were slightly inflated, as discussed in #198, his scores were obviously a huge factor in moving these wines (a bit more on this below in connection with scoring of Israeli wines by non-Israeli critics). While there are other wine writers who critique and score Israeli wines (see below), without Rogov’s high-scores and his tireless promotion, I think the market for these will substantially soften resulting in (i) a decrease of new high-end wines coming to market in the short-term (after the backlog through the 2010-2011 vintage clears out) and (ii) newer vintages of these wines will be held back until current releases sell out, creating a serious backlog. As an example and while more affluent and serious wine connoisseurs may find them interesting, there is no market for three single vineyard Merlot wines each year from the same winery when such wines are priced around $50 and are more-or-less made in the same style.

(2) More “Dumping” on the US Market:  Together with the fact that 2008 was a Shmittah year and less Israeli wines were exported, and 2009 and 2010 were less than incredible vintage years in Israel, I think we are going to see more dumping of Israeli wines on the American market at extremely reduced prices. A prime example of this phenomenon is what happened to the prices of Galil Mountain’s Yiron 2007 in the fall of 2011 where the price point was abruptly reduced by the winery (owned by the Golan Heights Winery) from slightly over $20 to $12. In Israel, where reducing prices would set unacceptable market precedent, it is important for the wineries to hold the line on pricing so they “dump” the excess abroad. While this is usually manifests itself in over-the-hill vintages being sold at fire-sale prices to make way for the next vintage to the detriment of the unsuspecting kosher wine consumer, it does sometimes yield a benefit to the wine consumer in the know (as in the case of the Yiron 2007). I expect dumping of both the good stuff and the nasty to continue and even increase in the coming 12-18 months as wines from the less then stellar 2009 and 2010 vintages need to be cleared out to make way for the substantially better 2011 harvest.

(3) More Wineries will become Kosher:  As we have discussed in the past, the primary factor behind the decision to “go kosher” in an economic one. With extremely limited exceptions, wine cannot be sold in Israeli supermarkets (where the majority of Israel’s wine is purchased) unless it is kosher and, despite the Israeli wine industry’s efforts to change this (see below), the primary market abroad for Israeli wines is the kosher market. For kosher consumers, this is a welcome change with the most recent additions to the list of such wineries including Tulip, Saslove and the famed Flam winery whose wines are arriving on our shores as we speak. As their economic situation worsens, more wineries will become kosher in an effort to save them from economic ruin; only some of them will be successful.

(4) Wineries Going out of Business:  Despite the romance of wine and the romantic notion of owning a winery, it is important to remember that a winery is first and foremost a business and a business needs to generate a profit; this will become increasingly difficult for many wineries over the next few years. While you don’t usually hear about wineries going out of business or being acquired by other wineries, this does happen and I expect an upswing in such unfortunate activity to increase over the next 24 months. I note that often a winery will simply cease producing wine but maintain its existence. If it owns vineyards, it will sell its grapes to other wineries for a few years and hope to rebound in the future.

(5) Fewer High-End Wines:  With the continued weakness in the global economy, the anticipated glut of wine and the increasing availability of quality kosher wines at decent prices, the higher-end and exorbitantly expensive so called trophy wines are going to be a hard sell. As a result, I anticipate a decrease in hyped launches of high-end, so-called Super Israeli wines and, partially resulting from the aspects of marketing Israeli wines worldwide discussed below, a renewed focus on producing quality wines at a sensible prices. Yet another boon to the consumer whose options for quality kosher wines around the $15 price range have decreased substantially over recent years.

(6) The Bigger Wineries will Flourish:  As more wineries feel the cash-flow crunch, the larger wineries will flourish. The larger and profitable wineries such as Carmel, Golan Heights, Barkan and even some of the mid size wineries with positive cash flows and substantial financial backing like Dalton have sufficient cash to continue their development, innovation and expansions even in troubled economic times which will enable them to emerge when things pick up stronger then ever. In the packed kosher wine market where the need to stand-out is paramount (see more on this below), if you take your feet off the marketing pedal for one minute you are going to be left behind which is what will happen to many of the smaller wineries.

New Wines & Wineries:  Lest you think that it will all be doom and gloom for the next couple of years, in order to maintain their competitiveness in our increasingly global economy there will continue to be innovation (albeit primarily by the larger wineries) in order to better compete with other growing wine regions around the world and to eliminate the immediate association of Israeli wine with kosher (more on that below). The result will be more experimentation with winemaking styles, techniques and new varietals. While adventurous Israeli winemakers will explore varietals from around the globe, I expect a focus on Rhone varietals and other grapes indigenous to countries and wine-growing regions with climates and terroir similar to Israel – look for Carignan, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc and Syrah to continue to flourish and for Grenache to start taking an increasingly important role. Given the problems associated with its transport and storage and the importance of the export market to the industry, I expect it to be a few years before natural wine finds a holding in Israel (if ever). Additionally, given the romantic and everlasting optimistic views of wine makers and lovers, new wineries will continue to crop up with new and exciting offerings. Pro-rata to the kosher wine industry as a whole, I expect most of these wineries to come from Israel but look for increasing number of kosher offerings from California, Spain, Chile, Argentina and France.

Wine Writing & Criticism:  In addition to the pricing issue discussed above, this is the area I believe that will be most impacted by Rogov’s passing over the next year or two for one very simple reason –for years Rogov was the be end all of Israeli and kosher wine critics with no exceptions or peers. Despite increasing attention paid to the Israeli wine market by renowned international publications like the Wine Spectator and the Wine Advocate, Rogov reigned supreme among the kosher wine consumers who are the primary market for Israeli wine outside of Israel. While there are additional respected wine writers in Israel, Rogov was clearly the most powerful and sole market-shaper. Another area in which Rogov stood alone was his publication of tasting notes for all the wines he tasted, positive or negative. Among others, I believe his passing will have the following impact on the world of wine writing for the kosher and Israeli wine industries:

(1) Rising Stars:  While Rogov’s advocacy for the local wine industry was massively influential in putting Israeli wine on the international map after a hiatus of nearly hundreds of years; I believe that his strong voice stifled the opinions of many others. In Israel and among the Hebrew press, there are number of other influential and talented wine writers but with few exceptions, there are very few English speaking individuals writing about Israeli or kosher wine on anything resembling a regular basis. While Mark Squires and other internationally acclaimed critics do review Israeli wines with growing frequency, none of them focus on Israeli wines. While they are slowly “learning” about Israeli wines and its unique terroir, I believe they still have a significant lack of understanding of the wines, wineries and the industry as a whole, which hampers their ability to effectively review and portray the wines. With Rogov gone and his incredible (and some say suspect) output simply irreplaceable, I believe the kosher wine consumer will seek alternate sources of information. This will result in the rise of multiple wine writers who will cover Israeli and kosher wines, providing a diversified yet knowledgeable view such wines. Initially many of these writers may not have the ability, knowledge or writing talent to be effective; however with time we will see many talented individuals stepping up to the plate providing us with a rich and diversified group of palates from who to learn.

(2) Conflict of Interest:  Despite the numerous complaints (some justified and some the standard jealous fare every top dog is subject to), Rogov was the only professional wine writer in Israel with no commercial ties to the wine industry, providing him with an unparalleled conflict of interest-free aura of legitimacy. It is the unfortunate reality of the Israeli wine industry that (and Rogov was the sole exception) it is currently impossible to make a respectable living from wine writing and therefore virtually all of the wine writers have commercial ties to the industry in one way or another which severely limits their effectiveness and impairs their objectivity. Hopefully we will see more writers stepping into the breach who are free of commercial ties that have the potential to limit their objectivity or, at the very least, provide a decent level of transparency to these potential conflicts of interest.

(3) Diversified Palate:  As has been the case with Robert Parker (whose influence is clearly on the wane), it is unhealthy for the palate of one to dominate an entire industry. While a gifted individual and a phenomenal writer, Rogov was still one person with one person’s palate and opinions. As current sources of information will carry less weight and authority than Rogov, I expect consumers start trusting their own palates again and to stop using the opinions of wine writers and critics as directives but rather as guides for finding new wines, learning about them and providing an educational aspect to their oenophilic tendencies, which is what the enjoyment of wine is all about.

Marketing:  As discussed in newsletter #198, with increased competition members of the wine industry (wineries, importers, distributors, retailers alike) continue to search for ways to stand out from the pack and are pouring increased resources into their PR and marketing efforts. An example of this is Royal Wine’s launch of the Israel Wine Producers Association initiative that is intended to help market the approximate 15 Israeli labels under their import umbrella. Another method is increased tinkering with labels. Here is some free advice to wineries – stop mucking with your labels! The name of the game is consistency – let the consumer know what to expect when he sees your label on the shelf. Changing labels every vintage or two is hurting you much more than helping. It is not a coincidence that two of the most successful and internationally known Israeli wineries make a limited number of wines and have not changed their labels since they were launched – Yatir and Castel (of course it helps that they both make great wine as well, albeit in completely different styles). As part of the marketing push, I believe we will see more and more Israeli wineries attempt to position themselves as Mediterranean wines (geography aside, it is going to take a whole lot of PR wizardry to have the world view Israel as Mediterranean and not Middle Eastern) and not kosher (as Carmel is doing overtly and many wineries are doing via a change in their style of winemaking like Recanati).

Popularity of Israeli Wines:  As the quality of Israeli wine continues to grow as a result of the better marketing referenced above, the increased quality and the continued efforts of the general wine world to explore new wine-growing regions, I expect the popularity of Israeli wines to continue grow, finding fans from around the world which will enable the industry to continue to grow, innovate and survive. I expect this to be driven both by increasing attention paid to the region by the international critics like Mark Squires, Jancis Robinson and Hugh Johnson among others, by the capable PR and marketing people at the individual wineries and by the new crop of wine writers. As I mentioned above, as wineries realize that their competitive Achilles Heel is price, I expect efforts to be made to reduce prices as well (whether this is possible given the high land, labor and kosher supervision costs remain to be seen), which will increase their competitiveness on a global scale.

Yossie’s Corkboard:  As I mentioned, I will be making a number of changes to my website – www.yossiescorkboard.com – over the coming months. While this newsletter will continue to provide exclusive content not available anywhere else, the website is going to start including additional content exclusive to the site, including a list of recommended wines only available in Israel, lists of wineries I recommend visiting in Israel and around the world with pertinent information, recommended retailers and some subscriber only discounts and potentially, tasting notes for many of the wines I taste that don’t make it into my newsletter.

#198 – December 30, 2011

As the holiday week comes to a close here in New York I am really looking forward to taking back my morning commute back from the tourists. Seriously folks, despite the big illuminated apple on top, it’s still just a store…

As usual, in connection with reviewing my notes and newsletters from the past year in connection with preparing my list of “Best Wines of 2011”, I reflected over the year that was and the varied important events that impacted the wonderful world of wine in general and more specifically, the kosher wine world with a particular focus on the country that provides the largest number of kosher wines by a significant margin – Israel. After my recent visit to Israel which included attending the amazing Sommelier Expo which provided the opportunity to taste a huge selection of Israel’s best and newest wines and visits to nearly 20 Israeli wineries, I came away with renewed optimism with respect to the Israeli wine industry as they continue to evolve and find the right path forward and I look forward to continuing to share their treasures with you for years to come. I was also gratified to see that many of the trends and predictions I discussed last year in my trends newsletter and the piece I wrote about the path forward for Israel’s wine industry were accurate and continue to be relevant. Unfortunately this is not indicative of any physic abilities, but rather people’s general resistance to change, requiring more than a year or two to effect large-scale but necessary changes to an entire industry. Rather than repeat much of this still relevant information in this already longer than usual newsletter, use the links above to check out the trends I discussed last year, most of which are still very relevant today and, together with this week’s topics, provide the direction I expect the kosher wine world to take over the coming years.

2011 brought with it winds of change across many aspects of the kosher wine world, including a number of top Israeli boutique wineries turning kosher, the launching of several interesting series of wines by established wineries, new exciting kosher wines from California, Spain and France and the proliferation of new wineries around the world. With all these exciting events, there is one event that dwarfs all the rest in its importance and potential impact on the entire industry of kosher wine and that is the passing of Israel’s top wine critic, Daniel Rogov z”l (whose real name was David Joroff), the potential impact of which is discussed in detail below.

This week’s newsletter discusses some of the more important trends of 2011 and their potential impact on the future of the kosher wine world. Next week’s newsletter will be a follow up newsletter that will expand on some of these trends and discuss in detail some of what we can expect 2012 to bring to our table. If that wasn’t enough excitement for you and as a follow up to my “Best Wines of 2011”, I have also included those wines that almost made the list and all are well worthy of your attention, palate and wallet.

IMPORTANT TRENDS OF 2011

Daniel Rogov z”l

As any reader of this newsletter or lover of kosher wine knows, Daniel Rogov passed away in early September. While much about him continues to be shrouded in mystery (just the way he would have liked it), numerous eulogies, comments and stories were written about him in the week’s following his passing, much of which I have collated here. His loss is significant for the kosher wine consumer in many ways, as he was the only person in the world who managed to taste a significant amount of the ever-increasing number kosher wines released each year. His barrel, advance, tasting and re-tasting notes for these wines which he generously provided for free to anyone who asked, most often through his wine forum but also through his regular articles in Ha’Aretz and other publications were an invaluable resource in making purchasing decisions, proving information about wines past, present and future. Rogov’s advance scouting also provided an early opportunity made many of us “in the know” with the opportunity to snag some of the more coveted and top-notch new releases before market frenzy (usually resulting from a high-Rogov score) set in.

However, in addition to the obvious impact his passing already has (and will continue to have) on the kosher wine consumer, I believe the impact his death will have on the entire kosher wine industry will be far more significant, if less obvious and likely longer to take effect. While obvious to me, I was surprised at the number of winemakers in Israel who were unaware of Rogov’s market power. While most of them acknowledged his importance as a wine critic, most were unaware of the weight his reviews and opinions carried both in Israel and abroad. This is due to many factors including that Rogov’s influence outside of Israel’s borders was far greater than within, a lack of understanding how the retailing of their product is viewed by the consumer and partially a result of hubris. The disparity in his range of influence results both from Rogov not being the only writer critiquing Israeli wines and from many of the negative opinions of him held by many in the industry (some jealousy driven, some legitimate). Living in the United States after living in Israel for over 20 years and staying intimately in touch with the Israeli wine industry I am acutely aware of Rogov’s ability to make or break a wine (or even a winery) which was unparalleled in the world of kosher wines and equal only to Parker’s past influence (now significantly waning) on the world of Bordeaux. A score of 90 or more from Daniel Rogov was promotional material enough to spike demand for a coveted wine which was usually followed by a price increase and a superlative like “best Israeli syrah” or “one of the best kosher wines ever” was sometimes enough to ensure that most people would only dream about the wine. Two examples that come to mind were his granting of a 96 to the 2006 Yarden Rom and his personal vendetta against the Hevron Heights Winery that led to nearly none of their wines ever getting scores over 84 (while most of their wines are not that great, the label inconsistency is maddening and the bottle variation troubling, there have been wines deserving of far better scores). In next week’s newsletter on what 2012 will bring, I will discuss in depth some of the changes I expect to see to the industry as a direct result of his passing.

Wineries Making Major Capital Investments

As the sophistication and interest of the kosher wine consumer continues to grow, more and more kosher wine consumers are starting to spend wine on quality table wine. In anticipation and response to this developing phenomenon, wineries around the world have spent lavishly by planting a huge number of new vineyards, building new wineries or cellars, putting up beautiful visitor centers, investing in designing labels and bottles or other expensive endeavors. While some of these expenditures were financed by foreign private investors taking partial or full ownership of these wineries, others funded these outlays out-of-pocket or with debt. The results of all this spending has been a multitude of new wineries and wines hitting the market and many wineries becoming attractive tourist destinations, even for these only marginally interested in wines. The beautiful outdoors, good food and drink, an attractive sitting area and sometimes even kid-friendly activities have helped to increase Israel’s wine tourism from North to South. However, these large cash outlays coupled with the Israeli short-term mentality has also created some substantial price increases, most notably among the newer wineries who price their wines at the premium level of Yatir or Castel without any track record to back up these prices.

While obviously a boon to the consumer, the massive proliferation of new wines and wineries has made it increasingly hard to stand out form the crowd which is a requirement for a winery that is in the business of selling its wine (all romantic notions aside and while we sometimes forget, wineries are still a business trying to turn a profit). One of the more obvious and easy ways to stand out is to increase the price of your wine since there are far few wines selling for $75 than for $30 and fewer wines means less competition – sad but very true and a sentiment echoed by many wineries.

An additional marketing aspect available to wineries is changing the label or bottle to attract more attention and stand out on the shelf, a tactic that many wineries seem to undertake with unfortunate frequency. While some of these changes clearly streamline a wineries labeling and are for the better (Carmel’s new attractive labels are a great example) and others obviously serve to attract the more affluent and trophy wine-seeking winos (see Alexander’s gold and silver colored plate-metal labels on their higher-end and correspondingly priced wines), it would behoove the marketing geniuses at these wineries to remember that consumers don’t like change and the success of Israel’s top wineries like Castel and Yatir, while mostly a result of them making incredible wines year after year, is also partially attributable to the fact that they make a limited number of wines and haven’t changed their labels since they were launched.

While the wineries in question are not necessarily those who overspent in recent years, as a direct result of economic uncertainty, many of the smaller boutique Israeli wineries are becoming kosher with increasing frequency. Most recently, this list includes Saslove, Tulip, Ramot Naftaly, Yaffo, Katz, Eyal and Flam with Asif (and others) to hopefully follow soon. While becoming kosher brings with it some additional expenses, it opens the door to a large number of new consumers and allows wines to be sold in Israel’s major supermarkets, most of which only carry kosher certified product and where most of Israel’s wine is still purchased. Regardless of the fact that the only reason these wineries are becoming kosher is economic necessity, as a kosher oenophile it is a move I welcome with open arms and hope and expect to see more of in the coming years.

New Direction for Israeli Wines

As discussed last year and currently led by wineries such as Carmel and Recanati, many Israeli wineries continue to move away from the fruit-forward and oak-laden wines of yesteryear towards more elegant and terroir driven wines and I expect (and hope) this trend to continue for a years to come. More elegance, subtlety and complexity will continue to replace in your face, oak-laced and fruit driven wines. However, as I mentioned last year, I don’t think the kosher consumer is quite ready for this shift yet and most wineries realize this, taking it slowly making slight changes year over year to their wines and are gradually bringing the consumer along with the rest of the world towards these subtler wines. Of course there are plenty of wineries making top-notch fruit-forward with plenty of wood used in a discerning manner and producing wonderful stuff and will continue to do so, which will provide consumers with even more choices.

Wineries also continue to experiment with varietals more appropriate for Israel’s unique climate including Petit Verdot, Petit Sirah and Cabernet Franc, utilizing them in stand-alone wines instead of simply blends. I think Grenache will likely be added to this mix at some point. We are also experiencing more and more wines with substantial aging ability (still mostly produced by the Golan Heights Winery), which is a welcome trend I will discuss in more depth next week, but a welcome one. Over the next few years I hope we will start seeing wines capable of lasting 30 years or more. I know Israeli wineries are capable of producing such wines, the question will be whether the consumer has an interest in such wines and will they be willing to pay a premium for them.

The Increased Importance of the North American Market

While North America has always been a significant export market for Israeli and other kosher wine from around the world, with the increased sophistication and interest described above, its importance has risen drastically in recent years. One indicator of this importance is, while many wineries have ceased producing mevushal wine as part of their efforts to revitalize their image as producers of quality wine, many such wineries continue to produce one or more mevushal versions solely for export. While I acknowledge the necessity of mevushal wines under certain circumstances, I have made my general view of the concept known on more than one occasion and am sadden by this phenomenon which leads to consumer confusion, perpetuates ignorance and provides more bad wine to a market just beginning to appreciate quality wines across the board. While the US market does provide some top-notch mevushal wines, namely in Hagafen’s Prix and Herzog’s Special Reserve lines, the Israeli versions are severely lacking for the most part, and are certainly nothing to write home about (mostly relating to which part of the winemaking process the flash-pasteurization occurs – more on that in a future newsletter).

Another aspect of the North American market is the ever increasingly importance of the importer/distributor. While Royal Wine Corporation has and continues to be the largest and most significant importer of kosher wines into the United States recent years have seen, together with the proliferation of new and newly kosher wineries, many new importers/distributors bringing in one or two smaller wineries resulting in a fractured market and a bit of difficulty in finding all the wonderful kosher wines available as retailers sometimes carry more of one importers wines over the other and some of the importers who aren’t focused and thus don’t “get” the kosher market, are less successful in getting their wines into the hands of the kosher consumer. While this is actually in line with the intention of some wineries like Tzora, others suffer from this like Recanati and Ella valley who get far less exposure to the kosher wine consumer than they deserve, given the quality and decent pricing of their wines.

Yossie’s Corkboard – Personal Reflections

On a personal note, the readership of Yossie’s Wine Recommendations continues to grow and Yossie’s Corkboard continues to attract attention, so I’d like to take this opportunity to thank you for your continued support! I am hoping to reach 5,000 subscribers this year so if you know anyone who is interested in wine, please have them sign up for the newsletter – it would be most appreciated. This coming year will also see some new features added to the website including a Q&A section. As always, any thoughts, comments, suggestions or recommendations to improve this newsletter or topics in which you are interested are always welcomed and most appreciated.

Listed below are full tasting notes for the great wines that just missed the cutoff for my list of the “Best Wines of 2011”.

I JUST MISSED MAKING YOSSIE’S LIST

Binyamina Avnei Hachoshen, Yahalom-Diamond, 2007: A mentioned above, this was a limited edition run and a big success. A big, powerful and full-bodied blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (50%), Syrah (30%) and Petite Verdot (20%). Delicious right now but give it the time it deserves as it’s clearly destined for future greatness. Great structure and balance between the rich fruit, which included plums, blackberries and raspberries, the near-sweet wood, bold tannins and spicy background. Together with the Zinfandel, this wine represents Binyamina’s best and it brought me back to their heyday of the 2003 Syrah I loved so much (although that wine was more elegant to this one’s power). Great mouthfeel with plenty of dark chocolate, coffee and spiciness all leading into a long and generous finish that lingers. The 2008 vintage is also amazing. The wine has now come into its own and is drinking amazingly well (after 15-25 minutes of breathing time) btu will continue to evolve for another 12-18 months and should cellar nicely through 2017.

Binyamina, Reserve, Late Harvest Cluster Select, Gewurztraminer, 2009: I first tasted the 2008 vintage of this wine while visiting Israel and loved it! I had the opportunity to taste the 2009 vintage at a recent tasting back in November held by the Israeli Economic Mission and was wowed by how different it was from the 2008 and by how much I liked it. Like Carmel’s Sha’al dessert wine, some of the grapes were infected with Botrytis to great effect. A rich, ripe and luscious wine with plenty of apricots and dried fruit, some lychees, heather and honey all tempered by good acidity that kept the richness in check. I haven’t yet seen it on sale in New York, but will definitely load up on it when it appears – a highly recommended dessert wine and great alternative to the delicious Sha’al. Feel free to cellar this one through 2018.

Carmel, Single Vineyard – Kayoumi, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2007: Carmel’s chief winemaker Lior Lacser must spend his nights sprinkling the Kayoumi vineyard with angel dust, as there is something truly magical about this vineyard which produces an incredible Shiraz in addition to this magnificent and powerful Cabernet Sauvignon. Both powerful and elegant, this wine is full-bodied with great structure and harmony among the wood, fruit, tannin and acid. Give this wine a little time in the glass to open up and you will be rewarded with aromas of red cherries and currants, gooseberries, tart plums and cigar box followed by a fruit and earthy palate with slightly darker fruits, tobacco leaf, bittersweet chocolate, mildly spicy oak and muscular yet well integrated mouth coating tannins. A long lingering finish reminds you that it’s time for the next glass. Drink now through 2015.

Ella Valley Vineyards, Merlot, 2005: Just another example of how, notwithstanding their magnificent Cabernet Franc, Merlot is what helps set this winery apart from all others. An easy example of a regular series wine that fully deserves to be elevated to their upper-tier Vineyard’s Choice label but it’s better for us this way since it stay eminently affordable. Muscular, robust, aggressive and bold are not your typical buzz words when talking about Merlot; but those traits combined with the wines elegance, depth, richness and complexity make for an absolute killer combo – give this some time in your glass and it really comes together. Tons of blackberries, raspberries and tangy sharp plums backed by pepper, wood and nice hints of chocolate. A well balanced structure and a long caressing finish loaded with fruit and hints of dark chocolate round this delight out. A wine with the rare combo of being food-friendly and big, bold and powerful.

Four Gates, Pinot Noir, n.v.: I don’t know if I have ever used beautiful to describe a wine but there really isn’t any other word to describe this medium bodied violet scented wine with a gentle nose. Blended with 50% each from the 2007 and 2008 vintages, this wine was great on its own but incredible with food. Plum, cherry, raspberry and cranberry on both the nose and palate with some nice hints of roasted herbs, toasted oak and kirsch. A medium and caressing finish rounded out this lovely wine.

Golan Heights Winery, Yarden, Single Vineyard, Yonatan, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2007: While a nice touch, my adoration for this wine has nothing to do with the fact that the vineyard in which it was born shares the name of my oldest child. A full bodied and somewhat intense wine that is loaded with the characteristic ripe rich fruit, solid tannins and hints of slightly spicy oak we have come to expect from this series. Blackberries, cherries, black currants, plums, gooseberries are all present on both the nose and palate of this delicious and caressing wine that wows you with its elegance and power with every sip. Hints of eucalyptus and Mediterranean herbs keep the wine grounded in its Israeli origins all leading into a long luxurious finish that tempts you to open another one of your specially reserved bottles. Another rousing success in the Single Vineyard line of the Golan Heights winery, this full bodied wine is a delight that will continue to impress and bring pleasure for years to come. I’d give the wine another year for the tannins to settle down and for the fruit to take its proper place but then the wine should cellar nicely through 2020.

Gvaot, Gofna, Pinot Noir, 2009: Gvaot’s first release of Pinot Noir in a limited edition of 550 bottles and a rousing success. Produced from vineyards at 720 meters above sea level where the delicate and high-maintenance grapes benefit from the natural protection of the valley’s walls. While, mostly resulting from terroir-based issues, Israel does not (and likely cannot) produce Pinot Noir at the Burgundian level, they are more and more succeeding at providing complex and pleasing versions of the varietal that make for nice food pairing and this bright wine is no exception, especially at a reasonable 12.5% alcohol. A medium bodied wine and sensual wine, whose depth of flavor and complexity is immediately recognizable on the rich nose of red fruit and wild flowers which follows through on the promise to a palate replete with cherries, raspberries, a tantalizing hint of strawberries, the typically Israeli crushed warm herbs and a nice spiciness from the 12 months in old French oak. Lovely right now, with great balance and elegant structure, this wine will continue to improve over the next year or two and should cellar nicely through 2017. Suggested retail in Israel is 170 NIS.

Gvaot, Masada, 2009: The winery’s flagship wine and justifiably so, produced in a limited run of 1,400 bottles. A wine whose punch has increased since its first release in 2005 (although the 2008 vintage is going to outlive this one). A full bodied and extracted blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (50%), Merlot (35%) and Petit Verdot (15%) whose whole is definitely greater than its parts. With robust tannins, those in balance with the spicy wood and fruit, this wine has a nice future ahead of it. Plenty of black forest fruit on both the nose and palate including black currents, black plums, blackberries and other crushed berries along with a delightful earthy funkiness and some Mediterranean herbs combine with a rich overlay of spicy wood from the 21 months in French oak and hints of dark chocolate. If you crack this one open now, I’d give it 15-25 minutes in your glass to open up and show its beauty but suggest giving the wine another 6 months or so before opening after which is will cellar nicely and continue to evolve through 2018. Suggested retail in Israel is 215 NIS but it can be had for less.

Hagafen, Prix, Mélange, 2006: When Hagafen released their inaugural release of this wine with the 2004 vintage excitement abounded in the kosher wine world. While nice, the 2005 vintage lacked the panache and depth of its older sibling. This vintage is closer to its 2004 brother than the 2005 wine, and the fact that this wine didn’t make the 2011 Top Ten list is a testament to the incredible kosher wines available over this past year. A plush and full bodied somewhat earthy blend, with well integrated and caressing tannins providing a solid backbone for a delicious array of elegant fruit including black currants, mulberries, rich raspberries and cassis along with licorice, eucalyptus, lavender and some minty dark chocolate. A long lingering finish of cedar, dark chocolate, earthy minerals and cigar box leaves you wishing you had another bottle right now. Great balance and beautiful structure, a little less acidity that I would have liked which will limit the shelf life of this wine; making its $75 (plus shipping) a little less justifiable but a delicious wine and a real treat nonetheless. A hint of old world soul in a Napa Valley body. The wine is finally drinking beautifully but give it 30 minutes to an open to open up first, and should cellar nicely though 2015.

Karmei Yosef (Bravdo), Shiraz, 2009: Given my admiration for this winery, I was delighted when their wines were finally imported into the United States and they introduced a delightful blend called “Coupage”. As with the 2007 vintage I previously reviewed, this is a full bodied wine with distinct Shiraz personality and a hint of the Mediterranean terroir of its birthplace. A big, intense and brambly wine, consistent with its Shiraz name, with muscular tannins and ample, slightly spicy, wood matched nicely by blackberries, cassis and juicy plums on both the nose and palate, together with Mediterranean herbs and hints of cigar-box cedar. A great wine right now, but give this one another year or so in the bottle and you will be rewarded by a smoother and more grown up wine. A definite keeper and happily decently priced (unlike many other recent boutiquey arrivals on our shores).

Recanati, Special Reserve, White, 2009: It took me awhile to get my hands on this wine due to its limited availability even in Israel (it isn’t sold in the US at all) but, given my love and adoration for its red sibling, I persisted and it paid off (thanks for searching AG). After many years of releasing their flagship Special Reserve wine, with the 2008 vintage, Recanati released a Special Reserve white blend to much acclaim (which I have not yet had the opportunity to taste). This wine will supposedly only be produced in appropriate years and apparently 2009 was such a year – in any event, the wine is delicious. A blend of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Viognier, all from Recanati’s top tier Manara vineyard, the was aged in French oak for eight months giving it a bit of spiciness, aging ability, oaky creaminess, flinty minerals and a nice balance to the rich tropical fruits on both the nose and palate. Peach and apricot flavors abound, along with plenty of spring flowers some almond notes on the mid-palate all matched by mouth-watering acidity that brings the wood and fruit together harmoniously.

#197 – December 23, 2011

As we close in on the end of the Gregorian calendar, we are blanketed by the media in all its iterations with multiple lists of the “best of” or “top 10” of any and everything under the planet from clothing and outrageous styles to restaurants and wine. While the lists can sometimes be a little “out there” (does anyone really care about the “Top 10 Outrageous Kanye West Moments”?), they do provide a nice look back at the year that was, commemorating those which deserve to be commemorated for better or for worse. In keeping with that tradition and in the hope of promoting those deserving wines, this newsletter contains the tasting notes for the best wines I tasted during 2011. As the selection process this year was surprisingly difficult, I have posted on my website the runners up to this list who are just as deserving of your attention and the list can be accessed here.

As would behoove any attorney worth his salt, a few appropriate qualifiers. Given that my day job limits the amount of time I have to dedicate to wine and my limited wallet puts a damper on the number of wines I get to taste each year, despite my best intentions I don’t taste every one of the approximately 1,500 kosher wines released every year. Also this list is derived only from wines I tasted for the first time this year and about which I have not written about in prior years (excluding barrel tastings or tasting where the wine was clearly not yet ready to drink) with one exception that actually brings the list to 11 wines – the 1990 Katzrin I opened in honor of Daniel Rogov’s (z”l) tribute dinner in Israel a short time before he passed away. As a result of these exclusions, there are plenty of great wines released this year that are not on this list and I’d love to hear from you which were your favorite wines this year.

Reflecting the international nature of this newsletter’s readership, a few of these wines are not available in the United States (like the Gvaot and Recanati Special Reserve White) and some are pretty tough to find even in the US, however these are all wines worthy of your perseverance and will be well-worth the time and money expenditure.

This year, in addition to the best wines and in honor of Chanukah, I have also included eight (one for each night) of the most exciting or interesting wines I tasted this year turning this week’s edition into quite the long one but worthy of your time – hope you enjoy and would love to hear your 2011 favorites!

BEST WINES OF 2011

Binyamina, The Cave, Old Vine Cabernet Sauvignon, 2007: I was never a big fan of Binyamina’s boutique Cave wines, finding them underwhelming and overpriced. This changed with the 2006 vintage that I loved and included it in my Pessach Shopping List. The party continues with this 2007 Single Version Old Vine version produced as a very limited edition (1,200 bottles) from the famed Kerem Ben-Zimra vineyard. A rich nose and palate of blackberries, plums and black cherries along with earthy notes of forest and cloves. Nice notes of sweet oak, tar, acid combine with well integrated yet powerful tannins for a deep, complex and rich wine with a long and caressing finish. I probably opened this wine a little too early which, while eminently enjoyable now, will continue to improve in the bottle for another for a few years and cellar comfortably through 2018.

Covenant, Solomon, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2008: Leslie Rudd finally granted Jeff his wish and allowed a Covenant wine to be made from his coveted and acclaimed Napa Valley grapes with darn good results. While produced in basically the same manner as the Covenant, the Solomon presents more fruit forward, Napa Valley-like, with really plush fruit (without being overly ripe), including plums, currants, blackberries, raspberries, black cherry, rich back earth and well integrated tannins. As with all Covenant wines, a deep and complex wine with layer after layer of fruit, wood and chocolate. One of the more expensive kosher wines at about $150, but a great comparison with the regular 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon that allows you to experience the difference the actual fruit can make in a wine. A wine blessed with longevity, I look forward to tasting this wine again over the coming years and will, g-d willing¸ serve it at Ilana’s Bat-Mitzvah in 10 years as this wine should cellar nicely through 2020.

Carmel, Limited Edition, 2007: I get to enjoy this wine less than I would like due to its cost but this is an awesomely elegant wine that I had the pleasure of tasting in the company of Adam Montefiore a few months ago. An amazing blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (57%), Petit Verdot (31%), Merlot (5%), Malbec (5%) and Cabernet Franc (2%), all from Carmel’s vineyards in the Upper Galilee and aged in French oak for 15 months with 13.5% alcohol. A smooth and generous wine with a ripe and extracted nose of rich and warm forest fruit, oriental spices, black pepper and some vanilla most of which follows onto a mouth filling palate of more fruit, some spicy oak, spices and some dark chocolate leading into a lingering finish. Highly enjoyable right now (especially in the right company), this wine will continue to develop for another year or so and should cellar comfortably through 2020.

Four Gates, Cabernet Franc, 2006: The 2005 vintage of this wine was my first tasting of a Four Gates wine and a delicious and true prelude to all those that followed. Probably among the nicest Cabernet Franc wines I have had and very different from some of the Israeli versions I love. A full-bodied wine with a packed nose that had those delicious green notes I love in Cabernet Franc, including green pepper and eucalyptus, together with floral notes, tobacco, red pepper (!?) cherries and raspberries, most of which continued on the palate, adding a nice herbaceous note, bittersweet chocolate, cedar wood; all opening up in consecutively delightful layers. The wine leaves you with a long velvety caressing finish and craving another bottle. A bottle that literally made me sit up and say – wow and weeping softly given that it is no longer available! Once the new vintage is released grab all you can (otherwise I will).

Golan Heights Winery, Yarden, Katzrin, 1990: Notwithstanding the proliferation in recent years of single vineyard wines from the Golan Heights Winery and the newly introduced and delicious Rom, in my opinion the Katzrin remains Israel’s reigning champ and stands alone as the undisputed flagship wine of Israel’s top winery. At 21 years of age, easily the oldest living Israeli wine I have enjoyed, drinking this wine was an incredible experience (the wine was stored in my Israeli cellar since release in about 1993 and transferred to my US cellar in 2004 when I moved to NYC from Israel). I opened the bottle in honor of Daniel Rogov, Israel’s top and unparalleled wine [and food] critic whose innumerable accomplishments were honored Tuesday night in Israel with almost every Israeli wine personality in attendance. My sadness at being unable to attend and honor Rogov’s achievements and incredible generosity of knowledge was only slightly tempered by the incredible wine and steak I enjoyed in the hope of providing a fitting tribute from the other side of the ocean (two inch rib eye from Park East butcher is about as good a kosher piece of meat you will ever find in your life – guaranteed). For many years, the Katzrin was GHW’s only “top” (read expensive) wine, released in “special” years with the older vintages being 1990, 1993, 1996, 2000 before the tempo increased somewhat with 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2007 releases. While the single vineyard and Rom wines are good, if I had to make a choice I would plunk down my hard earned shekels for the Katzrin over the others for its elegance and proven ageability.

I stood the wine upright in my cellar overnight, and removed it about four hours before I intended to enjoy it and opened it up an hour before serving. While there was a bit of sediment, the color of this majestic wine is still near-royal purple, with zero age-related browning. Deliciously muted notes of blackberries, currants, cherry and other, mostly black, forest fruits on the nose with hints of warm spices and vanilla in the background. On the palate supple tannins now completely integrated with the fruit, chocolate and wood, maintaining the near impeccable balance this wine has kept up over its years. A long finish with hints of oak and plenty of slightly minty dark chocolate. While this wine is probably not going to get any better, I’d go out on a limb and say that, if properly stored, it probably has a few years of enjoyment left (as it starts a stately decline). Mama Mia – this is a wine and a fitting tribute to the man who has done so much for Israeli wine and my personal knowledge of the wine world. Salut Rogov

Golan Heights Winery, Yarden, Single Vineyard, Yonatan, Syrah, 2007: Having nothing to do with my natural affinity for a vineyard named after my oldest son, the Yonatan vineyard seems to have been blessed with the same pixie dust that targeted Carmel’s Kayoumi vineyard and is on track to overtake the Elrom vineyard as one of Israel’s best. While the Golan Heights Winery seems to have saturated itself with their single vineyard wines, it’s tough to argue with success, especially in the Syrah arena. While I have never really liked their “regular” Yarden Syrah (and still don’t), their single vineyard Syrah wines have been fantastic (I have written often about the incredible 2004 Ortal Syrah). A rich and concentrated wine with plenty of wood and extracted fruit, in the style we have come to expect from this series but with the elegance and balance of power that accompanies most of these wines as well. Generous tannins provide a solid backbone for cherries, plums, raspberries on the nose, together with kirsch liquor and a spicy bite from the oak. On the mid-palate a touch of savory notes creep in with wet forest earth and hints (forgive me) sweaty leather (in a good way – I promise). While a delicious wine and incredible drinking experience, I got the feeling of a wine that was searching for a path, finding itself locked between Syrah and Shiraz influences so I’d give this one a year before opening after which is should continue to improve for a few more years and cellar through 2016.

Golan Heights Winery, Yarden, Single Vineyard, Elrom, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2008: The first release of the Elrom Single Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon began as a special release with the 2001 vintage but has since evolved into nearly yearly releases, as the Golan Heights Winery seemingly saturates the market with their Single Vineyard wines. However one may feel about this phenomenon, there is really no room for reservations with regard to anything coming out of the amazing Elrom vineyard and this wine is no exception – incredible. While I am not as convinced as others that every 2008 wine is an oenophilic fantasy, this wine comes pretty close. A big, rich and complex full-bodied wine that converts you to its charms the second it’s poured into your glass. Rich black fruits of blackberries, currents and sweet cherries together with gripping tannins, plenty of oak, cedar and crushed Mediterranean herbs on both the nose and palate leading into a long lingering finish of black fruit, a hint of spicy oak, chocolate and a tint of mint. With a round and mouth filling palate, this wine can actually be enjoyed now, however it would be a crime to do so as the amount of potential for growth in this wine is overwhelming and your cellaring patience will be rewarded in a few years as the various components of this wine continue to integrate and compliment each other. I’d wait at least 12-18 months before opening and would expect this wine to cellar nicely through 2019 [Shmitta].

Louis de Sacy, Grand Cru, Brut Champagne, n.v.: One of the things to be wary of when buying non-vintage Champagne is how long it has been sitting around since bottling (the bottles are stamped with a code indicating the bottling time but these are highly secret). I purchased this straight from the cellar of Sherry-Lehman thus guaranteeing myself a good result. Made from a traditional Champagne blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay (with some Pinot Meunier thrown in for good measure and character). Nice tangy berries including raspberries with plenty of lime and oranges to go with hazelnuts, some honey and yeasty bread all blend together for a delightful treat that went amazingly well with our celebratory dinner. Tons of tightly wound bubbles that lingered throughout the entire bottle also contributed to making this a wine to which I will return (especially now that my favorite Nicolas Feuillatte is no longer available.

Segal, Unfiltered, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2007: An unbelievably delicious wine whose popularity and cult-like following has unfortunately succeeded in overshadowing many of Segal’s other great wines, including one of my favorites – the single vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon from the Dishon vineyard. That said, while the price point for this wine may be a bit excessive the adoration it garners is well deserved, especially if one exhibits a bit of restraint and patience. If you allow this wine some graceful cellaring time to mature and for the oak influence of 25 months of aging to recede a bit, you will be rewarded with nothing short of magnificence. Full bodied, with tons of black currents, cherries, sweet blackberry and a hint of juicy plum on the nose along with background noises of spicy oak, rich dark chocolate, all of which are enveloped with a good jolt of acid and tannin granting the wine the balance and structure to be a great wine. The palate contains more of the same with more oak, roasted Mediterranean herbs, a tinge of green and some warm spices leading into a fruit and dark chocolate laden finish with more crushed herbs and a pleasing bitterness lingering. While eminently drinkable now, I’d give this wine another year before letting it loose and it should cellar nicely for another 8 years or so, maybe longer.

Tzora, Misty Hills, 2007: I have not written about this winery in over two years and it’s long overdue for some serious exposure on these pages. This will be rectified in a few weeks with a Tzora newsletter as I had the great opportunity to spend some quality time with Uri (managing Partner) and Eran (wine maker) on my recent trip and, in addition to tasting a nice selection of their wines, got some nice details on the wines and winery to be shared soon. The highly qualified flagship wine, a rich and full bodied blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (70%) and Syrah (30%) that really gets the juices flowing on any self-respecting wine lover. A ripe and juicy nose of rich red fruit that turns to back after a bit starts with raspberries, gooseberries and currants together with cherries and plums and then brings forth rich blackberries and black currents tinged with earthy minerals, warm spices that follow through onto a layered and loaded palate of more rich fruit, warm spices and a bit of good dark chocolate. Despite the relatively high 15% alcohol, there is no heat to be found and the once muscular tannins have integrated nicely providing a solid backbone to the inviting medley of fruit, spice and oak. Drinking perfectly right now the wine will likely last through 2015 or so.

Yatir, Yatir Forest, 2006: The undisputed flagship wine of Yatir and, in my opinion, a candidate for flagship of the Israeli wine industry generally. An undisputed champ every year, it’s scary to think what the amazing 2008 Shmittah vintage will yield for this wine. While the winery uses a different blend every year, Cabernet Sauvignon grapes are always the dominant ones used (the 2002 vintage was actually 100% Cabernet Sauvignon). This vintage is a blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 38% Petit Verdot and 12% Merlot. The superlatives for this wine go on and on but I will be brief since I am sure you got the point by now. The wine spent 16 months aging in predominately French oak (one-third new barrels), resulting in a wine that will easily make it to Zevi’s Bar-Mitzvah (thankfully all my kids were born in great vintages – 2001, 2006 & 2008). Plenty of red and black fruit on the nose including blackcurrants, raspberries, red cherries and plums with noticeable oak as well. The palate delivers in a big way, with a mouth-filling array of red (and some black) fruit, chocolate, grilled meat, more spicy oak, Mediterranean herbs reflecting the wine’s birthplace and a fleeting sweetness to the tannins that enchants. A long, lingering finish wraps you in chocolate, wood, vanilla, spice and all that is nice.

Yatir, Petit Verdot, 2008: For some reason Eran continues to taunt me by creating single varietals of all their blending agents except for Cabernet Franc (he doesn’t think it does well enough on its own to stand alone as a Yatir wine). However, it would be impossible to do anything but acquiesce to every decision Eran makes as everything from the House of Yatir is amazingly good and this wine is no exception but rather another well-deserved in an overflowing headdress of feathers. Blended with 15% of Cabernet Franc this wine has a delightful inky-black core of black forest fruit, Mediterranean herbs and hints of oak. The Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc were aged separately in French oak for 12 months and then blended. Rich blackberries, black plums and other rich black fruit combine with hints of roasted rosemary and tarragon, roasted coffee beans and a bit of oak. Plenty of robust tannins that still need some time to settle down but that bode extremely well for the future of this incredible wine. I’d give this wine 18 months at least to get its stuff in order after which is should cellar comfortably through 2019 [Shmitta].

INTERESTING/EXCITING WINES

Capçanes, La Flor de Flor, 2007: As the Peraj Ha’abib from Capcanes has long been my one of my favorite wines, I was very excited when they released this 100% Garnacha wine, with grapes from vines that are between 85-105 years old. The wine manages to be full-bodied, elegant and feminine in one fell swoop, while remaining rich, deep and concentrated. Well integrated, near-sweet tannins provide a solid backbone for layers of black cherries, plums, violets and other flowers, spices and some dark chocolate, with hints of smoky oak and flinty minerals. A long finish rounds out this wine that will probably be at its best in a year or so and cellar for up to another eight years after that.

Carmel, Mediterranean, 2008: A new wine by Carmel launched with the 2007 vintage and part of Carmel’s upper tier of wines which, in addition to this one includes their Limited Edition and Single Vineyard series. Over the last couple of years, one of the hot topics of discussion within wine-geek circles has been methodologies for promoting the increasingly excellent Israeli wines beyond their current and natural “kosher” niche. A prevailing trend is to promote these wines as being Mediterranean wines with a specific structure and terrior influence. I believe this was one of the driving forces behind this wine (evidenced, to some extent, by its name). An interesting blend of Carignan (30%), Shiraz (26%), Petit Verdot (20%), Petit Sirah (15%), Malbec (2%) and Viognier (2%)(!) that creates some interesting action on both the nose and palate. A similar blend to the inaugural 2007 vintage with only the 2% Malbec being addition the percentages of the other components changing only slightly and yielding a mostly similar wine with the intended individual characteristics remaining. Plenty of crushed blackberries and gooseberries, ripe plums, black cherries with some tangy notes matching up nicely to the spicy oak, bold tannins and white pepper. In keeping with the substantial 2008 vintage the fruit is slightly richer but the wine is in no way any less elegant. The wine spent 15 months in French oak. Whether Carmel and this wine succeed on their mission we can only hope and time will tell, but regardless, the wine is definitely another fine example of the great goings-on at Carmel. Drinkable now, the wine should stick around until 2018 [Shmitta].

Dalton, Petite Sirah, Estate, 2009: Dalton is rapidly on its way to challenging the Galil Mountain Winery for the best QPR wines. It’s producing some great wines in the Estate series and its first varietal release of a Petite Sirah is no exception. A very aromatic wine redolent of lavender with plenty of jammy fruits and black pepper on both the nose and palate. As opposed to some of the other Petite Sirah wines reviewed, this one was less characteristically true by being approachable out of the bottle with less robust tannins that were better integrated as well. A round and mouth-filling wine that is an YH Best Buy.

Ella Valley Vineyards, Petite Sirah, 2007: An extremely limited edition that was only available in Israel, I first tasted this a while back at a wine tasting organized by the Israeli economic mission to the US. I emailed Avi-Ben from the tasting to request a number of bottles which I was lucky enough to secure and a subsequent tasting of this wine only served to validate my opinion of its deliciousness! The first time Petite Sirah released by the winery and, like literally everything else they make, it is a success. Characteristically powerful tannins wrapped around gobs of jammy black fruit including blueberries, blackberries and cassis, together with some cigar box notes make this a wine to contend with. However, all that power is wrapped in an elegant velvet covering making this rich wine somewhat restrained and allowing you to take in all it has to offer. A medium to long finish rounds this one out.

Recanati, Reserve, Syrah/Viognier, 2009: Recanati is certainly making a huge splash on these lists with three respectable representations with this wine being my favorite of the three. The addition of 3% Viognier to this meaty Syrah really has a nice effect on this wine creating a huge nose of ripe red and slightly jammy fruit including cherries and currants with hints of flinty minerals backed up by well integrated solid tannins, freshly cracked black pepper all of which follow through onto the palate, all leading into a long and rich finish. One of the more interesting wines I have tasted this year and definitely indicative of the amazing things Gil and Ido are doing at Recanati.

Recanati, Reserve, Kerem Ba’al, Carignan, 2009: Given the success Carmel has had with its Old Vine Carignan, it was only a matter of time before another awesome expression of the varietal founds its way to the market. In addition to being over 30 years old, these are true bush vines from the Judean Hills, that have flourished since their planting without irrigation, pruning, support (known as the “goblet” system) or other methods of human meddling (Ba’al is loosely Hebrew for wild). As would be expected, these are low-yield vines of less than two tons per acre. A wine that gracefully straddles power and elegance. Muscular tannins that needed half an hour to an hour to soften up in my glass and allow the fruit and spice to shine through but very much in balance with the fruit. Plenty of blackberries, currents and other black forest fruit along with warm spices, chocolate, espresso, white pepper and anise on both the nose and palate, with a good jolt of balancing acidity leading into a medium finish that lingers nicely. The fruit is on the restrained side and elegant, which is consistent with Recanati’s recent direction away from fruit forward wines towards retrained Mediterranean elegance. Very different and delicious, this wine is another candidate for some serious cellaring. A limited edition wine with about 5,900 bottles produced.

Shirah, Power to the People, Syrah, 2009: Another hit from the Weiss brothers. If it is really true that many people select their wines solely based on the label – the future is bright for them as they have the most awesome wine labels of any kosher wine. Following closely on their One Two Punch and Syraph wines, the black velvet label is simply gorgeous. Luckily for us, at least in this instance you can judge a wine by its label, as the contents are well-worthy of the awesome label. The 2% of Viognier with which this wine was blended (and fermented) shines through far more than one would expect for 2%, as initially the nose and palate were dominated by peach, apricot and guava flavors and was almost medium bodied (far from what was expected after the blockbuster Syraph). After half an hour or so, the delicious California Syrah reared its beautiful head and rewarded us with plums, cherries and a hint of ripe raspberry accompanied by plenty of smoky wood, some warm spice, dark chocolate, anise all wrapped in well integrated tannins and delivering a round, mouth filling and delicious wine with a medium cigar and chocolate finish with a minty tang. Not a typical Syrah but a great drinking experience (available directly from the winery) and a wine that should cellar comfortably for at least five years if not longer (and will continue to develop for at least a few more coming together perfectly over the years).

Teperberg, Terra, Malbec, 2007: Another YH Best Buy and a nice attempt at a grape that has proven elusive in the kosher quality wine category (Royal and Rothschild co-produce another nice version – the Fleches). Still going strong with currants, cherries, blackberries, espresso, slightly smoky wood, vanilla and chocolate. This was my last bottle for the vintage and a good thing as it probably has 6-9 months left on it, not more.

Binyamina Avnei Hachoshen, Yahalom-Diamond, 2007: A mentioned above, this was a limited edition run and a big success. A big, powerful and full-bodied blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (50%), Syrah (30%) and Petite Verdot (20%). Delicious right now but give it the time it deserves as it’s clearly destined for future greatness. Great structure and balance between the rich fruit, which included plums, blackberries and raspberries, the near-sweet wood, bold tannins and spicy background. Together with the Zinfandel, this wine represents Binyamina’s best and it brought me back to their heyday of the 2003 Syrah I loved so much (although that wine was more elegant to this one’s power). Great mouthfeel with plenty of dark chocolate, coffee and spiciness all leading into a long and generous finish that lingers.

Binyamina, Reserve, Late Harvest Cluster Select, Gewurztraminer, 2009: I first tasted the 2008 vintage of this wine while visiting Israel and loved it! I had the opportunity to taste the 2009 vintage at a recent tasting back in November held by the Israeli Economic Mission and was wowed by how different it was from the 2008 and by how much I liked it. Like Carmel’s Sha’al dessert wine, some of the grapes were infected with Botrytis to great effect. A rich, ripe and luscious wine with plenty of apricots and dried fruit, some lychees, heather and honey all tempered by good acidity that kept the richness in check. I haven’t yet seen it on sale in New York, but will definitely load up on it when it appears – a highly recommended dessert wine and great alternative to the delicious Sha’al.

Carmel, Single Vineyard – Kayoumi, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2007: Carmel’s chief winemaker Lior Lacser must spend his nights sprinkling the Kayoumi vineyard with angel dust, as there is something truly magical about this vineyard which produces an incredible Shiraz in addition to this magnificent and powerful Cabernet Sauvignon. Both powerful and elegant, this wine is full-bodied with great structure and harmony among the wood, fruit, tannin and acid. Give this wine a little time in the glass to open up and you will be rewarded with aromas of red cherries and currants, gooseberries, tart plums and cigar box followed by a fruit and earthy palate with slightly darker fruits, tobacco leaf, bittersweet chocolate, mildly spicy oak and muscular yet well integrated mouth coating tannins. A long lingering finish reminds you that it’s time for the next glass.

Ella Valley Vineyards, Merlot, 2005: Just another example of how, notwithstanding their magnificent Cabernet Franc, Merlot is what helps set this winery apart from all others. An easy example of a regular series wine that fully deserves to be elevated to their upper-tier Vineyard’s Choice label but it’s better for us this way since it stay eminently affordable. Muscular, robust, aggressive and bold are not your typical buzz words when talking about Merlot; but those traits combined with the wines elegance, depth, richness and complexity make for an absolute killer combo – give this some time in your glass and it really comes together. Tons of blackberries, raspberries and tangy sharp plums backed by pepper, wood and nice hints of chocolate. A well balanced structure and a long caressing finish loaded with fruit and hints of dark chocolate round this delight out. A wine with the rare combo of being food-friendly and big, bold and powerful.

Four Gates, Pinot Noir, n.v.: I don’t know if I have ever used beautiful to describe a wine but there really isn’t any other word to describe this medium bodied violet scented wine with a gentle nose. Blended with 50% each from the 2007 and 2008 vintages, this wine was great on its own but incredible with food. Plum, cherry, raspberry and cranberry on both the nose and palate with some nice hints of roasted herbs, toasted oak and kirsch. A medium and caressing finish rounded out this lovely wine.

Golan Heights Winery, Yarden, Single Vineyard, Yonatan, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2007: While a nice touch, my adoration for this wine has nothing to do with the fact that the vineyard in which it was born shares the name of my oldest child. A full bodied and somewhat intense wine that is loaded with the characteristic ripe rich fruit, solid tannins and hints of slightly spicy oak we have come to expect from this series. Blackberries, cherries, black currants, plums, gooseberries are all present on both the nose and palate of this delicious and caressing wine that wows you with its elegance and power with every sip. Hints of eucalyptus and Mediterranean herbs keep the wine grounded in its Israeli origins all leading into a long luxurious finish that tempts you to open another one of your specially reserved bottles. Another rousing success in the Single Vineyard line of the Golan Heights winery, this full bodied wine is a delight that will continue to impress and bring pleasure for years to come. I’d give the wine another year for the tannins to settle down and for the fruit to take its proper place but then the wine should cellar nicely through 2020.

Gvaot, Gofna, Pinot Noir, 2009: Gvaot’s first release of Pinot Noir in a limited edition of 550 bottles and a rousing success. Produced from vineyards at 720 meters above sea level where the delicate and high-maintenance grapes benefit from the natural protection of the valley’s walls. While, mostly resulting from terroir-based issues, Israel does not (and likely cannot) produce Pinot Noir at the Burgundian level, they are more and more succeeding at providing complex and pleasing versions of the varietal that make for nice food pairing and this bright wine is no exception, especially at a reasonable 12.5% alcohol. A medium bodied wine and sensual wine, whose depth of flavor and complexity is immediately recognizable on the rich nose of red fruit and wild flowers which follows through on the promise to a palate replete with cherries, raspberries, a tantalizing hint of strawberries, the typically Israeli crushed warm herbs and a nice spiciness from the 12 months in old French oak. Lovely right now, with great balance and elegant structure, this wine will continue to improve over the next year or two and should cellar nicely through 2017. Suggested retail in Israel is 170 NIS.

Gvaot, Masada, 2009: The winery’s flagship wine and justifiably so, produced in a limited run of 1,400 bottles. A wine whose punch has increased since its first release in 2005 (although the 2008 vintage is going to outlive this one). A full bodied and extracted blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (50%), Merlot (35%) and Petit Verdot (15%) whose whole is definitely greater than its parts. With robust tannins, those in balance with the spicy wood and fruit, this wine has a nice future ahead of it. Plenty of black forest fruit on both the nose and palate including black currents, black plums, blackberries and other crushed berries along with a delightful earthy funkiness and some Mediterranean herbs combine with a rich overlay of spicy wood from the 21 months in French oak and hints of dark chocolate. If you crack this one open now, I’d give it 15-25 minutes in your glass to open up and show its beauty but suggest giving the wine another 6 months or so before opening after which is will cellar nicely and continue to evolve through 2018. Suggested retail in Israel is 215 NIS but it can be had for less.

Karmei Yosef (Bravdo), Shiraz, 2009: Given my admiration for this winery, I was delighted when their wines were finally imported into the United States and they introduced a delightful blend called “Coupage”. As with the 2007 vintage I previously reviewed, this is a full bodied wine with distinct Shiraz personality and a hint of the Mediterranean terroir of its birthplace. A big, intense and brambly wine, consistent with its Shiraz name, with muscular tannins and ample, slightly spicy, wood matched nicely by blackberries, cassis and juicy plums on both the nose and palate, together with Mediterranean herbs and hints of cigar-box cedar. A great wine right now, but give this one another year or so in the bottle and you will be rewarded by a smoother and more grown up wine. A definite keeper and happily decently priced (unlike many other recent boutiquey arrivals on our shores).

Recanati, Special Reserve, White, 2009: It took me awhile to get my hands on this wine due to its limited availability even in Israel (it isn’t sold in the US at all) but, given my love and adoration for its red sibling, I persisted and it paid off (thanks for searching AG). After many years of releasing their flagship Special Reserve wine, with the 2008 vintage, Recanati released a Special Reserve white blend to much acclaim (which I have not yet had the opportunity to taste). This wine will supposedly only be produced in appropriate years and apparently 2009 was such a year – in any event, the wine is delicious. A blend of Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and Viognier, all from Recanati’s top tier Manara vineyard, the was aged in French oak for eight months giving it a bit of spiciness, aging ability, oaky creaminess, flinty minerals and a nice balance to the rich tropical fruits on both the nose and palate. Peach and apricot flavors abound, along with plenty of spring flowers some almond notes on the mid-palate all matched by mouth-watering acidity that brings the wood and fruit together harmoniously.