Tag: GOlan Heights Winery

Enjoy a glass of Israeli wine – the award-winning industry has struggled since Oct. 7 attacks

According to historian and former ambassador Michael Oren, on Oct. 8, 2023, one day after the terror group Hamas’s brutal assault on southern Israel, the following things happened: 80% of Israelis volunteered to help in any way they could, 360,000 Israelis reported for military duty and thousands of Israelis who were not in Israel on Oct. 7 returned to defend their country. 

This remarkable resilience and dedication have also been apparent in Israel’s wine industry. Workers from wineries that could finish their 2023 harvests went to other wineries to help with harvesting and winemaking. A poignant example is the support for Kibbutz Nir Oz’s winery. When Kibbutz Nir Oz was attacked, Hamas murdered the winemaker, Gideon Fauker, z’l, and took his two partners captive to Gaza, where they remain today. In a recent Israel21c article, Andrea Samuels recounts how people in Israel’s wine industry came together to turn Nir Oz Winery grapes into wine and save the vintage, to honour their Nir Oz colleagues.

Jews have been making wine in the land of Israel for more than 3,000 years, a fact confirmed by archeological evidence. King David had vast vineyards and kept large stores of wine, and wine was a major export and economic mainstay for Jews during the time of the Second Temple in Jerusalem. Even when outsiders invaded the land and mandated pulling out the vines many centuries later, a limited number of vines remained to produce wine for sacramental purposes. Viticulture was reintroduced in the late 19th century and, by the end of the 20th century, Israel was garnering international recognition for the quality of its wines. Today, there are more than 300 wineries of all sizes in Israel, and a well-established wine culture.

Since the massacres and kidnappings by Hamas on Oct. 7, the wineries have faced tremendous obstacles due to the ensuing war with Hamas in Gaza and daily rocket and missile attacks on northern Israeli land and communities by the terror group Hezbollah. There are labour shortages, as Israelis are repeatedly called up for reserve duty and many foreign workers have left the country. In the north, some employees who have been evacuated because of the Hezbollah attacks can’t get to the wineries. Any work at the wineries and vineyards in this prized Galilee viticulture region remains a dangerous proposition and there is concern for the 2024 vintage. Vineyards in the north and south have been damaged by rockets and some in the north are inaccessible in closed military zones. Domestic wine sales, on which the wineries heavily rely, plummeted after Oct. 7 and, although they have recovered somewhat, a tourism decline and restaurant and bar closures have exacerbated the sales slump. And, of course, there is the human cost as the wars and threats continue and as many in Israel’s wine industry have lost family, friends and co-workers.

Despite these challenges, the people of Israel’s wine industry have shown classic Israeli resilience, determination, collaboration and commitment to the country and to one another. Samuels’s article noted that, since Oct. 7, Alex Haruni and his Dalton Winery team have been making Shabbat dinners for soldiers posted at the nearby Lebanon border. And, in his article “A taste of total victory,” Adam Montefiore, a 38-year veteran of Israel’s wine industry, wrote about Tom Carbone and his Be’eri Winery.

Carbone and his friend Dror Or, z’l, the Be’eri Dairy cheesemaker who was murdered by Hamas when they attacked the kibbutz, had a dream of collaborating to make Kibbutz Be’eri a food and wine tourism destination. Carbone is working to fulfil that dream for both of them, commuting to Be’eri from the hotel he and his family now live in at the Dead Sea. So far, he has produced an outstanding Be’eri Chardonnay and is continuing his friend’s work at the dairy. 

We in Canada can support Israel in many ways, including by buying and enjoying the beautiful wines of her irrepressible wineries. Israeli wines available in British Columbia are highlighted below with tasting notes.

GALIL MOUNTAIN WINERY

Established in 2000 as a joint venture between Golan Heights Winery and Kibbutz Yiron, Galil Mountain Winery (galilmountain.co.il) has five vineyards in the Upper Galilee mountains, with topographical and climatic conditions well-suited to growing grapes of the highest quality for wine production. 

Galil Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 2022: A young, refreshing character with accentuated fruity aromas. No barrel aging. The wine was stored in stainless steel tanks after fermentation to preserve its fruity character.

Varietal: Cabernet Sauvignon

Colour: deep opaque purple

Aroma: pure ripe raspberry and blueberry primary fruit character, with hints of herbs and tobacco leaf

Taste: a medium-to-full bodied wine with delicate tannins; the finish is long and firm

Food: best served at 64°F (18°C) to accompany a wide range of meat dishes

image - Galil Mountain Rose 2021 bottleGalil Mountain Rosé 2021: A dry, light rosé with refreshing acidity. A combination of two winemaking techniques – skin contact followed by cold fermentation.

Varietal: a blend of Sangiovese, Barbera, Pinot Noir

Colour: bright pink 

Aroma: scents of strawberry, pomegranate and ripe nectarine with notes of blooming wildflowers

Taste: presents characters of flowers, strawberry and pomegranate; a joyful wine with invigorating and well-balanced acidity

Food: try with a fresh summer salad, with sushi or as an aperitif on its own

Galil Mountain Alon White 2020: The grapes are carefully selected at harvest, pressed gently, and half of the blend is fermented and aged in French oak barrels for three months.

Varietal: blend of Chardonnay, Viognier

Colour: pale lemon

Aroma: citrus blossom, alongside hints of fresh mint

Taste: ripe citrus, stone fruit and a hint of herbs on the palate, with refreshing acidity, light body and a lingering finish

Food: pairs beautifully with grilled fish and fresh salads

GOLAN HEIGHTS WINERY

Golan Heights Winery (golanwines.co.il) gained international recognition after releasing its first wines in 1984 and led a winemaking revolution that put Israel on the world wine map. The Golan Heights, a volcanic plateau with rich basaltic soil, is the coldest region of the Galilee appellation and considered the best for viniculture.

image - Mount Hermon Indigo 2022 bottleMount Hermon Indigo 2022: Made from classic varietals, a young medium-bodied wine full of flavour.

Varietal: blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah

Colour: deep indigo-purple

Aroma: black currant, tobacco and smoke

Taste: medium bodied with notes of raspberry and black cherry, characters of aniseed and cocoa, and hints of flowers and earth

Food: beef brisket, grilled lamb shanks or a barbecued beef burger

TEPERBERG 1870 WINERY

Teperberg 1870 Winery (teperberg1870.co.il) is located in the foothills of the Jerusalem Mountains with vineyards in several growing regions. It is one of the oldest wineries in Israel, founded in Jerusalem in 1870 and, for a time, known as Efrat Winery. Efrat remains a label of Teperberg 1870. The Teperberg and Efrat wines listed are mevushal, wine that has been flash pasteurized. 

image - Teperberg Malbec Vision 2021 bottleTeperberg Malbec Vision 2021: The Malbec Vision undergoes stainless steel fermentation and is aged in French and American oak for five months prior to release.

Varietal: Malbec

Colour: deep red with purple hints

Aroma: black fruits and spices

Taste: a deep and layered wine that combines a wealth of fruit with vibrant acidity

Food: beef dishes, charcuterie, beet salads

Teperberg Efrat White Blend 2022: Fermentation in insulated chilled stainless steel tanks for two weeks before the final blend is composed. To retain its crispness, the wine does not undergo malolactic fermentation.

Varietal: blend of Riesling, Semillon, French Colombard

Colour: light, pleasant yellowish

Aroma: mainly citrus aromas

Taste: fresh, balanced with pleasant acidity and medium body

Food: fried or grilled fish

Efrat Judean Hills Cabernet Sauvignon Argaman 2022: Fermentation in insulated chilled stainless steel tanks.

Varietal: blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Argaman, Carignan

Colour: purple

Aroma: fruity aromas with black and red fruit

Taste: balanced, rich, medium-bodied with a long finish

Food: lamb dishes or pasta in meat sauce

Visit bcliquorstores.com to find a store near you with Israeli wine. L’chaim! 

Rochelle Golumbia is an advocate of supporting Israel through Israeli wine and initiated Vancouver’s first Israeli wine festivals.

Israel’s second-largest winery, Barkan, grows all its own fruit

The visitors centre at Barkan Winery. (photo from barkanwinery.co.il)

Wine has been made in Israel since biblical times. The Book of Deuteronomy lists seven blessed species of fruit, including “the fruit of the vine.” Israel’s Mediterranean climate boasts many microclimates, which foster a diversity of wine styles.

The modern Israeli wine industry was greatly influenced by Baron Edmond James de Rothschild, owner France’s Château Lafite Rothschild. He started making wine in Israel in the late 19th century, importing French vine varieties and winemaking knowledge, and founding Carmel Winery, today the largest wine estate in Israel.

By the late 1980s, most Israeli wine was low quality, used for sacramental purposes. But the 1990s saw a huge boom in the establishment of quality-focused boutique wineries that were taking an artisanal approach. Today there are hundreds of wineries producing in aggregate more than 10 million bottles per year. Three producers are responsible for 80 percent of the production: Carmel, Barkan and Golan Heights Winery.

This short series features nine Israeli producers about the wines they make, their individual path into winemaking and their terroir. The first in the series profiles Irit Boxer-Shank of Barkan Winery, the second-largest winery in Israel.

Christopher Barnes: How did you get involvd in wine?

Irit Boxer-Shank: Well, it’s from the family. My father used to own the winery, Barkan. Now, he’s just the CEO.

CB: How did that change?

IBS: I started out as the owner’s daughter. I grew up there since I was 10, so I did everything in the winery, from putting on the labels all the way to the vineyards, walking with the workers, and then the winery was sold to a bigger company. My father is the CEO. I’m the winemaker. We’re still there doing our stuff, and we love it, but it’s not family-owned now.

CB: Tell us a little bit about the terroir where your wines are made.

IBS: Well, because we’re a big winery, we do wines from all over the country, from the northe[rnmost] part to the south, including in the desert. We have all kinds of terroir. We have all the varieties. We do a lot of experiments. That’s what’s fun about being a winemaker in Barkan. I love it because I have fruit from all over the country. I have all kinds of varieties, and I can play all the time.

CB: How many different varieties are you making right now?

IBS: A lot of them, and we do a lot of experiments. We bring a lot of new varieties. There is now a malbec that is brand new. We’re going to bring it to the [United] States. Pinotage was the first different variety that we started growing in Israel, then we have marselan and caladoc from south of France. Well, we’re playing a lot with it. Some of them that are not as good, we’ll go back, and we’ll do something else, but we have a lot. Of course, the cabernet sauvignon is the king, it will always be the king, but we do a lot of varieties.

CB: I interviewed a winemaker in Australia who is using 60 different varieties in his wines. I said to him, “How do you keep track of it? How do you know what’s working and what’s not when you have that many?” Is it more of a challenge to make wine with a lot of different types of grapes?

IBS: I don’t think so. It’s like asking a person who has a lot of children, “How do you keep up with them?” It’s like you grow them from the beginning to the end, so you know each of the wines just like you know a person, all the way, very intimately.

CB: You mentioned malbec. How do you decide if you’re going to try a new variety?

IBS: It’s a long process. We go and try it in different countries. We see the soil and the climate that they’re growing it in, and the best versions of them – like malbec in Argentina, in the south of France. And then we go back home and see if there are very similar [conditions], as similar as we can in Israel, and then we plant just a small plot. If it’s good, we’ll plant more, and then there are trials in the winery to see how to ferment it and what kind of barrels to put it in. It takes us at least eight years to start an experiment on a variety and maybe take it to the market.

CB: Do you buy a lot of fruit?

IBS: No. One of the more interesting things about Barkan Wineries is that we grow everything ourselves. We are also the biggest grower in Israel because all of the grapes are ours, which gives us full, complete control in the winemaking.

CB: Do you have a philosophy of winemaking? Is there something that you feel is your stamp in terms of the process and the styles of wines that you make?

IBS: Well, I discovered that we like using technology to do more of the Old World style. We’re trying to have all the fun from all the different worlds, the New and the Old! That’s something that really characterizes Israelis. We do fusions – that’s what you call the Israeli kitchen cuisine: “the fusion.” We take something from the new and something from the old, and do something from Israel. I guess, in winemaking, it’s also like that.

– This article is reprinted courtesy of the Grape Collective, an online publication for all things wine. For more information, visit grapecollective.com.