Ten Great-Tasting Kosher Wines For Passover

These bottles dispel the myth that Seder-dinner wines are syrupy and sweet.
One thing is always certain each Passover season: adherence to tradition. This is not only true of the Seder dinner itself, with its food and its themes (the modern version of the Ten Plagues would probably involve Bear Sterns, AIG, Chrysler, General Motors and so forth), but also of the entire eight days, which reinvigorate the perennial search for good-tasting Kosher wine.

"Tasty kosher wine" is not an oxymoron. Sure, kosher wine has long been associated with Manischewitz, the extraordinarily sweet and syrupy Passover staple. No one should be forced to drink four thimbles of it, much less the four cups required for each Seder.

In Depth: 10 Great-Tasting Kosher Wines

Fact of the matter is, the kosher concept as applied to wine is much more complex than an association with "sweet and syrupy," and it results in some great-tasting wines you would never know were kosher. Tasty--and kosher--wines can come from Israel as easily as they can from California, Italy or even New Zealand.

The Concept of Kosher Wine
For a wine to be kosher, the vines on which the grapes are grown must be at least four years old and left unharvested every seventh year. The winemaking process must accord with the kosher regulations, and the tools may not be used for purposes outside of winemaking. In addition, these tools may only be used by practicing male Jews. Kosher winemaking in no way negatively affects the quality of wine produced.

In other words, it's perfectly normal to find a kosher wine from a classic region that tastes just as good as all the other non-kosher wines made around it.

One such example is Goose Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2007 from Marlborough, New Zealand. This wine demonstrates the classic attributes of a Marlborough sauvignon blanc: It's mouth-puckeringly tangy and zesty, with a lemon-lime character throughout. If you like New Zealand sauvignon blancs, whether you plan to attend a Passover Seder or not, this wine's for you.

Even in the heart of wine-tradition-loving countries like Italy you can find kosher wines. Bartenura Winery makes a delicious, sparkling kosher moscato from the Provence of Pavia. With ultra-fine bubbles, this wine dances with effervescence. Without being cloyingly sweet, it is a really tasty way to begin or end any evening, Seder or otherwise.

California's major producer of kosher wine is Herzog Family Vineyards in the Central Coast. Herzog produces several varietals, from chardonnay to syrah to cabernet, all of them kosher. The fruit for the 2004 Special Reserve Cabernet comes from the Anderson Valley, and the wine demonstrates notes of black cherry, anise, herb and chocolate.