Wine fest hosts some 12,000 visitors

Once a year thousands of people come together at the Israel Museum in Jerusalem for a celebration and extensive tasting of Israeli wines.

This impressive event, which took place Aug. 15 to 18 this year, is organized annually by leading Jerusalem wine stores, Avi Ben and Shachar Wines, providing wine aficionados with an opportunity to meet the people behind the wines and sample some of the new vinos on the market.

“The eighth consecutive wine festival was a great success and due to increasing demand from previous years was extended from three days to four. From 1,300 attendees in the first festival, this year we had over 12,000 visitors over the course of four days,” said Ran Toren, vice-president of the Avi Ben Wine Shop chain.

“Visitors also had the opportunity to tour the outdoor sculpture garden, enjoy live jazz music

and taste various cheeses [Ya’akobs Dairy Farm], chocolates [Roy Chocolate and other boutique chocolatiers], gourmet olive oils [Olia, Magal] and other treats.” For 70 shekels ($20 Cdn), each visitor received a complimentary wineglass and enjoyed unlimited wine tasting at the festival.

The exhibition featured wineries of various sizes and types from all over Israel, including Bravdo, Binyamina, Carmel Winery, Yatir, Dalton, Yaffo Winery, Pelter, Golan Heights, Psagot, Meishar, Gva’ot, Katlav, Tulip, Chillag, Agur, Ella Valley Wineries, Tura, Bazelet Hagolan, Or Haganuz, Tavor, Mony, Zion, Odem Mountain, Granada (pomegranate wines), Lavie Liqueurs and others.

Walking through the fairgrounds, I noticed several Canadian connections. Aside from small clusters of Canadian olim and tourists vacationing in Israel, I also met Nimrod Zaltzman, co-founder of Olia, a leading Israeli label for top-of-the-line olive oils and other gourmet products. When Zaltzman noticed that I was enjoying the olive oils, he called me over and offered to conduct a mini mustard-tasting session. I have attended wine tastings, vinegar tastings and rum tastings, but this was my first mustard-tasting session. Looking at the glass jar, I noticed that the label clearly stated “Kozlik’s Canadian Mustard.” Apparently, more than 70 per cent of the world’s mustard originates in Canada, and a couple of years ago, Olia partnered with Kozlik based in Toronto’s St. Lawrence Market, sourcing the mustard seeds from Canada and then making the end product in Israel. “The know-how is Canadian,” says Zaltzman. “I process the seeds and then make interesting and unique flavors based on excellent raw materials.”

Olia’s mustards are currently offered in seven flavours. My favourites were the mustard with horseradish, with an extra umpf that will go well with a roast beef sandwich and even with gefilte fish. I also enjoyed the mustard with Leff Blonde Beer, a Belgian beer that gave the mustard an interesting profile of aromas and flavours.

Another Canadian connection is the Mony Winery, where expat Canadian winemaker Sam Soroka is at the helm. I didn’t get a chance to speak to Soroka during the festival, but there is no doubt that there’s been a positive shift in style and quality in Mony’s offerings since he joined the team.

After attending many wine festivals both in Israel and abroad, I have learned that it’s to pace yourself. One strategy is to limit your tasting and sample between one or two wines at each booth, requesting the top vino or only tasting wines that are new on the market. Other strategies include starting with white wines and then moving on to reds and finally dessert wines, as the sweetness coats the palate and impacts the flavour of the subsequent wine tasted, particularly in the case of a dry vino. Since the museum is a 10-minute walk from where I live, I decided to visit the festival twice, dedicating the first evening to white wines and the second to red wines and a couple of dessert wines.

Following are tasting notes for some of the wines that I sampled at the festival, as well as wines that have recently released to the market. 

Golan Heights: The Golan Heights Winery recently released three new reds from the winery’s Yarden label, all from the 2008 vintage. As I have written in the past, the Yarden Cabernet Sauvignon is often used as a benchmark when comparing the quality verusus price ratio of Israeli wines. The Yarden Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 is up to par with previous releases, and while it’s still firm, it should develop nicely in the coming years.

The Merlot 2008 was also very enjoyable, but the most interesting was the Yarden 2T 2008, a blend of 50 per cent Touriga Nacional and 50 per cent Tinta Cao, both traditional Portuguese grape varieties with relatively low yields. These two varieties are regaining popularity in the Douro and Dao valleys of Portugal and are used to produce port as well as dry wines.

 Binyamina: The Binyamina Winery recently released two Chardonnay-based wines – Binyamina, Reserve and Chardonnay 2010. They are based exclusively on Chardonnay grapes from vineyards from the Judean Hills and Galilee. The result in an interesting and elegant white wine, showing good balance between fruit  – white peaches, green apple, melon, citrus peel – spice and acidity, and leading to a pleasant finish. The second Chardonnay was released under the winery’s Bin label. The word “bin” is often used by Australian wineries to refer to a storage area in a wine cellar. With each successive harvest, wines are allocated the same bin year after year. Developed exclusively in steel vats, this is much lighter than the Chardonnay Reserve.

Tabor: The Tabor Winery recently unveiled its new premium label called Limited Edition. It replaces the previous Mescha blend, which was an excellent red blend considered by many as the winery’s flagship vino. The Limited Edition series consists of two red wines, both from the 2006 vintage, and their names, 1/13,000 and 1/6,000, are derived from the number of bottles produced. My favourite was the 1/6,000, an elegant and enjoyable blend of 60 per cent Cabernet Sauvignon and 40 per cent Merlot. 

Carmel Winery: Carmel recently released new wines as part of the winery’s Single Vineyard label. My favourite was the Single Vineyard Kayoumi Cabernet Sauvignon 2008. While still firm, the wine is showing good balance and structure and should develop nicely over the next few years. Another interesting wine from Carmel is the Mediterranean blend comprising Petit Verdot, Shiraz, Petite Sirah, Malbec and a dash of Viognier. 

Katlav Winery: Yossi Itach produces some fine red wines. I recommend the Wadi Katlav and the Katlav Cabernet Sauvignon. A colleague also informed me that Katlav has a good Pinot Noir. The Wadi Katlav 2009 is full-bodied and offers a generous array of black and red fruit alongside dry, warm spices (cloves, cinnamon), leading to a long and mouth-filling finish.

Gvaot: With winemaker Shibi Drori in charge of production, Gvaot offers some interesting red and white wines. My favourites were the Gofna, Chardonnay – Gewürztraminer, 2009 – an unusual blend with an interesting and aromatic nose thanks to the Gewürz. I also tasted the winery’s flagship vino, Masada, from the 2009 vintage. Recently bottled, it will probably be another year or so until the wines are released to the market, but when they arrive, I would recommend picking up a bottle. The first shipment of Gvaot wine arrived in Canada recently, and you will probably be seeing it in stores. 

Tulip: Tulip Winery recently received kashrut certification, and as of 2010, all of its wines are kosher. The White Tulip 2010 and the White Franc 2010 are both very enjoyable wines and are excellent options for a warm summer afternoon. The latter is a rose coloured semi-dry blend made from Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc grapes.

Dalton: At the Dalton Winery booth, I tasted the latest additions to the Alma label, an interesting white blend that was quite enjoyable, as well as the Rhone Valley-style Alma, comprising Shiraz, Viognier and Mourvedre grapes. The latter is very different than previous Alma red blends and in my opinion is a welcome and interesting change. Naama Sorkin (previously Na’ama Mualem), the head winemaker at Dalton, is producing some excellent red and white wines. I would also suggest trying the winery’s Sauvignon Blanc Reserve 2010.

Ella Valley Wineries: There I met the newest addition to the Ella Valley team. A new winemaker, Lynn Gold, replaces the veteran Doron Rav Hon. Australian trained, Gold will be stepping into big shoes, and it will be interesting to taste the future Ella Valley offerings. At the show I tasted the Ella Valley Merlot 2008. Traditionally, its Merlots have been rather robust and full of character and the 2008 was no exception. Dark in colour and full-bodied, good fruit (primarily black) and various peppery notes all lead to a long finish.  

Yaffo Winery: The Yaffo Winery booth featured the Chardonnay 2010 as well as Carignan-based wine from the 2009 vintage. Yaffo Chardonnay 2010 is based on 100 per cent Chardonnay grapes. Medium-bodied, the wine suggests pleasant aromas – green apple, white peach, citrus blossom and a touch of toasted oak – leading to a clean finish. The Carignan was enjoyable, and we are seeing more wines from this variety on the local market.

L’chaim!