Israel’s lost decade for red wine
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Haven’t commented much, but I’m following your blog with much interest, as I’ve never been disappointed by any of your recommendations (and vice versa, I found the wines you didn’t like rather unimpressive).
So good to see you back 🙂I’ve noticed that you haven’t mentioned much Dada and Haroeh wineries. I haven’t had the change to taste their wines myself, but from what I’ve heard from several people whose taste I kind of trust, they should be really good. Ever heard of those?
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Sadly, neither of them are wines I would buy. I have tasted many of them and yes I can see why some would enjoy them. For me, they all fall in line with Israel’s popular ripe or overripe direction.
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Thanks, you’ve just saved me at least 100 NIS, as I was going to order a bottle of Dada, but come to think of it, I’d rather have Netofa Latour for 75 NIS, as I know it’s a lovely wine.
And I presume same applies to Kishor? Another winery I’ve been curious to try, but have never come across it in any tasting, and I’ve become very cautious when it comes to Israeli reds.-
Kishor had a red or two I liked but they are less enjoyable now
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demand is present for quality Israeli wines…but the market won’t pay-up for them…and because of that, vineyards won’t produce at the higher levels…hence, we get riper wines that resonant with the core buying publc — wines that can be produced, sold, and consumed in a single year or two.
another factor, at least in Israel, is the consumer’s difficulty in keeping wines affordably at optimal temperatures…the warm/hot climate doesn’t let a wine age in bottle just by keeping it in a cupboard, and the investment of a wine frig is often outside of a person’s worldview and budget. better to buy a wine that is drinkable right away, thinks the consumer, than invest in something much more expensive that will sour by the time it is opened.
coupled with the above, the higher-end kosher wines now come from other, more established and consistent wine-growing regions…and Israeli wineries are reluctant to tackle that market for fear of incurring high production costs and the risk of not getting good enough prices when they take their wines to market.
one day, i expect that a winery will emerage that will be well-capitalized and bold-enough to tackle the higher-end market…
i agree with you that Netofa does a remarkable job…they go their own way, and often produce the kind of wines, such as with their Dor series, that i also would like to see from Israeli wineries, as a whole — and frankly, they keep their prices in check…but for many consumers, even an extra 50-100 shekels on top of an average wine bottle cost will have him instead reaching for an over-ripe wine to add to his shopping cart.
the consumer would definitely go with higher quality if offered/price, at or near the same price as the current middle-to-higher tier Israel wines…
that said, at the current production numbers, of so many wineries producing across the board, there has to be a settling-out on price…and market penetration of wines as a product — when that plays out, and runs its course, then i expect to see differentiation on the upside in terms of quality…2-5 years from now, is my best guess.
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[…] As stated in a previous post, I was in Israel, in early 2024. To state that things are different yet the same would be a simplification of reality. A quick, sad, yet real note, I had not been to Israel for almost 5 years, since Passover 2019. Crazy! Also, it marked a 10th anniversary, for me, and Israel, for my last meaningful trip, when again, Israel invaded Gaza, just crazy! Just read the last post (from 2014) and compare that to my takeaway post from my time in Israel for Passover in 2019. […]
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