Winemaker Notes
The wine has a black plum, berries and pecan taste, with a full body, balanced acidity and a long and spicy aftertaste.
Delicious with grilled red meats and hearty stews.
This wine is Kosher for Passover
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This deep garnet-colored wine offers aromas of blackberry, Mission fig and roasted yellow pepper. A web of polished tannin's backs Luxardo cherry, cassis, dark chocolate, caramel and freshly ground nutmeg flavors that sail into a satisfying finish.
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Wine Spectator
A strappy, full-bodied take on Carignan, with flavors of wild raspberry, red currant, smoked meat and dried flowers hemmed in by slightly grippy tannins, while singed mesquite and apple wood notes hover in the background. A very solid, distinctive red, with good tension despite its weight.
Responsible for some of the most stunning old vine red wine on the planet, Carignan has an amazing capacity to survive dry, arid climates and still produce lovely, mouthwatering wine. In Spain it goes by the name of Mazuelo or Cariñena and while it may have originated there in the province of Aragón, its popularity lies elsewhere, particularly in Languedoc-Roussillon. Somm Secret—Historically Carignan did not enjoy the respect that it does today. In the mid 20th century, Carignan covered nearly 140,000 ha in Algeria, where it was made into low quality bulk and blending wine to supply mass-market demand.
With a rich history of wine production dating back to biblical times, Israel is a part of the cradle of wine civilization. Here, wine was commonly used for religious ceremonies as well as for general consumption. During Roman times, it was a popular export, but during Islamic rule around 1300, production was virtually extinguished. The modern era of Israeli winemaking began in the late 19th century with help from Bordeaux’s Rothschild family. Accordingly, most grapes grown in Israel today are made from native French varieties. Indigenous varieties are all but extinct, though oenologists have made recent attempts to rediscover ancient varieties such as Marawi for commercial wine production.
In Israel’s Mediterranean climate, humidity and drought can be problematic, concentrating much of the country’s grape growing in the north near Galilee, Samaria near the coast and at higher elevations in the east. The most successful red varieties are Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Syrah, while the best whites are made from Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc. Many, though by no means all, Israeli wines are certified Kosher.