The best Israeli wines for Passover

• Published date: 21 April 2024
• Author: ADAM MONTEFIORE
• Publication title: Jerusalem Post, The: Web Edition Articles (Israel)

It is known as the Festival of Spring, the Harvest Festival, the Festival of Unleavened Bread, and the Festival of Freedom. Passover is the essence of the Jewish story, the Jews' emergence as an independent people and return to the Promised Land. It is also the Festival of Wine

Wine features through every Jewish lifestyle ceremony. Grapes are one of the Seven Species in the Bible, and in Judaism wine has its own blessing for "the fruit of the vine." On the first night of Passover, everyone is expected drink four cups of wine. Children will drink grape juice, but the adults will drink wine in every Jewish home around the globe.

The first Passover evening is called Seder night, at which the Exodus story is told and a festive meal, rich in symbolism, is eaten. The evening historically was developed to emulate the Roman banquet. Like any banquet, the service of wine follows the usual rules.

The first glass is the aperitif, and it can be a sparkling wine. The second glass may be a white wine. The necessary glass for religious ritual is drunk before the meal, but it can be continued to accompany the first courses, which are likely to feature fish. For the main course, usually meat, you could choose a red wine. The ritual third glass is after the meal, but the red wine could be extended for this purpose, too. The last glass is the dessert wine. A sweet wine is appropriate to end the meal on a sweet note, but a quality dessert wine is recommended rather than a sacramental wine.

Now many people host very large Seder nights, with members of the extended family. Maybe it is the only time of the year one meets distant cousins, aunts, and uncles. For a large party, they will almost certainly prefer less expensive wines. This is absolutely fine. It is not the time to bring dusty, well-aged rare wines from your cellar.

In the Jewish and, for that matter, the Christian religion, there is often a preference for red wines for religious rituals. Those preferring to focus on red for traditional reasons may choose rosés and light reds to satisfy the demand for red, while maintaining the balance of the traditional banquet.

In actual fact, the choice of wine is personal. The hosts can choose exactly what they want at whatever price point is within their budget. The only rule that is unalterable is the need to consume four glasses, but the choice of wine is flexible.

Passover has always been a wine festival for me. When our family was small, with no less than three people in the...