Up until now, my whole image of "Jewish wine" has been Manischewitz Concord Grape, which is reserved for such momentous occassions as Passover Seders - with it's traditional 4 cups of wine - and when my sons had their Bris (aka circumcision) where the poor baby gets so snookered on the wine he doesn't have a clue what's really happening! So, to learn that the Jewish wine industry is much bigger than I initially thought - took me by surprise.
Apparently, Israel is no slouch when it comes to producing wine. In 2009, Israeli wine exports totalled 22 million dollars. Apparently, the wineries in Israel produce over 10 million bottles a year. That's a lot of wine! There are now over 200 wineries in Israel, that produce red, white, vintage, and sparkling wines. Obviously this little country has become a nation of wine lovers.
Yesterday I came across a ton of websites that offer "Israel Wine Tours". How cool is that? I never would have known that Israel has so much to offer. After many years of wanting to tour a winery, I always thought I would be doing it in Napa or France. Now I am so excited to think that I my first winery tour may actually take place in Israel.
