Greetings from Tel Aviv, where I've been working the past two weeks, and tasting decent, and in a several cases, pretty good wines:

-2005 Carmel Private Collection cabernet sauvignon - this is the best wine I've tasted to date, and is actually one of the very cheapest, at about USD$14. Quite full bodied and fruit-forward, I tasted plum, cola, and some smoke. Reminded me a bit of a big gigondas. Needs another 2-3 years, if not more. Excellent value. I score it 91 points.

-2004 Vitkin petite syrah (sic) - this was the first wine I tasted here. Full bodied, very dry, but the fruit is there. I tasted black currants, dark chocolate, with some pipe tobacco and freshly turned black earth (for you gardeners!). Not cheap at about USD$33 but quite nice. 89 points.

-2005 Yarden Aspirinia d'Aversa viognier - I love viognier and this one didn't disappoint: pineapple, lychee, tropical flowers, vanilla pods, popcorn. The tastes changed a bit as the wine warmed, with some butter and ginger coming through after a half hour or so. Unfortunately, the finish was a bit harsh as it warmed, so I can only scor it 89 points, otherwise I might have given it 91. Under USD$20 but I don't recall exactly.

-2004 Ella Valley Vineyards Ever Red (60% cab, 33% merlot, 7% syrah) - another cheapie at about USD$15. I couldn't place the first taste I noted, then it hit me: newly installed carpet! Not exactly what one looks for in a wine, but it got better with some air. I tasted cherry cola, creme brulee and heather. it was a bit cloying after an hour or so, but not bad, really. 87 points.

-2004 Carmel cabernet sauvignon/shiraz single vineyard - about USD$ 14 -has an owl on the label if you don't read Hebrew. Medium full bodied with plum, red currants, tar and some bramble on the finish, which was a bit rough. This might improve with another year or two in cellar. 86 points, though others with whom I tasted (this and the other two red cheapies were tasted with a group) liked it better than the others.

-2003 Barkan Galil cabernet sauvignon Superieur - this one was over USD$30 too but I don't recall exactly how much. Medium full bodied, with plums, violets, bittersweet chocolate, and sun-dried tomatos. Spicy like a young Aussie shiraz. As it got more air the floral notes became more evident. Interesting wine. 87 points.

-2005 Golan Heights Winery Gamla chardonnay - another cheapie but no idea what the retail price would be, it was about USD$15 for a half bottle in a restaurant. I found this more like a chenin blanc than a chard, or maybe more like a white burgundy after it warmed a bit. I tasted tart apply, lemaon drops, weak tea and some banana on the finish. It was better relatively cold than 30 minutes after leaving the cooler. 83 points.

I've tasted some others but either didn't take notes or couldn't put my hands on them. I've got 10 more days here and will post notes as I try more wines and find more time to sit in an internet cafe to post.

edited May 24 - more TNs and some thoughts on Tel Aviv and Israeli wines below.

Also, here's a link to Daniel Rogov's website and forums, for those who want more info on wining and dining in Israel. He's the guy who literally wrote the book on Israeli wine, and has been a great source of advice while I've been here:
http://stratsplace.zeroforum.com/zeromain

This message has been edited. Last edited by: bman,

I think we need to resurrect the "countries you've had wine from thread". I've never had Israeli wines but I've addeda couple of countries recently.

Glad you're enjoying yourself out there.

I've had a few and they were all pretty bad.

Sounds like the wines of Israel are getting better.

I was in Israel for two weeks 9 years ago, and we had wine most nights with dinner. We found the reds rather thin and somewhat Beaujolais like. We found the white wines more enjoyable overall.

Glad to see your finding a few nice wines to enjoy.

BMan:
Glad to hear you are having a good adventure.
Israeli wines have improved dramatically over the years, as have wines from other places.
(Think about Chilean wines from 20 years ago)
I'd be interested also in your thoughts about the country.

quote:

Originally posted by bman:
Greetings from Tel Aviv, where I've been working the past two weeks, and tasting decent, and in a several cases, pretty good wines:

-2005 Carmel Private Collection cabernet sauvignon - this is the best wine I've tasted to date, and is actually one of the very cheapest, at about USD$14. Quite full bodied and fruit-forward, I tasted plum, cola, and some smoke. Reminded me a bit of a big gigondas. Needs another 2-3 years, if not more. Excellent value. I score it 91 points.

-2004 Vitkin petite syrah (sic) - this was the first wine I tasted here. Full bodied, very dry, but the fruit is there. I tasted black currants, dark chocolate, with some pipe tobacco and freshly turned black earth (for you gardeners!). Not cheap at about USD$33 but quite nice. 89 points.

-2005 Yarden Aspirinia d'Aversa viognier - I love viognier and this one didn't disappoint: pineapple, lychee, tropical flowers, vanilla pods, popcorn. The tastes changed a bit as the wine warmed, with some butter and ginger coming through after a half hour or so. Unfortunately, the finish was a bit harsh as it warmed, so I can only scor it 89 points, otherwise I might have given it 91. Under USD$20 but I don't recall exactly.

-2004 Ella Valley Vineyards Ever Red (60% cab, 33% merlot, 7% syrah) - another cheapie at about USD$15. I couldn't place the first taste I noted, then it hit me: newly installed carpet! Not exactly what one looks for in a wine, but it got better with some air. I tasted cherry cola, creme brulee and heather. it was a bit cloying after an hour or so, but not bad, really. 87 points.

-2004 Carmel cabernet sauvignon/shiraz single vineyard - about USD$ 14 -has an owl on the label if you don't read Hebrew. Medium full bodied with plum, red currants, tar and some bramble on the finish, which was a bit rough. This might improve with another year or two in cellar. 86 points, though others with whom I tasted (this and the other two red cheapies were tasted with a group) liked it better than the others.

-2003 Barkan Galil cabernet sauvignon Superieur - this one was over USD$30 too but I don't recall exactly how much. Medium full bodied, with plums, violets, bittersweet chocolate, and sun-dried tomatos. Spicy like a young Aussie shiraz. As it got more air the floral notes became more evident. Interesting wine. 87 points.

-2005 Golan Heights Winery Gamla chardonnay - another cheapie but no idea what the retail price would be, it was about USD$15 for a half bottle in a restaurant. I found this more like a chenin blanc than a chard, or maybe more like a white burgundy after it warmed a bit. I tasted tart apply, lemaon drops, weak tea and some banana on the finish. It was better relatively cold than 30 minutes after leaving the cooler. 83 points.

I've tasted some others but either didn't take notes or couldn't put my hands on them. I've got 10 more days here and will post notes as I try more wines and find more time to sit in an internet cafe to post.

Hi Bman,
I am familiar with two of these wineries, particularly the Golan Heights, as I still have the Golan Syrah mag I tripped over after a nite of Syrah '02 (Quite a beautiful bottle design).
I loved that wine, I swear I was incredibly impressed, but quit new world in style. Saturated and rich, yet lovingly lightly oaked with a nice complexity and long finish, it was quite stunning.
The Yardin Syrah '00 I've also had, it is produced by Golan Heights but they produce very limited amounts, thus making them more rare, and quite revered.
Unfortunately I read somewhere they (Golan) suffered some serious damage in the recent Israel/Palestinian bombings last Jan.

mishy:
Article on effect of war on Israeli wine industry:

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=115452595119...FJPArticle%2FPrinter

What a coincidence! LadyR received a bottle of Israeli wine as a present last week and we tasted it this weekend. Can't remember the name of the producer and couldn't read the rest of the information (my hebrew is a bit rusty I'm afraid), but it was certainly drinkable. Not very good, but interesting to say the least, and fun to drink a wine from this country.

I stay away from Israeli and Greek wines, Iv'e had a few at restaurants in Mpls and did not care for them.

mwg, Greek wines are some of the most improved wines in the world in the last 2 decades.

I had a 2002 Gaza Strip Vineyard Merlot that was out of this world.

Unfortunetly the vineyard was blown up 6 months later.

Suckling was recently in Israel and posted a few blog entries on it -

There is some very good wine coming out of Israel, some good wine and a lot of terrible wine.

Among the best producers are:
Domaine du Castel - probably the best wine I have ever had from Israel
Segals - the unfiltered is excellent and some of their other better bottles are also quite good and
Yarden is the best widely available producer probably that I know of.

The bottle we had from Domaine du Castel was in a different league.

Most of my purchases here have been on the recommendation of James Suckling or Daniel Rogov (http://stratsplace.zeroforum.com/zeromain ).

Thoughts on Israel? Tel Aviv reminds me of New York in attitude, though if it was in Europe and on a beach, and with lots more nearly naked (due to the temperature probably) hippies. The beach seems to define Tel Aviv, though I may think that because it's where I'm staying. The people are great though I'm surprised that older people are more likely to speak English and speak it better than the young - the reverse of what I've found in other non-English countries. And it's hard to believe that there is so much violent conflict 30 minutes south and a few hours north of where I am, as things are pretty idyllic here.

Here's some more TNs on wines I've tasted since my first post:

-2001 Domaine de Castel Grand vin (70% cab, 22% merlot, and some cab franc and petite verdot)- this is the wine J Suckling said was one of the best he tasted. I tasted it twice, before a wonderful meal at Chloelys (see below) and during it.

Before the meal, I found the wine a bit lacking in substance, like a $30 bordeaux in an average vintage. Alongside a steak, however, it was much better, with flavours of black plum, unlit cigar, leather, and cedar on the finish. I resembled a cahors initially, then as it gained strength with the food, it was more like a madiran or mourvedre. This is the most expensive wine I've tasted, retailing here for about USD$60. I score it 90 points (with food).

-Domaine de Castel C chardonnay (missed the vintage ) - I found this a bit rough, medium body and not a very nice finish. When I first tasted it I immediately thought of a clean hospital room, but as it warmed it got better, with very pronounced pear and lanolin. Still, a disappointment for such a relatively pricey wine (about USD$30). I score it 83 points.

-2005 Clos de Gat Har'el (93% syrah, 7% cab sauvignon) - a winery that several wine shop salespeople and others have recommended when I told them I liked Aussie shiraz. I like this one too but again the finish betrayed it. In the mouth it showed very nice black fruit, plums again (seems to predominate in many reds here) tar, molasses and pomegranite. But then comes a rather bitter, metallic finish. It's been suggested that this trait, which I've found in other otherwise good wines here (both red and white) may be due to the youth of the vines and of the wine. Since this is a 2005, I'll give it the benefit of the doubt and score it 87, though if the finish was nicer I'd score it 90 points.

-2006 Clos de Gat chanson - a white blend of 65% chard, 15% semillon, 7% viognier and 3% chenin blanc - shades of Conundrum! - this was like a South African steen or a good Kiwi sauvignon blanc, but more restrained. I tasted lemon sorbet, lychee, and macintosh apples. Not expensive (I think about USD$ 14) and quite nice at that price. 87 points.

-2003 Ella Valley merlot - I really enjoyed this wine and it's a relative deal at about USD$25. Full-bodied, thick, meaty, with black cherry, anise, molasses and cigar box. Another wine WAY better with food than without. 89 points (with a great steak sandwich at Yo'ezer wine bar).

-2002 Ella Valley Estate Bottled merlot - the pricier (about USD$32) big brother to the wine above, but guess what? It's probably the weakest red I've had here. The flavours were
similar but were insipid and tired. Perhaps an off bottle? I score it only 80 points.

-2003 Ella Valley muscat desert wine I couldn't spend 3 weeks in Israel and not try a dessert wine, and there are several here but I find them expensive and in any case I've been working my way through a bottle of sweet jerez I got in London en route so my wine sweet tooth has been appeased. This tasted like many other off-white chilled dessert wines from the New World - a Chilean or Canadian late harvest pring to mind. Pale yellow, medium sweet, with honeycomb, pine nuts, oak, honeysuckle and hand cream. Sadly, this too was a little metallic on the finish, and became more so as it warmed, so I scored it only 85 points, as it was otherwise pretty good.

I have to say that I have yet to be bowled over by any of the wines I've tried, though almost all of them were pretty good. Problems include the prices, which I find high for the quality, though it was explained to me that as most wineries went kosher a few years ago the wines have become more expensive as has the process. A bigger problem is this bitter finish on so many otherwise very nice wines, both red and white. If that can be resolved, and the quality continues to improve as noted by other posters here, and J Suckling, I think these wines will merit what they cost here. Time will tell.

Finally, a big plug for Chloelys restaurant, the nicest place in which I've eaten in almost 3 weeks here so far. A beautiful room, original menu, and young but really wine-and-food-knowledgeable staff (they've all passed wine courses). When the boss, Eyal Ziv, found out that I'd come just to taste the 2001 Domaine de Castel (it was being poured to taste that evening), and that I was a regular poster here, he opened bottles that were not on the by-the-glass menu for me to try. And at the end of the meal he poured me a glass of 85 Fonseca (I had mentioned that I had a bit of port at home...), which was a perfect capper to a great evening. Thanks to Eyal and to Ella!

I find Tel Aviv more like Miami than NY but regardless it is very Western - That is why I usually avoid it when I visit.

A few more TNs:

-2003 Clos de Gat Ayalon Valley 9cab, merlot, petit verdot) - this was the best wine I had in Israel- inky black/purple, rich, full-bodied but it had a level of class and complexity that none of the other wines I tasted had. I tasted black cherry, plum (yet again!), hoisin, white pepper and grilled beef -- and no harsh finish! . It reminded me of a top mid-priced (say CAD$30) Aussie shiraz. Unfortunately it cost CAD$40 but I was happy to pay it for such a nice bottle. Perhaps that year or two more in teh bottle than most of the other wines I tasted really does make a difference? I score it 92 points.

-2003 Yatir Yatir Forest cabernet sauvignon (96% cab, 4% petit verdot) - big and chewy, with (again) sweet plums and cherries, strawberry, tar, grilled meat, cigar smoke. Again, MUCH better with food and mercifully, no bitter finish, possibly because this wine is a little older. I think it will improve, as it was better on day 2. Easy 90 points.

-2005 Clos de Gat semillon - straw colour, with flavours of pear, custard apple, lemon, grapefruit and lychee. Simple but nice, and a very good wine for a hot day. 87 points.

I also tasted 3 reds by Recanati, though I only scored one because the tastes were too small to get a fair appreciation (I tasted the one I scoredc twice, because I liked it best):

-2005 Recanati petit syrah/zinfandel (didn't get the proportions) reserve, about USD$23 - full-bodied, with spice, leather, red fruit. Very dry but the fruit still comes through, and no harsh finish despite its youth. 88 points.

-also tried the 2004 Recanati shiraz and the 2004 Recanati cab franc (85%) merlot (15%). The latter I found too light for my tastes, though others might like it, the former was just a lesser wine than the petit syrah/zin blend.

A couple of winelovers I've met here have said that they too have found a harsh, bitter finish on some of the younger wines, but that it dissipates once the wines are 4 or 5 years old. Who knows?

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