Kosher Wine

For many, their first, and likely only, experience with kosher wine is Manischewitz. The good news is that the market for kosher wine has grown and many producers around the world have started producing high quality wine for many occasions. 

Kosher wine, much like kosher food, must be made in accordance with halakha. Specifically for the production of wine, this means that once harvested, the grapes and wine must only be handled by Sabbath-observant Jews. Things like yeast and fining agents must also be kosher. There’s obviously much more to it and I encourage you to take a deeper dive, if interested. 

Kosher wine and bourbon have something in common: People think they need to be produced in a certain place…actually, they only need to be made a certain way. Kosher wine is produced all over the world and you’d be surprised that some wines you’ve tasted might actually be kosher. I tend to lean towards Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Chardonnay for these wines. If you get invited to a Jewish holiday where kosher wine is required, you’ll have plenty of great options! 

Some of my favorite kosher wine producers:
Gonzalez Byass - they producer a kosher bottling of sherry under their Tio Pepe label
Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte - top notch wine in Bordeaux
Judean Hills  - the kosher wine I sold the most working retail
Golan Heights - one of my favorite producers (Vanessa Price, author of Big Macs & Burgundy, suggests Golan Heights sparking with latkes)