Kosher Wine For Purim

The Jewish holiday of Purim begins this year on Wednesday evening at sundown on March 4, 2015, and continues through Thursday night, March 5th.  The customs of Purim include “feasting and merrymaking,” in addition to “sending gifts to one another and presents to the poor”.  At Joy of Kosher the weeks leading up to Purim and through Passover include a lot of wine tasting.  It’s a tough job, but someone has to do it!

We recently visited the 9th Annual Kosher Food & Wine Experience, held this year at the Metropolitan Pavilion in Chelsea, a fashionable neighborhood in New York City.  Over 300 wines and spirits were available for sampling, and many new wines were introduced the marketplace for the first time.

The evening event, open to the public, attracted a large crowd of wine and food enthusiasts sampling from top kosher caterers and restaurants offering gourmet specialty foods including BBQ, sushi and Asian/fusion fare, as well as creative desserts, coffees and teas.

I wanted to highlight five favorite wines from the Event at a range of prices to suit your Purim budget.  All of the wines below would be a wonderful accompaniment to your Purim Seudah.  Enjoy!

2012 Amuka Shiraz (Israel); $17.  A dry red wine made of 100% Shiraz.  It has a deep, purple color, an aroma of very ripe, red fruit, with a hint of berries and toasted oak wood, a velvety taste with an enjoyable finish.

2012 Soreka Cabernet Sauvignon Special Reserve (Israel); $29.  A dry red Cab with a full bodied flavor, fruity bouquet, and deep mulberry color. The grapes are harvested by hand from the rocky terroir of the Shomron Valley and aged in French and American Oak.  Wonderful wine!

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2010 Tabor Limited Edition Cabernet (Israel);  $40.  Made exclusively from a single vineyard grown at an altitude of 700 meters on Mount Malkia in the Upper Galilee, this dense and delectable Cab is bold and fruity, almost chewy.  Aged for 18 months in new French oak barrels.

2010 Carmel Mediterranean (Israel); $55.  This is a blend of five grape varieties grown in Israel (Carignan 37%, Shiraz 26%, Petit Verdot 20%, Petite Sirah 15%, Viognier 2%). The wine was aged in small French oak barrels for 15 months. It was unfined and only coarsely filtered.

2012 Alexander Cleopatra Chardonnay (Israel); $60.  Aged for 18 months in oak, Alexander Cleopatra Chardonnay carries a sophisticated and potent composition of fragrant pineapple marked by luscious notes of apple and pear. This fruit flavor of this crisp Chardonnay is complemented by hints of vanilla and marzipan. Maintains a promising aging potential with a beautifully long finish.

Photos provided by Royal Wine Corporation from the Kosher Food and Wine Experiences 2015