Don’t make the mistake of thinking that all Israeli wines are kosher, many are but many are not. Once upon a time Israeli wine relied on lesser quality grape varieties such as Carignan and Colombard. Happily those days are over. Actually, I’m told that some of the old Carignan fields have been nurtured to produce high-quality wines. In any case, the wine reviewed below is based on the Cabernet Sauvignon grape that stars in Bordeaux France, California, and increasingly elsewhere including Israel. This bottle comes from the Upper Galilee in northern Israel, said to be the country’s region best region for winemaking.

This wine is not only Kosher, it is Mevushal (flash-pasteurized) which essentially means it retains its Kosher quality no matter who serves it. Once upon a time Mevushal was synonymous with tasteless, the process essentially boiled the guts out of the wine. This is clearly no longer the case. Let’s give it a try.

OUR WINE REVIEW POLICY All wines that we taste and review are purchased at the full retail price.

Wine Reviewed
Dalton Safsufa Cabernet Sauvignon K/P 2007 13.5% Alcohol About $ 19.00

Let’s start by quoting the marketing materials.
Tasting Note: Medium garnet with ruby color; big nose of black current, plum and spice with earthy notes; dry, medium to full bodied, with ripe black fruit and vanilla flavores and a lingering finish. Serving Suggestion: Roast beef, grilled lamb or chicken. And now for my review.

The first sips were mouth filling. The wine was long and rich. The initial food pairing involved a commercially barbecued chicken accompanied by potatoes roasted in chicken fat. The plum taste was dominant but not unpleasant and I also tasted tobacco. This Cab showed a fine balance of fruit, acidity, and light tannins. It was palate cleansing, especially for the greasy roasted potatoes. If I had to look for something negative I suppose that it could have been more subtle.

Then I went with a slow-cooked beef stew with potatoes. Once again the wine was mouth filling. I was tasting dark fruit and dreaming of Bordeaux. Actually I was tasting dark fruit and chocolate with a lot of extract. I added some green jalapeno sauce that didn’t seem to make a difference except to intensify the chocolate.

The final meal centered around packaged meatless baked Ziti Siciliano with eggplant that I generously doused with grated Parmesan cheese. The Cabernet was chewy and refreshing but a bit flat at first. It became better later.

I finished with the cheese pairings. With a Provolone the wine was quite present, powerful, and long but it didn’t really mesh with the cheese. Translation, this wine was too good for this cheese. Then I went to a skim milk Mozzarella cheese. The wine showed good balance and length with a nice touch of oak. To inject a personal note, I wouldn’t waste a $ 20 bottle of wine on a low-market cheese.

Final verdict I would buy this wine again but definitely pay attention to the food pairings. This wine seems to go better with higher quality food. I won’t say that’s a bad sign.

More Cabernet Sauvignon Wine Articles

This is our second review of Australian wine in only a few weeks. You may realize that Australia is a major wine exporter in particular supplying the United States and the United Kingdom. While this wine was bottled in the Hunter Valley region of New South Wales in Australia’s southwest, the grapes come from the Geographical Indication of Beechworth in New South Wales neighbor, Victoria. Beechworth was once a great place to dig for gold and is now considered a fine wine region, especially for Chardonnay and fortified wines. If money is no object search out Giaconda’s wines, including their Pinot Noir.

Wine Reviewed Pinot Noir New South Wales (Brokenwood Winery) 2005 14.0% alcohol about $ 20 There were no marketing materials so I’ll quote the back label. “This Pinot Noir is sourced from Victoria’s exciting Beechworth region, in the lower region of the Alpine Valleys. A very hot, dry season giving concentrated flavors… This is a ripe style with background French Oak and sappy/cherry Pinot fruit. The palate has strawberry flavors and lingering soft tannins. Drink over the short term with duck and Asian dishes. Our wines are now sealed with screw cap to guarantee quality and consistency.” Re screw caps: I want to mention that when I used adjustable pliers the bottle opened nicely. And now for my review.

At the first sips the wine was quite powerful with good length and tobacco but no tannins. Its first pairing was with an over dry commercially barbecued chicken breast but its paprika-dusted skin was nice and moist. This Pinot Noir was very present with some chocolate. With the tastier chicken leg it was excessively acidic. On the upside, this wine was chewy and mouth filling. Once again there was tobacco and no tannins.

The next meal involved a middle-eastern specialty known as kube, ground beef in crushed bulgar jackets accompanied by Swiss Chard and a slightly sour, delicious broth. This Pinot Noir was thick. I even got a taste of tar and black licorice. There was a lot of body but, at the risk of repetition, there were no tannins. They didn’t seem to be missing. I tasted dark fruit, especially black cherries. I finished the meal with smoked almonds and tasted tobacco and some earth.

My final meal involved fatty beef ribs cooked slowly with soft wheat kernels and accompanied by a moderately spicy guacamole. The Pinot Noir was round and thick with a lot of oak and a good length. Its acidity worked well with the meat’s grease. Not only the meat was chewy and it presented black, black cherries. The wine retained some power and all of its length when paired with the guacamole.

Before starting on the traditional two cheeses I enjoyed some Matjes herring. The wine was long, balanced, and mouth filling. The herring did not get in the way. A local Provolone actually weakened this Pinot Noir at first its acidity became slightly harsh. A tastier Swiss slightly weakened the wine, which was still powerful and long, oaky with the taste of tobacco.

Final verdict. This wine is definitely worth buying again and again. Next time I won’t waste it on the cheese. And maybe someday I’ll try Giaconda’s offerings. You’ll be the first to know.