12 Excellent Israeli Red and White Wines Up to 92 Points

When Eli Ben-Zaken planted vines in his backyard in Israel’s Judean Hills in 1988, no one quite realized the potential of the region’s terroir—including Ben-Zaken. “I knew nothing—and when we started, most of the Israeli wines were poor quality kosher sweet wines,” he told me on his recent visit to the U.S. As this week’s Tasting Highlights amply shows, the quality and variety of Israeli wines has steadily risen since then.

Nearly four decades later, Judean Hills is home to over 50 wineries and recognized as the source of some of Israel’s finest wines. Ben-Zaken’s winery, Domaine du Castel, remains a benchmark, and those original vines he planted are the source of his excellent grand vin, a chewy, complex, delicious Cabernet-based blend.

Israeli vintners are innovators unbound by tradition, and their willingness to experiment has resulted in some really delicious results in the last decade. Under his second label, Razi’el, Ben-Zaken crafts a beautifully balanced white from 90 percent Roussanne, a Rhône Valley native that he believes has huge potential in the Judean Hills. The 2024 is his second vintage. Aged eight months in old barrels, the wine offers loads of juicy, lush pleasure and salty, savory character. (He’s already planting more vines.)

There’s a noticeable shift toward white wines with more freshness throughout Israel. Brothers Gilad and Golan Flam, also located in the Judean Hills, craft their excellent white from mostly Sauvignon Blanc, filled out with Chardonnay and Sémillon. “Even though it’s a hot region, the nights are very cool at this site,” Gilad explains. The wine is elegant, unadorned and pulsing with savory energy. You’ll taste the same push toward vibrancy in Flam’s Classico red cuvée, a Cabernet-based blend with chewy, earthy dimension to ripe, polished fruit.

When looking for value-priced pours for big holiday gatherings, look to Golan Heights Winery in northern Israel’s Golan Heights region. Winemaker Victor Schoenfeld crafts many terrific prestige cuvées, yet for everyday drinking it’s hard to beat his Yarden Chardonnay and Merlot. Shanah Tovah!

Read on to get our expert scores and full tasting notes!

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