The wines of Barkan Winery

Barkan Winery is one of the oldest and largest wine producers in Israel. Since the winery was fully modernized in 2000, production and quality have taken an enormous leap forward. Barkan now owns ten square kilometers of vineyards spread across the country, used to make modern, kosher wines, mainly from well-known international grape varieties.

Check out our 4 wines made by Barkan Winery

Barkan Winery began at the end of the nineteenth century. The emphasis has always been on growing the highest possible quality grapes themselves. An important quality boost came in the year 2000, when Barkan Winery put a completely new cellar into use, including a laboratory, a new bottling line and storage space. That prepared Barkan Winery for the 21st century, allowing it to grow into Israel's largest winery. Barkan's wines are not only enjoyed at home - they are exported all over the world.

Barkan Winery works kosher. Among other things, this means winemaking is in the hands of observant Jews. The tanks are fenced off so that non-observant people cannot interfere. That doesn't mean only observant Jews can be involved in production - others can taste and give instructions, but they may not come into contact with the tanks themselves.

Like other Israeli producers, Barkan works mainly with international grape varieties. As in neighboring Lebanon, very few suitable indigenous varieties are available. Important grapes for red wines are Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Shiraz, Pinot Noir and Carignan, but Barkan also grows lesser-known varieties like Marselan and Caladoc, and 'quasi-indigenous' varieties like Argaman and Krinain. For white wines, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and, again, the 'quasi-indigenous' Emerald Riesling are important.

Barkan's vineyards together cover no less than ten square kilometers, spread across four locations: in the hills around Jerusalem, in Judea, in the Negev desert and around Tel Tzafit. For each location, the grape varieties best suited to it have been carefully determined.

If you ever find yourself in Israel, a visit to the winery (half an hour west of Jerusalem) is worthwhile. A Flemish staff member gave us an excellent welcome. We currently have four wines from Barkan Winery in our range. You can view all our wines from Barkan Winery here.

If you want to know more about this winery, here you will find the link to the website of Barkan Winery.