A Flowery Song

The mission: “[F]ind something reputed to be Fine Kosher Wine”

I actually studied up on kosher wines about a year ago, but didn’t write up what I learned at the time.

First things first: what makes a wine kosher? Well, kosher wine will carry a hechsher from an authority certifying that it was produced in accord with kashrus, which is the portion of halakha (Jewish religious law) dealing with dietary concerns. This mark indicates that any additives (such as fining agents) were kosher, production was supervised by the appropriate overseers (called mashgichim), and the wine is either mevushal or every step of the production was done by an observant Jew. This all has to do with the historic use of wine in idolatrous religious practises and the strict prohibition in the Torah of the use of such wine (yayin nesach), as well as a Rabbinical injunction against the use of unsupervised wine (stam yaynom).

Mevushal means “cooked” or “boiled”. Once a wine is mevushal it can be handled by non-Jews without losing its kosher status. Wine can be rendered mevushal at any stage after the press, but in the US most mevushal wine is heated prior to fermentation. Mevushal can broadly be taken as synonymous with pasteurised and follows the same procedure; thus, in modern production flash pasteurisation is seen as a way to reduce or eliminate the deleterious effects of heating the wine. While it definitely will help stability from a microbial standpoint, opinions are divided: some claim that flash heating has a positive effect on the wine’s character, while others claim that it reduces the aging potential and gives the wine a cooked fruit character.

There’s actually another level to kosher certification, which has to do with Passover. At Passover kashrut becomes even more restrictive, so a wine can be kosher for other times but not for Passover. If a wine just says “kosher”, it’s not suitable for use during Pesach; it must specifically say “kosher for Passover”.
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The Mission: [C]omparing how more northerly and more southerly vineyards produce different results with the same grapes.

Being from Michigan, the natural choice for North was to go with a local wine, so I rummaged around and found a bottle from St. Julian. St. Julian is Michigan’s oldest winery, and is also the largest. They source grapes from a large number of growers, all of which are located within 50 miles of the winery.

For South, I turned to the sunny climes of California. Honig is located in Napa Valley (Rutherford, to be precise) and has a terrible Flash-infested front page that refuses to work on my computer.
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This month's round of WBW is hosted by Spittoon, and while the wine selection is broad (any Italian red), the review format is quite restrictive. Nothing special for the objective data such as the name of the wine and the producer, but the subjective part must be just seven words long and fairly grammatical. Seven words to fit in colour, nose, mouthfeel, taste, and pairing info. Easy, right?

The wine: Badia a Coltibuono Sangioveto di Toscana 2000. 13.5% ABV single varietal wine matured in oak for a year.

Ahem.

Inky leather-scented silk. Spiced nuttiness demands Puttanesca.

Well, it's Wednesday, which must mean it's time for another Wine Blogging Wednesday. This one is hosted by Dr. Vino and the theme is indigenous grape varietals. So, with that in mind I decided that a visit to Greece was in order.

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I must admit, sentiment drove this choice. The very first wine I ever had was a Moschofilero, so it seemed an appropriate selection for my first time participating in WBW.

Moschofilero is an aromatic pink-skinned grape that is indigenous to the Peloponessos region of Greece, and is used mainly in the production of premium white wines. Though it was at one time thought that it was related to Traminer, this appears to be false. Wines produced from this delicate cultivar tend to be subtle and crisp, with medium to high acidity.

Boutari Moschofilero 2006

Background: Dry white wine made from 100% Moschofilero grapes grown in high elevation vineyards in Mantinia. Boutari's wines are widely available in the U.S., usually at a fairly good price which makes them a good introduction to Greek wines.

Presentation: Clear glass bottle; the attractive label features Dionysus in Spring. Pours a clear light yellow. 11.5% ABV

Nose: Melon and rose petals on a background of musky fruit.

Taste: Lively acidity, pleasant lemony citrus, intense fruit and a long, slightly bitter finish.

Overall: Nicely balanced, crisp white wine. Not the best Moschofilero out there, but quite drinkable.