 Barry and Beverly enjoyed a day touring around 3 Carmel Region Wineries on Friday, October 28th. This was an anniversary present from their Brother and sister-in-law for their 30th wedding and aliyah anniversary. We did many Le'chaim's!
The first winery we visited was Amphorae Vineyards where they received a private tour and tasting. The guide at Amphorae explained the unique methods of their winery and the quality of their grapes which makes their delicious wines. They loved the Chardonnay 2007 and Port style wine.
 The second winery visit was Tishbi Estate Winery where we ate a delicious lunch of pizza and salad along with a tasting of the French Reisling 2010, which is sold out, and the Shiraz 2007. After lunch we went to the Chocolate and Wine tasting room and enjoyed the dark chocolate with the port. Barry and Beverly enjoyed meeting Jonathan and Golan Tishbi!
 The last winery was Somek Winery in Zichon Yaakov. Barak Dahan, the owner and winemaker, toured Barry and Beverly around his boutqiue winery in his backyard. We drank the Chardonnay 2009, Admon 2008, Merlot 2005 and Bikat HaNadiv 2006. They loved Barak's wine and his passion for winemaking.
The day was a blast for Barry and Beverly and now when they go to a restaurant or a friend's house and wine is served, they know how to swirl, smell and taste!
Happy 30th Wedding and Aliyah Anniversary!
On November 7th and 8th, the Sommelier Event will take place in Tel Aviv's Nokia Arena, The cost is 150 NIS per a person if you are not in the wine industry. If you do work in the wine industry, you can sign up through their website: http://www.sommelier.co.il/wine_news.asp?news=1&id=1131https://www.eventact.com/benami/Sommelier11/See you there!
 The Struhl family loves visiting Israel during Sukkot and this trip they wanted to experience a wine and beer tour. Our first stop was Alexander Brewery where Ori, the owner, explained the process of how beer is made by taking us around his very clean and top-of-the-line microbrewery. We tasted two of his beers, the Blond and the Ambre. The Black beer will be ready in the Winter. The Struhl family was very impressed with the quality of the beer and Ori's start-up initiative.
 After a stroll around Ramat HaNadiv, we enjoyed a tasty lunch of pasta, pizza and salads at Tishbi Estate Winery. During the meal, I served the family a tasting of the Tishbi wines (French Riesling 2010, Jonathan Tishbi Chardonnay 2008, Cabernet Petit Syrah 2010, Cabernet Sauvignon 2007). We then went into the Chocolate and Wine Tasting room and they loved the Milk Chocolate!
We quickly visited Carmel Winery to see the old oak barrel room from 1893 built by Baron Edmond de Rothschild. The family had a wonderful day and learned a lot about the Israeli wine industry.
 On September 11th through October 2nd, Jonathan and I enjoyed our honeymoon in Croatia. We rented a small car and drove around the country enjoying the views, hiking, wine, eating, islands, people watching and being cut off from the World for a little bit.
Croatia is in the midst of starting to become a major wine country. It was an ancient wine country and there are wine presses from over 3000 years ago. Croatia went through a civil war from 1991 to 1995 and since then they have revitalized their tourist and wine industry.
 We started our jouney up north in the region of Zagorje which borders Slovenia. There were signs for local wineries everywhere! We did not hire a guide but went around by ourselves tasting the mostly white wines of the region. All the local people were very nice, although English was hard to come by. We enjoyed seeing the harvest which was done by local people.
Wine tasting was very easy in this region and we could fill a liter of wine for $3! Wine is a part of the daily culture in Croatia and they are proud of their local varieties and ideal wine climate.
The views from our apartment and when we drove was vineyards for as far as the eye could reach. It was really spectacular.
 Our second destination was Istria, which used to be ruled by the Italians so there is a definite influence of Italian food and culture. We stayed in a little town called Bale and drove all over Istria. We went in search for their truffles, olive oil and wine. There was more red wine options in Isrtia and their local variety is Zinfandel, but it is called Plavac, which is said to be native to Croatia.
If you are traveling to Istria, I highly recommend visiting the interior and the coastal town of Rovinj.
 We traveled down the Coast of Croatia to the island of RAB, then the old port town of Zadar and the hub of Split. We tasted delicious local wine and food throughout our trip.
We went to the markets and cooked even!
I highly recommend a trip to Croatia...my recommendation is to see it via car and stay at local places, not hotels.
If you would like to see pictures please click here.
If you are traveling to Croatia, please feel free to contact me at MyIsraelWineTours@gmail.com.
 On June 22nd, Harry and Susan, enjoyed a wine tour in the Upper Galilee. The day started at Galilee Mountain Winery where we took a tour of the facility and then par took in a tasting of the Viognier 2010, Avivim 2008, Cabernet Sauvignon-Shiraz 2009, Meron 2007 and Yiron 2007. They really enjoyed the Meron 2007 and thought the winery was very pleasant.
 The second winery we visited was Naaman Winery, which was their favorite, because Harry and Susan like small boutique wineries where you can talk to the winemaker and see how they are growing literally from the ground up. We tasted the whole series of Rami’s wines. We started with the Pink Floyd which is his rose, then we tasted the young Merlot which he called the Babi Marley (tribute to Bob Marley). We then continued to drink Rami’s Deep Purple, King Crimson, Black Velvet, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. Harry and Susan loved all of Rami’s wines and can’t wait until they are exported!
 We then visited Adir Winery where we tasted 6 different goat’s cheese with a pairing of the Kerem Ben Zimra Cabernet Sauvignon 2009, Shiraz 2009, Plato Cabernet Sauvignon 2008, dessert wine and Port. The Plato was the most enjoyed wine with more complexity and roundness. The forth winery was Rimon Winery where the wines were not as enjoyed as much as the jams and pomegranate juice. Susan also received a great deal on the Pomegranate oil! The fifth and final winery we visited was Dalton Winery. At Dalton Winery we received a tasting of a wide range of wines from multiple series, olive oil and liqueurs. The wines that were enjoyed at Dalton were the Wild Yeast Viognier, Reserve Shiraz and Reserve Zinfandel.
Harry and Susan learned a lot about the modern Israeli wine industry during the day and are looking forward to visiting other wine regions in Israel on their next trip.
 On October 10, 2011, Eric and Vanessa celebrated their one year anniversary with a wine tour in the Carmel Region. We started the day at Amphorae Winery, which was going through a very special process of sorting the grapes that day. They only do this process twice a year during the harvest and only for their premium wines. Eric and Vanessa enjoyed a private tour and tasting of 5 wines. They really loved the Chardonnay and Med Red.
 After a nice walk through the botanical gardens of Ramat HaNadiv, we went to Tishbi Estate Winery and enjoyed lunch with a wine tasting. After a delicious lunch we went into the Wine and Chocolate tasting room and tasting the delicious wine jams, chocolates and wine.
 To digest all the food we strolled along the walking promenade in Zichron Yaakov before visiting Barak Dahan at Somek Winery. I showed them the unique and individualized way that Barak makes his wine and then we tasted the Chardonnay, Adom, Carignan, and Birkat HaNadiv.
Thet day was very special for Eric and Vanessa, who could not imagine spending their one year wedding anniversary any other way!
 The week of September 6th I took 18 Slovakians on a week wine tour. We started when they got off the plane at Tishbi Estate Winery. They enjoyed a tasting of some newly released red wines with a pairing of Valharona chocolates.
The second day we traveled up to the Galilee and enjoyed a stroll through Tsfat to wake up. We enjoyed a lunch at Adir Winery of kirshe, salad, bread, cheese and of course wine. We then traveled to Naaman Winery where they all tasted the full range of Rami's boutique wines.
We finished the day at the Golan Heights Winery where we enjoyed a tasting in the private room downstairs with 7 wines, including the Yarden Cabernet Sauvignon 2001 which was simply delciious.
 The third day we traveled to the Carmel Region and visited Ramat HaNadiv, Rothschild's Botanical Gardens to wake up in the morning. This day we only visited two wineries; Amphorae and Somek Winery.
The group enjoyed the intimate feeling of Somek Winery.
 The forth day of the wine tour we visited the Jerusalem Hills Wineries. I took them to the ancient wine press at Tzuba Winery. They enjoyed a tasting at Tzuba Winery, Agur Winery and Tzora Winery. We ended the day with lunch at Margot Cafe.
The fifth day, was a day of relaxation so on the way down to the Dead Sea they visited Yatir Winery. When they drove down to Eilat they also stopped at Sde Bokar winery.
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