These Highly-Rated Wines Are all Kosher

• By WineBottleMag
• March 3, 2025
• HighlyRated Kosher Wines
• With 0 comments

In the not-too-distant past, kosher wines were most closely associated with syrupy-sweet bottlings (Manischewitz, anyone?) scorned by most serious wine drinkers. However, to quote the greatest Jewish artist of all time (Bob Dylan, obviously), “the times they are a-changin.” There’s now an excellent array of kosher wines grown all around the globe. 

Israel is understandably a notable producer, but in recent decades, wineries in France, Argentina and California have entered the scene as well, producing high-quality bottlings that have been earning praise among Wine Enthusiast critics.

These now-diverse bottlings now span from a Riesling with a “shimmering column of acidity [that] bathes the palate from first sip to finish,” to a Cabernet Sauvignon with “opulent tannins that recede into an enduring finish,” according to former reviewer Mike DeSimone.

Keep it Kosher

In many respects, kosher wine is no different from mainstream wine production, except for a few key distinctions: It must be made under the observation of a religious authority and earn a hechsher, a rabbinical product certification, which is clearly marked on bottles by a kosher certifying agency. 

While the exact specifics are determined by the certifying agencies, some of which are stricter than others in their interpretation of kosher law, “one common reason a wine may not be kosher is the use of non-kosher fining agents during production,” says Dovid Riven, president of Kosherwine.com. “If an animal-based product, like gelatin or isinglass, is used to clarify the wine, it would not be certified kosher.”

For Passover, these guidelines are taken up a notch.

What About Kosher for Passover?

On top of the general no shellfish, pork, mixing certain ingredients and other kosher requirements, kosher for Passover laws are even stricter. This includes restrictions on leavening and grains, a hallmark of the holiday.

The five grains—wheat, spelt, barley, oats and rye—are not common in wine anyway. So, “most wines that are certified kosher are also kosher for Passover,” says Riven. “However, some wines, especially those with added flavors, may contain ingredients that are not approved for Passover. For example, we carry lychee, blueberry and peach-flavored canned wines that are certified kosher but not certified kosher for Passover.”  

Leavening agents, like yeast, also require special kosher for Passover designations. 

“What keeps any kosher wine kosher for Passover is simply this: Any additives—such as yeast or malolactic cultures—would need to be certified kosher for Passover,” says Jeff Morgan, founding winemaker of Covenant Wines in Berkeley, California. “Yeast [for wine] are inherently kosher for Passover, but if they were processed in a place where non-kosher ingredients were also processed, it could be a problem.”

Still confused? That’s understandable.

Fortunately, many websites often state the kosher designation of the wines they sell on the product detail page and the kosher certification symbol should be obvious on the bottle. 

“Kosher-for-Passover wines are clearly labeled,” Riven adds. “You’ll typically see the words ‘kosher for Passover’ spelled out on the back label, or a ‘P’ next to the kosher certification symbol.”

If you’re seeking specific suggestions, we’ve got you covered with a list of ten high-scoring kosher wines. Take a look below. 

---

Kosher

Kosher for Passover

let adType_67c6405d20663 = “leaderboard”;
// Create the element
let script_67c6405d20663 = document.createElement(“script”);

script_67c6405d20663.innerHTML = `
window.googletag = window.googletag || {cmd: []};
googletag.cmd.push(function() {

var mapping;
// Size mapping for leaderboard ads
var lbmapping = googletag.sizeMapping()
.addSize([1024, 0], [[970, 250], [970, 90], [1, 1], [728, 90]])
.addSize([728, 0], [[728, 90], [1, 1]])
.addSize([320, 0], [[1, 1], [300, 50], [300, 100], [320, 50], [320, 100]])
.addSize([0, 0], [[1, 1], [320, 50]])
.build();
// Size mapping for med rectengle ads
var medrecmapping = googletag.sizeMapping()
.addSize([1024, 0], [[300, 600],[300, 250]])
.addSize([728, 0], [300, 250])
.addSize([320, 0], [[1, 1],[300, 250]])
.addSize([0, 0], [[1, 1], [300, 250]])
.build()
//var lbSlots = [[[320, 100], [728, 90], [300, 100], [1, 1], [300, 50], [970, 250], [320, 50], [970, 90]]];
//var medrecSlots = [[300, 600], [1, 1], [300, 250]];

mapping = adType_67c6405d20663 == ‘leaderboard’ ? lbmapping : medrecmapping;
googletag.defineSlot(‘/39808611/article_page/article_leaderboard_1’, [],
‘div-gpt-ad-67c6405d20663’).addService(googletag.pubads()).defineSizeMapping(mapping);
googletag.pubads().enableSingleRequest();
googletag.pubads().collapseEmptyDivs(); //maybe optional
googletag.pubads().refresh(); //maybe optional
googletag.enableServices();

});
`;

//checking to see if script is inserted in the header successfully
if (document.head.appendChild(script_67c6405d20663)) {
//variable holding the rendering body
document.getElementById(“gptBodySection-67c6405d20663”).innerHTML = `

`;
}

let adType_67c6405d21b63 = “leaderboard”;
// Create the element
let script_67c6405d21b63 = document.createElement(“script”);

script_67c6405d21b63.innerHTML = `
window.googletag = window.googletag || {cmd: []};
googletag.cmd.push(function() {

var mapping;
// Size mapping for leaderboard ads
var lbmapping = googletag.sizeMapping()
.addSize([1024, 0], [[970, 250], [970, 90], [1, 1], [728, 90]])
.addSize([728, 0], [[728, 90], [1, 1]])
.addSize([320, 0], [[1, 1], [300, 50], [300, 100], [320, 50], [320, 100]])
.addSize([0, 0], [[1, 1], [320, 50]])
.build();
// Size mapping for med rectengle ads
var medrecmapping = googletag.sizeMapping()
.addSize([1024, 0], [[300, 600],[300, 250]])
.addSize([728, 0], [300, 250])
.addSize([320, 0], [[1, 1],[300, 250]])
.addSize([0, 0], [[1, 1], [300, 250]])
.build()
//var lbSlots = [[[320, 100], [728, 90], [300, 100], [1, 1], [300, 50], [970, 250], [320, 50], [970, 90]]];
//var medrecSlots = [[300, 600], [1, 1], [300, 250]];

mapping = adType_67c6405d21b63 == ‘leaderboard’ ? lbmapping : medrecmapping;
googletag.defineSlot(‘/39808611/article_page/article_leaderboard_2’, [],
‘div-gpt-ad-67c6405d21b63’).addService(googletag.pubads()).defineSizeMapping(mapping);
googletag.pubads().enableSingleRequest();
googletag.pubads().collapseEmptyDivs(); //maybe optional
googletag.pubads().refresh(); //maybe optional
googletag.enableServices();

});
`;

//checking to see if script is inserted in the header successfully
if (document.head.appendChild(script_67c6405d21b63)) {
//variable holding the rendering body
document.getElementById(“gptBodySection-67c6405d21b63”).innerHTML = `

`;
}

---

More Jewish Drinks Coverage

• Cocktails with chutzpah: Three Jew-ish cocktails to make you forget Manischewitz.
• Looking for holiday food pairings? What to drink with your Hanukkah nosh.
• Introducing the latke sour, the potato-spiked Hanukkah cocktail.
• Israel offers New World wines with a Bordeaux connection.
• Israeli wine has been changing. Here’s how.

The post These Highly-Rated Wines Are all Kosher appeared first on Wine Enthusiast.

Source link