Long before Israel had a modern wine industry, one man was already dreaming of its vineyards.

In this episode, Daniel sits down with Adam Montefiore, often called Israel’s senior wine writer and the ambassador of Israeli wine. Adam is a fifth generation member of the Montefiore family, a 27 year veteran of the Golan Heights Winery and Carmel, the Wine Talk columnist for the Jerusalem Post, and the author of the Israel section of the World Atlas of Wine.

Over a table of Israeli rosés, Adam traces the thread that runs from ancient winepresses hidden in Israel’s forests, to his ancestor Moses Montefiore’s 1839 vision of Jews returning to the land, to the hundreds of wineries producing world class wine today. He walks through Israel’s wine regions, shares how the industry grew from about a dozen wineries into a global contender, and makes the case for why putting an Israeli wine on your table matters right now.

In this episode:

• Why Adam calls rosé the quintessential Israeli wine
• Moses Montefiore: a wine lover, a forerunner of Zionism, and the man who first suggested Jews return to the land through agriculture
• The vineyard of Moses and Judith, and the story behind the Montefiore Windmill in Jerusalem
• How the Golan Heights Winery sparked a quality revolution in the 1980s
• The boutique winery boom of the 1990s and where Israeli wine is headed next
• Carignan, Petite Sirah, Argaman, and Dabouki: the grapes that make Israel unique
• A tour of Israel’s wine regions: the Golan Heights, Upper Galilee, Judean Hills, Judean Foothills, Central Mountains, Coastal Plain, and the Negev
• How the war has affected wineries in the Golan and Galilee, and how you can support them
• The secret visit from one of the world’s most famous wineries
• Adam’s take on the wedding at Cana and why the best wine came last

Scripture referenced:

• Genesis 9:20 (Noah plants the first vineyard)
• John 2:1-11 (Jesus turns water into wine at Cana in Galilee)

Find Adam Montefiore:

• Articles and portfolio: adammontefiore.com
• Wine Talk column: The Jerusalem Post

Connect with Vintage Land:

• Shop our curated Israeli wines or join the club: israeligoodwine.com Follow us on Instagram: @israeligoodwine

If you enjoyed this conversation, subscribe so you never miss an episode, leave us a review, and share it with someone who loves wine, Israel, or a great story.

L’Chaim.

Three years after October 7, we return to the Golan Heights to visit Terra Nova Winery and winemaker Ilan Matalon.

Filmed in October 2024, one year after the attacks, this episode of Vintage Land begins with a time of remembrance for the lives lost on October 7, 2023, and for the families, hostages, soldiers, and communities still living with the cost.

Then Daniel sits down with Ilan on Moshav Kanaf, overlooking the Sea of Galilee, during Sukkot. With his visitor center empty and his staff gone, Ilan was running the winery alone and hand-delivering wine and olive oil across Israel. The day before filming, rockets filled the sky with smoke. Still, the grapes would not wait.

In this conversation:

- How the war affected Israeli wineries and farmers

- Golan Heights altitude, basalt soil, and minerality in wine

- Terra Nova's award-winning Israeli olive oil

- The Bereshit (Genesis) and Noam blends

- Life on a moshav, where a whole community fights fires together

- The 2023 vintage Ilan calls "wartime wine"

This episode is best watched on YouTube: Click here to watch.

Shop Israeli wines and join the Israeli Good Wine club: https://israeligoodwine.com

Vintage Land is an Israeli wine and faith podcast hosted by Daniel and Alana Elliott.