As I have been posting for a few weeks now, KFWE 2024 was going to be Trade-only, KFWE LA was canceled, as they moved to every other year, and there were two new entries into the Kosher Wine Tasting season. Those new entries were the Jewish Link Wine Guide Grand Tasting and KWD’s Wine and Food Night. These events were back to back to back, three nights in a row. The first two were in the NJ area, KFWE returned to the Hilton MeadowLands, as it did in 2022, and the Jewish Link Event occurred in Passaic, NJ.

All in all, as we will delineate in detail, the week was a smashing success. I know the next question will be which was the best? Were they a Mosh Pit or in the current vernacular – a Kiddush Scrum?? Which had the best wines? Were they mostly idiots who attended? Could you really taste anything? All of these and more will be clarified below.

KFWE – the approach should change

Look, ask most of the public why they go to KFWE and they will reply to have a good night out. Think of it as a more expensive dinner for two, throw in VIP, and it is a very expensive dinner for two. Many of the VIP folks from last year never left VIP, they had their wine, not very good food, but it was comfortable and they did not have to travel back and forth between the buildings. Read my post about last year’s KFWE and you will see that the food failed them last year and that VIP was a mess, food-wise, but again, comfortable.

Fast forward to 2024 and sure, KFWE dropped the public, shrunk the footprint, expanded the wine selections, and made an overall better product for those who need the opportunity to taste that large a portfolio in one location. The point here is that KFWE, looking back at it, with the proper lens, was always a lose-lose proposition. It was too much of a mosh-pit, even during Trade hours to do any proper tastings. It was also, too much selection, a classic overload for the average person hoping to learn something new. In the end, neither came out with what they wanted, and the sheer size of the humanity made for an unappealing outcome.

As we progress through this retrospective, I must admit that much of this was an epiphany that I garnered by the end of the week, after attending all of the events. Let us start with the fact that they really should rename it KWE, the food was an afterthought, which is 100% reasonable, given the year’s focus. Still, as we move through this retrospective, this will become a sticking point.

I was thinking of doing pros and cons – but this is a more streamlined approach (AKA my stream of consciousness) – so my apologies.

1. The food options were passable – at best, other than the pizza, the fried tortilla with Cilantro, while the Sushi was acceptable.
2. There were not enough pourers but it was not HORRIBLE, but it could have used more
3. The biggest tactical error they made was to remove the water towers they had at the last KFWE NYC. Having a single place for the Hotel’s staff to go and fill up water, allowed them time to also clean out the spit buckets
4. The outcome of removing the water towers was the spitoons being full on most of the tables I tasted at. To be fair, the clientele was spitting far more than in previous years, but the reason for the full spitoons was not the clientele, it was the lack of staff, which I think was exasperated by the need to go to every table and fill every bucket on those tables. A multiplicable time suck, exaggerated worse by the number of pitchers and tables. Essentially, it was the perfect storm, caused by a single mistake. Overall, it was a tactical error that NEEDS to be fixed next year. It was beyond gross when more than 4 tables I was on had spittoon buckets filled to the top! Sorry, this was a big issue for me.
5. The Tam Tam crackers on all the small tables – may well have been the best food at the event.
6. Overall, I have never had the opportunity, even if I wanted to, to get to taste so much wine in one event, to me that means the event was a success. The crowds were controlled and the tables had issues but overall, I tasted through all of the Israeli wines and that was cool.
7. The 2021 Bordeaux vintage really put a damper on the overall wines that I would say “ARE GREAT”. People asked me throughout the tasting – which was the GREAT one and I had to think hard. Most of my TOP wines of the year are not from Royal. Such is life – this year! The 2020 Leoville Poyferre, was lovely as was the 21 Herzog Alex Cab, the Covenant 21 Solomon Cab, the 2020 Chateau Lascombes, and the 2020 Elvi Wines Clos Mesorah. That says a lot. Next Year will be very different, I think.
8. The stupid music was so annoying – I could not even HEAR myself think, let alone talk to the winemakers or the folks at the table – HARD PASS! Further, for the given focus and clientele, the music was a hindrance.
9. Overall, 2021 red Bordeaux are painful, 2023 white and rose wines from Israel are water and not much else, 2021 Cali reds rock, 2021 Israel reds are VASTLY improved over all the other years I tasted. Again, these are generalizations, there are exceptions, but sadly, those exceptions are far and few between.
10. Finally, I was saddened by the lack of focus of Herzog, as was promoted. There was no KFWE LA this year and the lack of a deep Herzog lineup bummed me out! Sure, the mainstays were there but I have tasted many wines from Herzog that were not there. Further, the marketing of the KFWE East Coast event made clear that Herzog and Israeli wines would be a focus. I think they swung and missed there. Sure, they brought a single bottle of a barrel sample for a wine that has not been released yet. Sure, that is cool, it was stuck on the side, more like a worth check. Were you worthy of a dram of this wine? Sorry, either this is something to showcase Herzog and it should have been in greater supply or it should have not been there like other wines. Yes, I tasted it, this is not sour grapes (which it was not), but it is a point that Herzog was not focused on enough.
    In the end, the lack of selection, and the lack of focus, made me feel like Herzog was just punting here. I think for trade they should have been more active, more present, and showing more of the portfolio! How else will new restaurants, wine shops, or retailers know about the many cool wines that are being produced at Herzog? Showing older wines that do not promote the brand well, undermines Herzog and undermines the point of KFWE, especially for Trade partners.
    KFWE Miami was also a swing-and-miss, no one was there to promote the Winery. That is crazy to me. I know it was Hanukkah, but hey wine is a business.

So, let us recap concisely. The food was tolerable, maybe (hence the time to rethink the name). The crackers were an awesome idea (and not new for KFWE). The lack of crowds and access to the full portfolio allowed trade folks to really dive into the wines. Finally, fix the useless music and the tactical issues (regarding water and spitoons), and I think we have a winner. The location is great for folks in the trade, I spoke with many of them, and they were happy it was not in the city. They said, the drive over at 2 PM was easy and those who flew in, like me, loved the easy EWR access.

The suppliers (AKA the wineries) loved it as well. They told me many times that the public tasting was just a big kiddish, folks trying to get wasted. It felt often like a race to the bottom. How many would need help before the end of the evening – the fastest? Sadly, there was one such fellow this year, but that was more of an anomaly and a “trade person” who really was not trade!

So, what does this all mean, I am hoping things stay the same every year. Now, let us talk logistics. As we will discuss further, the next two events occurred because there was no KFWE LA. The fact that KFWE LA did not happen allowed the winemakers to stay and attend some of the next events. Further, it allowed the events to happen back to back.

I have not fully thought through the KFWE LA thing. If it continues, which I personally, and sadly, question, then maybe the winemakers come in early (as many did for smaller events) and the secondary (AKA public) events happen earlier. Or they stay over Shabbat and it happens the following week. Either will work. Many folks came up to me and said “What is the best part about tomorrow”? I froze, the Jewish Link Event? They replied, NO! The answer is that we do not need to get on a plane! There is a point to the question, and it runs through my mind about what KFWE LA really does for the brand.

So, in closing, I wonder if it is time to break up KFWE USA? I wonder if KFWE East Coast should be renamed KWE and stay in the Hilton. It allows for the full portfolio to be accessed by those who need it and should be tasting them ALL. I further wonder if KFWE LA, should return to its roots, and go back to the IFWF and focus on Herzog, Tierra Sur, and a smattering of wines that meet the needs of the LA area. Finally, maybe it should happen in the summer, when California is at its best, and Tierra Sur, can shine with its abundance of fresh produce, highlighting its focus on farm-to-table, and also the ability for LA people to better appreciate Herzog for its abundance of wines and club options.

But you ask – what of the public? I asked that, and yeah I DID! Look back at my post talking about the kosher wine-tasting season for 2024! Quoting myself here:

Then throw in that KFWE Los Angeles is totally backing down and it feels like a gut punch. How is the average wine buyer meant to learn about wines? The real issue continues to be the lack of strong education at wine stores, outside of a few Brooklyn, Teanek, and Lakewood shops. Even with those shops, there are no weekly wine tastings that buyers can count on and they rarely will pour a Leoville or a high-end Yarden (yes Yarden is not Royal – but shops are not Royal specific).

I continue on and on, but now, I see that this is a better idea, if they buy into it totally! You see, the abundance of options for all of the public really has no appeal and no real rhyme or reason. Further, it does not hit the demographic. It lacks focus and it lacks precision. Some may call that limiting, but as you read the next two posts, you will see the opposite of that. The following two events hit the nail on the head for what it was meant to be, a paring down of the options, in differing locations. Next year, I would go harder on the focus. Maybe next year Jewish Link could be all Israeli and KWD could be European with a good enough Israeli set of wines. I suppose that should be defined by those who know those areas best! Maybe NJ likes old-world wines more and you switch it. Either way, the Public is better served in these smaller, more intimate, and more focused venues. Further, it saves Royal a TON of money. Now, that money can be better purposed to more education.

Lastly, I still think that one of the better education levers that Royal has is Herzog Wine Clubs. I think a DIRT CHEAP way to make more money, educate more people, and drive a network effect would be to do a mini KFWE-2021 for each wine club release. Have the same team meet once a month/quarter, whatever the release cadence is for a given club, and talk about the wines that are in that release! Do the same Video approach – teach people about the wines and have them taste the wines as the wine experts pontificate and educate. If you did a YouTube Live Stream, then you can get others to join the club, wondering how do I get into this action? Does it cost money to get those folks together and talk about wine – yes, but far cheaper than KFWE LA or KFWE NY/Pier 60! Finally, a live stream would allow for feedback and questions and answers. It would be an informal but immersive approach to wine education and it would drive the network effect and drive up wine club sales, IMHO!

A Full Tasting of Royal Israeli Wines

So, given the opportunity to taste as many Israeli wines at the KFWE event – I took it upon myself to highlight the WINNER wines – both white and red! There were a few shockers for me. As stated, the 2021 vintage, for reds, is nice, it is not over the top, it is controlled, and many will find them reminiscent of the old days of Israeli red wines.

There was not a wine I passed on in the Israeli Room. To be clear, I can smell a wine. When I smell date juice, and if you smell wine as much as I do, you too can smell date juice, it is then painful to actually taste it. I did much of this tasting with Ezra and Leah Cohen (the newest addition to Elvi Wines as she has completed her Viticulture and Enology Studies). The pain on their faces, throughout the tasting, was priceless. No one can say that we do not do our best for all of you! Now, given the sheer number of Israeli wines, it is sad to only have the wines listed below. Still, that is more than we had before! So any movement – and I mean ANY is a win!

So, with that said, here were the Israeli wine WINNERs. Countless times we smelled wines and we poured them, pure pain, However, once the nose was not horrible, I asked for a bit more, tasted it, and 90% of the time, I wrote notes. The fact that I wrote notes does not mean it was a WINNER, but more like a surprise. Anyway, here are the best of what we smelled/tasted!

1. 2021 Matar Cumulus (92)
2. Castel Raziel Sparkling Wine, both Rose and Blanc (91+)
3. 2023 Castel La Vie Blanc (91)
4. 2021 Tulip Merlot, Reserve (91)
5. 2018 Teperberg Cabernet Sauvignon (91)
6. 2023 Flam Blanc (91)

Honorable Mentions:

1. 2021 Binyamina Yogev Cabernet Sauvignon (89)
2. 2021 Binyamina Cabernet Sauvignon (88)
3. 2018 Tabor Malkiya (90)
4. 2023 Shiloh Chenin Blanc (90)

Jewish Link Wine Guide Grand Tasting

The night after the KFWE event I found myself in an Uber arriving early for the Jewish Link Wine Guide Grand Tasting, in Passaic, NJ. Now, I have friends in Passaic, NJ, so I hope they are not offended but the area near the event hall is a dump. I mean there are boarded-up buildings, and vacant lots, not the kind of place I would like to go exploring during the day or night! So, yeah, I will leave that where it is.

Security was very tight for this event, given the protest that was outside the building. It is a long story but stated concisely, the event went on without a hitch, security and the police were wonderful, and the team did a wonderful job in making sure we all felt safe and secure. More on the event from Elizabeth Kratz, one of the Editors at the Jewish Link.

The event was the outcome of the wines that the Jewish Link Wine Guide tasters tasted. The group sent out requests for wines to taste from a multitude of producers and importers and whatever wines they received they tasted the wines blind. Then the scores were tallied and the outcome was made into their yearly Wine Guide. This year’s wine guide has not yet been released. However, when it is released it will be found here. It will show all the winners and their ranking. Again, to be clear, this ranking is for the wines they received and tasted, many other wines were never received and as such were not tabulated in the scores and rankings, which is 100% fine and normal.

Again, I need to stress, the fact that there was no KFWE LA, allowed for some of the Royal winemakers to be there at the event, on the next day! Further, I think having them close together allows those who do not live in NYC to be able to make them. Further, and finally, the fact that the first two were in NJ, allowed for many of those who came to be able to visit many of the local NJ and NYC wine stores to help promote the wines. Overall, the ability to focus on that locale for many of the winemakers and wineries is something that cannot be understated.

Event Tasting

Unlike KFWE and Royal Wines, which has one importer/Distributor/Producer, in Royal Wines and its subsidiaries, this event showcased a multitude of wine producers and importers.

Overall – the number of wineries and importers was a bit too many to write in a format that would work for this blog – but there were many!

1. Yarden Wines
2. Recanati
3. Cedev Wines/Noble Wines (Vignobles Boulliac, Arnaux & Fils, Schenk Italia Amicale, Baglietti, Chateau de L’Haur de Chay)
4. Happy Hearts (Hevron Heights, Mony Estate Vineyard, Five Stones Winery, YA Kerem Ben Zimra, Cherut, Puzzle, Rambam Italy, Jérusalem Winery, Lavie, Abouhav, Happy Hearts Exclusives)
5. Kosher Wines (Yaffo, Yaacov Oryah, Shiran Winery, KosherWine.com Exclusives)
6. Red Garden (Adir Winery, Drimia, La Forêt Blanche, Cheval Yehuda)
7. Allied Importers (Dalton, Beit El, Gvaot, Hayotzer, Borgo Bella)
8. The River Wine (Twin Suns, River Wine Exclusives)
9. Emerald Imports (Cape Jewel, Tabernacle, Eviatar)
10. Royal (Herzog, Covenant, Hagafen, J Folk, Psagot, Teperberg, and so many more)

I do not need to go through my thoughts anymore, overall, I think this event and the next one all dovetail well into the larger plan. You can tell from the floor plan (image below), that Royal had more than 50% of the footprint, it was obvious that Royal was not hiding. They did not have a Public event and they were clearly open to righting that with these smaller events. I think the overall larger picture, though, was not realized until after all three events went off without a hitch (and an anti-Israel protest to boot!)

At KFWE, I tasted every single wine that was new to me, yes, that means a LOT of pain! Sadly, I did not have my counterparts on these tastings, I do not blame them, they have a life, and a desire to heal their taste buds from the assault they took at KFWE!

So, let me get to my thoughts, again, as I did for the KFWE – call it a post-game wrap:

1. AWESOME WORK getting all the wine distributors to come – GREAT WORK!
2. The music was STUPID, sorry, there is NO other way to state it, bad idea! The volume was stuck at 10! It was worse than at KFWE. When I cannot talk to anyone and I cannot hear the winemakers what is the point?
3. The lighting was even worse, with strobe lights in the wrong place, and no lights in the main areas. Wine pourers GUESSING what wines they were pouring – GUESSING! I have no idea who decided this but please next year leave the darn lights on and lower the music volume – PERIOD!
4. Not nearly enough pourers, there was one person for 2 tables! LIKE WHAT???
5. All the tables had people who worked hard and the winemakers were mostly there, IMHO, bravo!
6. The fact that they could piggyback off Royal’s KFWE because there was no KFWE LA, meant that all the winemakers came in for the events and stayed for both – which helped Royal and the Jewish Link event.
7. They really needed crackers like at KFWE
8. The staff were much better at filling the pitchers of water and emptying the spittoons than at KFWE.
9. The food was not very good at all, the Sushi was solid and the fried empanada at Estihana was the best option.
10. Overall, again, the event was a BIG WIN because I got to taste wines from so many distributors that would have otherwise been a fortune or impossible, living in CA. Bravo!!!

To be clear, the options were many but I found no wine that I needed. Again, there were lots of WINNERS but none that I had not already tasted. As stated, 2023 is a horrible year for Israel and its whites and roses. The 2021 vintage in Bordeaux was a disaster. So, while I was happy with the ability to taste so many wines – none of them did it for me.

I will list the few wines that were interesting, again, new wines for me. The sad truth is that there are not many, there were many new options, as I had not tasted any of the wines from these varied distributors. However, the good wines (91 and up) were almost non-existent, which makes me sad, and also, reinforces my mindset, which is I have no need to taste these wines, it is a simple truth. I am happy to taste them when I am not dropping loads of cash on wines I know will make me very unhappy. I already taste far more garbage than I want to, my accountant reminds me of this often.

As stated above, there were Israeli wine WINNERs. Countless times I smelled wines and then I poured them, pure pain, However, once the nose was not horrible, I asked for a bit more, tasted it and 90% of the time, I wrote notes. The fact that I wrote notes does not mean it was a WINNER, but more like a surprise. Anyway, here are the best of what I smelled/tasted!

1. 2020-2021 Shiran Conductor (91)
2. 2023 Yaffo Petnat (90)
3. 2023 Puzzle Rose (90)
4. 2023 Mony Tale Of Rose (90)
5. 2023 Adir Sauvignon Blanc (90)

I hope this gives you a glimpse into the situation we have here! Look at the map, there are lots of “new” wineries to me, and “new” distributors to me. None of them and none of the wines were interesting/good enough for me to scribble ANYTHING down about them. It is a sad but HARD truth. There continues to be far too much bad wine out there! I am always happy when people enjoy a wine, no matter its quality, I have never said anything to the contrary. The issue I have is that producers are catering to the lowest common denominator – and that is just evil, lowhanded, and wrong!

Closing out the second day and second event, Bravo! That is the word I would use. The Jewish Link Wine Guide Grand Tasting was given a silver platter, with no KFWE LA being held, and it served up a home run! Were their issues, sure, every event has some, but if you leave aside my personal issues (lighting and noise/music – if u can call it that), there was really no major faux pas, other than the lack of pourers (and maybe an advice for next year to have crackers). The food could have been better, but I was not there for food, I was there for tasting wines, and KFWE’s food was no better! So yeah, BRAVO!!

KWD’s Wine and Food Night

OK, so we are at day 3! This time it was in Brooklyn and thanks to GG, I made my way there. I will be very upfront here. I did not stay nearly as long as the other two nights. I was exhausted, yeah, I was tired. Also, I had tasted all the wines already, there were a few new players, but for the most part, I had tasted all of what was available in the two previous evenings. There were two new producers/importers. The Goblet Winery and M&M Importers.

Now, unless you are living under a kosher wine rock, you know I have been posting hard about the incredible work that Dr. Ralph Madeb and his team are doing at M&M Importers. Look at the top wines of the year and the wines he makes or imports were the majority of them! Simple! For a more in-depth post on M&M Importers and Her Doctor himself, look at this post and the audio link in it. I have not had the chance to taste through Yanky Drew’s Goblet wines for many years so that was one thing I needed to do.

Overall, I tasted far fewer wines – but I did a deep dive into the wines from Red Garden, Goblet Winery, many wines from Emerald, and two wines from M&M Importers that I had missed.

Sadly, I was so busy with tasting the wines and then going to sleep, that I never even looked at the food! So, I really do not know what it was like, but from what I hear it was solid! Overall, I will lead with, of the three events, this event WON! Is it a clear winner, no, but it lacked the annoying noise/music (that was at both prior events), the lighting was fine, and there were more than enough pourers. The lines were minimal, there was great attendance, and the wine selection was better than the previous evening.

Now, does that mean, this was the best event of the three, yes. Does it mean I only needed to come to this one, no! That is the point. If all you get from this post is this one line – the WEEK was the winner, not a single event!

Still, let us talk about the methodology and approach for this wine event! It started when I was still on the KWD (Kosher Wine Discussion) Whatsapp chat. Yes, I left chat, for a simple reason, I dislike people who cannot be honest. Isaac Gottesman, the creator of the KWD chat is a very honest and to-the-point person. However, just like I left Gabriel Geller’s Facebook Group, eventually, I could not take the undermining, low blows, and overall dishonest mindset of the many people who are on the chat, sorry! I warned Isaac it would happen, and he did try, but in the end, I can only take so much garbage before the conversation turns to comments on people rather than wine! That is the issue and that is why I left. However, before that, I pushed on him, as did others, that we need a cross-importer wine-tasting event. After Royal came out with their announcement (of no Public in NYC and no LA at all), I stated it was the perfect opportunity for someone to pick up the slack. Shortly, after that, Yossie jumps in and says that the Jewish Link will be making an event on the following Tuesday night. Isaac, pipped up, that he had almost booked a night and now he needs to regroup. This is being stated in detail to show how impressed I was with his work ethic. In the end, the team (Isaac, Gary Landsman, Aaron Hollander, and Robbie Zeitz) found a way to move it yet another day, to Wednesday night, and they pulled off an impressive event!

As stated I arrived early for the event, and I saw it all come together bit by bit. The suppliers starting to bring in the wines, here and there. Some were a bit late while most were on time and setting up. What mattered was that they were all available and pouring when the event started. The issues I listed above were never a problem, for the almost 2 hours I was there. The noise, music, lighting, and lack of pourers were not an issue. Nor was there an issue with the staff and the spit buckets. The most hilarious thing of the night was the fact that all the spit buckets were put out with a large spork in them or over them. I suppose the folks that set out the spitoons thought it was for ice? I have no idea! Anyway, those were tossed quickly, and spitting started! Of all three of the events, the fact that the food was in a separate room was sheer genius. KFWE had no food smell issues because it was mostly cold or reheated. The pizza was hot, but it was not giving off heavy smells. The next night was also not an issue as the food was room temp food as well.

I will be honest, besides not going to the food room I also did not pay attention to the charity attached to the event (One Family). I did pay for my ticket so I hope that helped a bit. In the end, some of the items sold for a good price, so I hope the overall charity component of the evening was as successful as the wine-tasting portion.

1. Yarden Wines
2. Allied Importers (Dalton, Beit El, Gvaot, Hayotzer, Borgo Bella)
3. Emerald Imports (Cape Jewel, Tabernacle, Eviatar)
4. Happy Hearts (Hevron Heights, Mony Estate Vineyard, Five Stones Winery, YA Kerem Ben Zimra, Cherut, Puzzle, Rambam Italy, Jérusalem Winery, Lavie, Abouhav, Happy Hearts Exclusives)
5. Kosher Wines (Yaffo, Yaacov Oryah, Shiran Winery, KosherWine.com Exclusives)
6. M&M Importers
7. Cedev Wines/Noble Wines (Vignobles Boulliac, Arnaux & Fils, Schenk Italia Amicale, Baglietti, Chateau de L’Haur de Chay)
8. Red Garden (Adir Winery, Drimia, La Forêt Blanche, Cheval Yehuda)
9. The River Wine (Twin Suns, River Wine Exclusives)
10. Royal (Herzog, Covenant, Hagafen, J Folk, Psagot, Teperberg, and so many more)
11. Wine Ari / The Cellar
12. Goblet Winery

OK, so I had already tasted through all of Yarden, the previous evening, so I ignored that table. Same with Allied, Happy Hearts, Kosher Wines, Cedev/Noble, Royal, and The River.

I did check in on Emerald, M&M Importers, Red Garden, Wine Ari, and Goblet. Sadly, I do not remember Wine Ari, so I either forgot or I tasted it, just have no memories of it. Emerald had a couple of Israeli Wines that I thought were not bad. The 2021 Eviatar GSM was the best of their Israeli wines, followed by the 2020 Tabernacle Betzalel Ketoret, and the 2019 Tabernacle Betzalel Cabernet Sauvignon was an ok option for those fruit-forward wine lovers.

Then I went to the Red Garden table, lots of pain there, other than the 2022 Domaine Gendraud-Patrice Petit-Chablis and the 2022 Domaine Guillerault-Fargette Sancerre, which were solid options. The shocker was the 2023 Adir Sauvignon Blanc (Mevushal), it was solid, a really nice SB from Israel’s 2023 vintage (the issue is the crazy price).

Then I made my way over to the M&M Importers, where I tasted two wines I had not yet tasted before. The 2022 Pescaja Solei’ Arneis (Mevushal) and the 2022 Feudi di San Gregorio Visione Rosato (Rose). They were both lovely, yes, I said a 2022 rose was lovely. The rest of what they brought over I knew and I had no need to waste their wine on me.

Finally, Goblet WInery, I tasted through all the wines and chatted with Yanky and they are nice wines just not my speed. The one that I remember well is the 2021 Goblet Riesling. It is unique, it reminds me of the 2022 Alex Riesling (Alex Rubin who works with the Shirah Guys), it is deep, rich, and very different. Not a Riesling per se, but a very nice white wine.

Wrapup

OK, that is a wrap! Good lord that took a long time to recap! Look, the number one thing I hope we get out of this is a change to KFWE that feeds like tenacles into other wine-tasting events. Each of those events should focus on their customers/clients, and their locale. Look at KWD, they had two importers/producers that are local to Brooklyn! M&M Importers and Goblet Winery! Ari Wines is more Lakewood, but also KWD is a wine geek chat, and Ari is a major wine geek (that is a compliment I love the guy). So you can clearly see that KWD had an Israeli slant to it this year, with the charity, but the main clientele there were wine geeks and locals in Brooklyn.

The Jewish Link event was closer to Royal’s event, it had more Royal wines and more Royal winemakers. It had more of an Israeli bent (with a side of anti-Israel protests).

As an aside, I tasted many hundreds of new (for me) wines over these three days, and none of them scored over a 92. The best new wine I tasted over the week I was on the road is not in this post, but that one scored a healthy number. So yeah, lots of pain!

The main point here is that what we need is more copies of this format, year after year. Keep tuning, and perfecting it, and we will find ourselves in a better place than a few years ago. I still think Herzog needs to triple down on what they have been doing recently. Focusing on their brand, their Restaurant, and their wines with small hand-picked events that focus on these things. Still, these are highly tuned events and limiting in scale and access. A return of IFWF with a MAJOR focus on Herzog and what it adds to the kosher wine world is a badly needed thing. At the winery, showing off Tierra Sur, the summer weather, and the wines to make it all work.

Look, none of this could have happened without the work of so many people. My many thanks to Royal Wines, all the folks behind the Jewish Link Wine Guide Grand Tasting, and KWD’s Wine and Food Night. These were heroic efforts, on the part of the hosts, the wine suppliers, the restaurants, and all the people that attended them. This was a massive Jewish group effort, and all I can say is Bravo! That is a wrap – Miami, you are up – in only a paltry 10 months!