Domaine du Castel
Encyclopedia
History
Domaine du Castel was founded in 1983 by Eli Ben Zaken in MoshavMoshav
Moshav is a type of Israeli town or settlement, in particular a type of cooperative agricultural community of individual farms pioneered by the Labour Zionists during the second aliyah...
Ramat Raziel
Ramat Raziel
Ramat Raziel is a moshav in central Israel. Located in the centre of the Jerusalem corridor, it falls under the jurisdiction of Mateh Yehuda Regional Council. In 2006 it had a population of 448....
on the outskirts of Jerusalem. From its modest start, producing two barrels a year, Domaine du Castel has become a 13-hectare vineyard producing 8,000 cases a year - 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot, 25% Chardonnay and 6% Petit Verdot. Vines are dense planted and cropped at low yields.
Since the release of 600 bottles in 1992, Ben Zaken and his son, Ariel, oversee the production of 100,000 bottles a year. Haaretz
Haaretz
Haaretz is Israel's oldest daily newspaper. It was founded in 1918 and is now published in both Hebrew and English in Berliner format. The English edition is published and sold together with the International Herald Tribune. Both Hebrew and English editions can be read on the Internet...
food and wine critic Daniel Rogov writes that Domaine du Castel produces some of the best wines in the country. The winery uses only locally grown grapes from its own vineyards or vineyards under its full supervision.
Awards
In December 2007, influential wine critic Robert M. Parker, Jr.Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Robert M. Parker, Jr. is a leading U.S. wine critic with an international influence. His wine ratings on a 100-point scale and his newsletter The Wine Advocate, with his particular stylistic preferences and notetaking vocabulary, have become very influential in American wine buying and are...
and his The Wine Advocate
The Wine Advocate
The Wine Advocate, informally abbreviated TWA or WA, is a U.S. bimonthly wine publication featuring the consumer advice of wine critic Robert M. Parker, Jr....
awarded three of Domaine du Castel's wines 90-92 points on his 100-point scale. A total of 14 Israeli wines were rated at least 90 points on this occasion (ranging from 90 to 93), which represented the highest Parker scores ever awarded to wines of the eastern Mediterranean region and was seen as a sign of breakthrough for Israeli wine
Israeli wine
Israeli wine is produced by hundreds of wineries, ranging in size from small boutique enterprises to large companies producing over ten million bottles per year. Wine has been produced in the Land of Israel since biblical times. In 2009, Israeli wine exports totaled over $22 million...
. A 2005 white wine from Domaine du Castel was the highest-scoring of all white wines.