Fess up, now.  Who hasn’t wondered at one point or another about turning water into wine.

Well, if you remember anything about Sunday School, you may recall that Galilee is where the story of the wedding of Cana is thought to have taken place – where Jesus purportedly turned water into wine.

These days, the winemakers find using grapes works much better.  There are three main parts to Galilee – Upper Galilee, Lower Galilee and the Golan Heights which produces some of the best wines and is an emerging ‘new world’ wine region (the irony is delicious – ‘new world’ for an area where wine has been made for thousands of years).

Lower Galilee is very small and concentrated near Mount Tabor with red soils similar to the terra rossa found in Australia’s Coonawarra.  In Upper Galilee though, the soil profiles vary from free-draining gravels to limestone to mineral-rich volcanic basalt.

Galilee is dotted with rocky outcroppings and a peak at Mount Meron of 1200m up near the border with Lebanon.  Even though this is a semi-desert area and is only at 33 degrees latitude, the elevation enables the grapes to retain acidity and there is adequate rainfall.  Without the elevation, it’s doubtful much quality wine would be produced in the region; it would just be too warm.  The vines at Adir grow at 870m.

This red wine is a clear medium ruby and has even legs.  The nose has a medium, youthful, intensity with aromas of red fruit – raspberry, boysenberry, red cherry, red plum, light clove and nutmeg.  The palate is dry with medium acidity, high alcohol and medium ripe tannins with little grip.  The flavours are medium – more red fruit – cherry, plum, raspberry – with light tobacco and leather glove with clove.  The finish on this WSET Good wine is medium.  Drink now – don’t hold.