As you meander through the cobbled stone lanes of Jaffa, a historical gem adjacent to Tel Aviv, the gentle breeze carries the salty scent of the turquoise Mediterranean Sea. Centuries-old, low-rise mansions stand proudly, now transformed into heritage hotels and bustling restaurants. Stone billboards whisper stories of Jewish and the region's history, while the soft footsteps of worshippers emerge from the ancient mosque after morning prayers.
The air vibrates with the hum of activity as establishments prepare for the day, their kitchens alive with the clatter of pots and the promise of brunch to come. An enticing aroma of wine glides through the artfully decorated alleys, drawing you in. I approach a middle-aged man unloading a mini truck, eager to discover the source of the aroma in the enchanting ancient city.
“These are our locally made wines,” says Lavi proudly. “But these days, people are losing their craving for it,” he adds with a smile while standing beside his mini truck. Lavi doesn't specify the reasons, as he claims to be a teetotaller. “My friends say our local wine is losing its flavour on their taste buds,” he mentions while shifting a crate of various wines and alcohol bottles into a restaurant.
According to some wine connoisseurs, the evaluation of wine is based on how long the flavours linger on the palate. Lavi's comment sparks curiosity to further explore what had happened to local Israeli wine and vineyards.
A couple of days later and I find myself travelling 40 km from Jaffa-Tel Aviv and find similar observations from Kobi, the owner of a wine shop on Jerusalem's Mahane Yehuda Street. He shares that he used to be fond of Israeli wines and sold a record number of bottles each month. However, in recent years, he has noticed a change in the trend, with slower demand for domestic wines.
Data from the last 50 years indicate a temperature increase of 1.5 degree Celsius to 2 degree Celsius in Israel. The Israel Meteorological Service estimates a warming rate of around 0.6 degree C per decade over the past 30 years in northern Israel, home to many of the country's vineyards.
The first signs of this changing climate are not always visible in the vineyards. It is often heard in conversations with wine-sellers and tasted in the glass.
“People say there's been a change in taste. The bold flavours of wine have become lighter, and the elegant tastes have become sweeter,” Kobi explains while showing his shop shelves, which were filled with foreign-made liquors from France, Italy and Australia. “These shelves were once full of locally made wine; now they're replaced with foreign liquors. We sell local wine, but the demand has gone down.”
As rising temperature disrupts the delicate balance of sugar, acidity and aroma in grapes, posing a significant challenge to Israel's centuries-old wine industry, Kobi's observation sends me on a journey to a higher elevation in the country.
To understand whether climate has a role in changing the character of Israeli wines, I travel to the Kfar Tikva region in northern Israel, leaving behind the skyscrapers of Tel Aviv and the busy streets of Jerusalem. On the way, one sees mountains and hills dotted with buildings, residential complexes and cranes busy with construction. Suddenly, I find myself amidst lush green hills.
Heat takes away taste of wine
A gentle silence envelopes the mountainous region, where lush green trees, vineyards and various crop fields introduce a contrast to the typically arid landscape. This area enjoys a much more temperate climate than the hot and humid conditions of Tel Aviv and Jerusalem in June. Known for its elegant vineyards and wineries, the ambience here starkly differs from the bustling streets of Jerusalem.
I arrive at the famous Tulip Winery, a social enterprise established over two decades ago by the Itzhaki family. The winery is a pioneer in agro-voltaics, utilising solar roofs above the vineyards to provide shade while generating electricity. Despite Israel's reputation as home to around 300 wineries, recent trends indicate a decline in domestic wine consumption.
At the winery, Dana Beny, a senior wine taster and expert, showcases an impressive selection of wines produced by the establishment. During our discussion about why local wines in Israel are losing their appeal compared to their global counterparts, she highlights the dual challenge of changing consumer preferences and rising temperatures linked to climate change.
Dana notes that rising temperatures are disrupting the balance of essential components in grapes, such as sugar and aroma, posing significant challenges for the wine industry.
Demonstrating her expertise, Dana takes a small sip of wine, rolls it around her mouth, and notes its dryness, sweetness and other characteristics. She evaluates several key components of her company's wines, including fresh acidity, elegant aromas, minerality, precision and finesse.
Dana explains how climate change is reshaping vineyards. “Sugar content in grapes is rising due to early warming, which causes wine to lose its taste, aroma and colour over time,” she says. Normally, sugar content, aroma and flavour develop in harmony, but rising temperatures disrupt this balance.
The accelerated ripening process means growers harvest white wine grapes by the end of July instead of September and red wine grapes in October instead of later in the fall. Dana points out that the most significant sign of climate-related change is this loss of balance: freshness and aromatic complexity decline while ripe fruit flavours and alcohol levels take precedence. This shift results in less elegant wines where alcohol content can soar to 15%-16%, making the wine feel hotter on the palate and diminishing its acidity.
As growers harvest grapes earlier than ever before and vineyards grapple with increasing pest attacks, wineries are investing in precision irrigation, agro-voltaics and nature-based pest control to preserve the character of Israeli wines. Growers have begun harvesting earlier to preserve acidity, but achieving a balance has become increasingly difficult. This climatic imbalance has led to investment in innovative vineyard management practices. Dana says they are creating shade over fields to mitigate heat and reduce evaporation while utilising Israel's advanced precision irrigation technologies.
Furthermore, vineyards are grappling with increased pest attacks, particularly from the vine mealybug, which destroys vines and promotes black fungus growth. In response, Israel is developing sustainable pest-control methods, including the use of synthetic pheromones to disrupt insect mating patterns and the introduction of natural predators to combat mealybug populations. Chemical sprays are also being utilised in eco-friendly ways to reduce pesticide use by up to 80 per cent.
Dana remains optimistic that these strategies will protect vineyards amid rising temperatures and help revive Israel's traditional wine culture. As the industry adapts to the realities of climate change, the hope is to preserve the integrity and flavour of the wines that have long defined this unique region.