Ben Ami Cabernet Sauvigon 2007
84 Points, $8.99

This week I decided to find a value wine from Israel. There are almost 200 wineries in Israel, most of them make excellent wines, the only problem is that they are $20 or above. Today I found a great everyday drinking wine, Ben Ami Cabernet Sauvignon.

Ben Ami is not a winery, its just the value series of the Barkan Winery. Barkan is the second largest winery in Israel after Carmel producing upwards of 9 million bottles per year.

This is a finely made wine created to please the masses with its fruit forward and well oaked characters. You don't have to be a professional wine critic to pick out the characters of this wine. You will find dark fruit characters such as plum and strawberries and a touch of lemon citrus all wrapped in a pleasant vanilla backbone.

Bottome line: This is a medium bodied wine that is well balanced with fruit and oak characters. This wine can be easily paired with just about any dish from a tuna steak to your mothers cholent. Although I find the label a little scary looking, it’s the wine that really matters. This is by far the best value you will find in the Israeli wine market.

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For more information go to http://www.mykerem.com/content/ben-ami-cabernet-sauvignon

To buy online:
http://www.kosherwine.com/cgi-bin/ProductInfo.asp?WineID=10163

In Store:
Hungarian Kosher Foods in Skokie, IL 847-674-3746