First 100 Points for a Kosher Wine Goes to Covenant

Decanter critic Jonathan Cristaldi had rewarded a perfect 100-point rating to Covenant Wines 2023 Covenant Solomon Lot 70, making the latter the first kosher wine so honored in a major wine publication.

"This is a remarkable Kosher wine," wrote Cristaldi, "The wine is seamless with pristine flavours, firm ripe tannins and layers of complexity. Just spectacular."

He praised the "freshness" and noted the flavors of black cherry, spiced plum, and more, topped off with a mineral-driven finish. The wine sells at $150 a bottle on the winery's website.

Covenant founder Jeff Morgan said it represented how far kosher wine has come in recent decades. The June 17th announcement was a short four weeks after Mutra in Miami became the first kosher restaurant in the world to earn a Michelin star rating. Covenant Wines itself is doing pretty well, with a 5% increase in March even as wine sales in general slump as younger consumers opt out.

Even as wineries in California and Israel have exploded in mass and critical popularity, kosher wine is still associated with cheap mass-produced Manischewitz. But kosher wines have been rating 90s for year now; Covenant has one such wine served in a Michelin star restaurant in Yountville.

The 100-point scale was popularized by critic Robert Parker, based on the mathematical way he took to evaluating wines starting in the 70s. Every wine starts at 50, with points added for flavor, color, aroma, profile, and overall impression.

Herzog Wine Cellars, another California kosher wine producer, commended Covenant on its achievement and its appreciation for Morgan's effort to change the reputation of kosher wine.