Negev vintners visit Spanish wineries to talk grapes and tourism
Trip sponsored by Merage Foundation as part of effort to establish region as agritourism hub
Jessica Steinberg, The Times of Israel's culture and lifestyles editor, covers the Sabra scene from south to north and back to the center
Some two dozen Israeli wineries from the Negev region, including several from Gaza envelope kibbutz communities, spent several days in Spain in March, visiting a wine region similar to their own, but 40 years ahead in terms of progress.
“I wanted to find a region that would feel familiar to the Negev wineries,” said Nicole Hod Stroh, CEO of the Merage Foundation Israel that funded the trip. “Spanish wineries are years ahead of the Negev, but it’s achievable.”
The group included representatives of vineyards and wineries, some new, others more established, including tiny wineries from Kibbutz Be’eri, Kibbutz Nir Oz, and Kibbutz Or Haner, all communities hit hard by the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack, but still producing wine.
Merage is a US-based family philanthropy that has been supporting efforts to realize the tourism potential of the Negev.
The Negev’s desert vineyards were banded together several years ago as a winery consortium by Merage, as they seek an appellation that would grant official recognition as a distinct wine-producing region of Israel. In August 2020, a declaration of the Judea appellation made that area Israel’s first official wine region.
Hod Stroh said the Negev is “an area with untapped potential.”
The group spent several days in wineries in the Spanish wine region of Riviera del Duero, visiting underground wine cellars, meeting with local winemakers, and conducting tastings.
“The Spaniards were super honored to have us, and very curious about Israeli wines, our irrigation methods, climate change, and our winemaking,” said Hod Stroh. “We learned from their region, their winemaking techniques, their tourism projects.”
There was some nervousness about bringing a group of Israelis to Spain, given the waves of antisemitism in Europe, said Hod Stroh, but there were no issues or problems throughout the trip.
“It could be an island of hope, or not as bad as we think,” she said.
The last day of the trip included a conference in Madrid attended by several dozen local culinary leaders and sommeliers, with tastings of Negev wines and discussions on the challenges and opportunities of growing grapes in a desert climate.
Since October 7, Merage has pivoted to humanitarian aid and helping existing wineries survive by helping sell their products.
“It’s become clear in the last year and a half that helping the western Negev develop after this war is what we can do,” said Hod Stroh.
The foundation has long touted Negev wines as part of the development of the region as a tourism region and considers the Gaza envelope area, the region most affected by the October 7 attack, an essential part of the overall region.
Merage plans to invest in the development of agritourism, as well as local artisanal producers, such as cheesemakers, wineries and other culinary projects.
“Our goal is to try and create a new story of tourism,” said Hod Stroh. “There are hundreds of delegations visiting the Negev region [due to the Hamas attack], and we want to say, ‘Yes, October 7 happened, but there’s also a thriving agritourism industry there.'”
