Think wine and which country comes immediately to mind? Italy? France? The US? Lebanon?
That’s right, Lebanon. In fact, other parts of the Middle East too such as Israel and Turkey. I tend to forget that wine is a drink of biblical significance, while grape varietals moved around with the Romans. The origins of wine making are millennia old.
They may not be as well known for their wine today as France, Germany, or Australia, but Middle Eastern wineries create some interesting products. Karam Winery in the Jezzine area of Lebanon, for example, produces a cabernet-merlot-syrah blend called ‘St. John’ along with a number of other whites and reds. Their website is by far the most visually stunning I have encountered. If their wine is half as artistic, it should be good value. Chateau Fakra, also of Lebanon, produces many blends. Pinacle de Fakra 2004 is a cabernet sauvignon-syrah-cinsault. La Fleur de Fakra combines grenache, cinsault, carignan and syrah. These are relatively small wineries, while other larger producers include Massaya and Domaine Wardy.
Purchasing these wines can prove tricky, depending on where you live. Some are only available directly from the winery itself; larger producers can spread their product further. Many can be purchased on-line, but wine for me is like a book: I want to see, feel, even smell the bottle (or book) before deciding to purchase it for my wine rack/book shelf. I want continuity between perusing the titles, selecting one item, then cracking it open and experiencing the story it has to tell.
Then again, a Lebanese wine would trump slippers or a mug as a Christmas gift to mum.
