Walla Walla Wine Word for Dummies: Weekly Wine Word Wednesday

The Weekly Walla Walla Wine Word for Dummies: Kosher

A kosher wine begins like all traditional wines – they start naturally as grapes on a vine. These grapes may be grown and picked by any one, whether they keep kosher or not. 

However, once these grapes reach the winery for crushing, then that becomes a different matter. This crush must be held under strict rabbinical supervision. Starting from the crush until the wine is bottled, the wine must be handled and processed by Sabbath-observing-kosher-keeping Jews - - and at this time, they must be male. Barrels are also kosher as they are built under rabbinical supervision and must be brand new or strictly used exclusively for kosher wines. Storage areas and tanks must be thoroughly cleaned and sterilized three times by using modern steam cleaners and/or scalding hot water.

Also, no animal products or by-products can be used in the making of kosher wine such as gelatin produced with meat products or egg whites, which are normally used as wine clarifying agents. And the most important thing of all? No work can be done on the Sabbath.