 Kosher wine label from 1930 | |
| Halakhic texts relating to this article | |
|---|---|
| Torah: | Deuteronomy 32:38 |
| Mishnah: | Avodah Zarah 29b |
| Babylonian Talmud: | Avodah Zarah 30a |
Kosher wine (Hebrew:יין כשר,romanized: yáyin kashér) iswine that is produced in accordance withhalakha, and more specificallykashrut, such thatJews will be permitted to pronounce blessings over and drink it. This is an important issue, since wine is used in several Jewish ceremonies, especially those ofKiddush.
To be considered kosher,Sabbath-observant Jews must supervise the entirewinemaking process and handle much of it in person, from the time thegrapes are loaded into the crusher until the finished wine product is bottled and sealed. Additionally, any ingredients used, includingfinings, must be kosher.[1] Wine that is described as "kosher forPassover" must have been kept free from contact withleavened or fermented grain products, a category that includes many industrial additives and agents.[2]
When kosher wine is produced, marketed, and sold commercially, it would normally have ahechsher (kosher certification mark) issued by akosher certification agency, or by an authoritativerabbi who is respected and known to be learned in Jewish law, or by the Kashruth Committee working under abeth din (rabbinical court ofJudaism).
In recent times, there has been an increased demand for kosher wines, and a number ofwine-producing countries now produce a wide variety of sophisticated kosher wines under strict rabbinical supervision, particularly inIsrael, theUnited States,France,Germany,Italy,South Africa,Chile,[3] andAustralia. Two of the world's largest producers and importers of kosher wines—Kedem andManischewitz—are both based in theAmerican Northeast.
The use of wine has a long history inJudaism, dating back tobiblical times. Archeological evidence shows that wine was produced throughout ancient Israel. The traditional and religious use of wine continued within theJewish diaspora community. In theUnited States, kosher wines came to be associated withsweetConcord wines produced by wineries founded by Jewish immigrants toNew York.
Beginning in the 1980s, a trend towards producing dry, premium-quality kosher wines began with the revival of theIsraeli wine industry. Today kosher wine is produced not only in Israel but throughout the world, including premium wine areas likeNapa Valley and theSaint-Émilion region ofBordeaux.[2]
It has been one of history's cruel ironies that theblood libel---accusations against Jews using the blood of murdered non-Jewish children for the making of wine and matzot---became the false pretext for numerouspogroms. And due to the danger, those who live in a place where blood libels occur arehalachically exempted from using [kosher] red wine, lest it be seized as "evidence" against them.[4]
Almost all Jewish holidays, especially thePassover Seder where all present drink four cups of wine, onPurim for the festive meal, and on theShabbat require obligatory blessings (Kiddush) over filled cups of kosher wine that are then drunk. Grape juice is also suitable on these occasions. If no wine or grape juice is present on Shabbat, the blessing overchallah suffices for kiddush on Friday night; for Kiddush on Shabbat morning as well as Havdalah, if there is no wine one would use "Chamar ha-medinah", literally the "drink of the country".
At Jewishmarriages,circumcisions, and atredemptions of first-born ceremonies, the obligatory blessing ofBorei Pri HaGafen ("Blessed are you O Lord, Who created the fruit of the vine") is almost always recited over kosher wine (or grape juice).
According to the teachings of theMidrash, the forbidden fruit thatEve ate and which she gave toAdam was the grape from which wine is derived, though others contest this and say that it was in fact a fig.[5][6] The capacity of wine to cause drunkenness with its consequent loosening of inhibitions is described by the ancient rabbis in Hebrew asnichnas yayin, yatza sod ("wine enters, [and one's personal] secret[s] exit"), similar to the Latin "in vino veritas". Another similarly evocative expression relating to wine is:Ein Simcha Ela BeBasar Veyayin—"There is no joy except through meat and wine".)
Because of wine's special role in many non-Jewish religions, thekashrut laws specify that wine cannot be considered kosher if it might have been used foridolatry. These laws include prohibitions onYayin Nesekh (יין נסך – "poured wine"), wine that has been poured to an idol, andStam Yeynam (סתם יֵינָם), wine that has been touched by someone who believes in idolatry or produced by non-Jews. When kosher wine isyayin mevushal (יין מבושל – "cooked" or "boiled"), it becomes unfit for idolatrous use and will keep the status ofkosher wine even if subsequently touched by an idolater.[7]
While none of the ingredients that make up wine (alcohol,sugars,acidity andphenols) is considered non-kosher, thekashrut laws involving wine are concerned more with who handles the wine and what they use to make it.[2] For wine to be considered kosher, only Sabbath-observant Jews may handle it, from the first time in the process when a liquid portion is separated from solid waste, until the wine is pasteurized or bottles are sealed or even sold from kosher supermarkets.[8][9] Wine that is described as "kosher for Passover" must have been kept free from contact withchametz andkitnios. This would include grain, bread, and dough as well as legumes and corn derivatives.[2]
When kosher wine is mevushal (Hebrew: "cooked" or "boiled"), it thereby becomes unfit for idolatrous use and will keep the status of kosher wine even if subsequently touched by an idolater. It is not known whence the ancient Jewish authorities derived this claim; there are no records concerning "boiled wine" and its fitness for use in the cults of any of the religions of the peoples surrounding ancient Israel. Indeed, inOrthodox Christianity, it is common to add boiling water to thesacramental wine. Another opinion holds that mevushal wine was not included in the rabbinic edict against drinking wine touched by an idolater simply because such wine was uncommon in those times.
Mevushal wine is frequently used in kosher restaurants and by kosher caterers so as to allow the wine to be handled by non-Jewish or non-observant waiters.
The process of fully boiling a wine kills off most of the fine mold on the grapes, and greatly alters thetannins and flavors of the wine. Therefore, great care is taken to satisfy the legal requirements while exposing the wine to as little heat as necessary. There is significant disagreement between halachic deciders as to the precise temperature a wine must reach to be considered mevushal, ranging from 74 to 90 °C (165 to 194 °F). (At this temperature, the wine is not at a rolling boil, but it is cooking, in the sense that it will evaporate much more quickly than usual.) Cooking at the minimum required temperature reduces some of the damage done to the wine, but still has a substantial effect[further explanation needed] on quality andaging potential.[2]
A process calledflash pasteurization rapidly heats the wine to the desired temperature and immediately chills it back to room temperature. This process is said to have a minimal effect on flavor, at least to the casual wine drinker.
Irrespective of the method, the pasteurization process must be overseen bymashgichim to ensure the kosher status of the wine. Generally, they will attend the winery to physically tip the fruit into the crush, and operate the pasteurization equipment. Once the wine emerges from the process, it can be handled and aged in the normal fashion.
In the 1960s, theCommittee on Jewish Law and Standards approved aresponsum ("legal ruling") by Rabbi Israel Silverman on this subject. Silverman noted that some classical Jewish authorities believed that Christians are not considered idolaters, and that their products cannot be considered forbidden in this regard. He also noted that most winemaking in the United States is fully automated. Based on 15th–19th century precedents in theresponsa literature, he concluded that wines manufactured by this automated process may not be classified as wine "manufactured by gentiles", and thus are not prohibited by Jewish law. Thisresponsum makes no attempt to changehalakhah in any way, but rather argues that most American wine, made in an automated fashion, is already kosher by traditional halakhic standards. Some criticism was later made against thisteshuvah, because (a) some wines are not made by automated processes but rather, at least in some steps, by hand, and (b) on rare occasions non-kosher fining ingredients are used in wine preparation. Silverman later retracted his position.
A laterresponsum on this subject was written by RabbiElliot N. Dorff and also accepted by the CJLS.[10] Dorff noted that not all wines are made by automated processes, and thus the reasoning behind Silverman's responsum was not conclusively reliable in all cases. On the other hand, Dorff points out that even if we can avoid the issue of "wine handled by a gentile", there is a separate prohibition against wine produced from wineries owned by a gentile, in which case automation is irrelevant, and all non-certified wines are prohibited. Therefore, he explored the possibility to change the halacha, arguing that the prohibition no longer applies. He cites rabbinic thought on Jewish views of Christians, also finding that mostposkim refused to consign Christians to the status of idolater. Dorff then critiqued the traditional halakhic argument that avoiding such wine would preventintermarriage. Dorff asserted, however, that those who were strict about the laws ofkashrut were not likely to intermarry, and those that did not follow the laws would not care if a wine has aheksher or not. He also noted that a number of non-kosher ingredients may be used in the manufacturing process, including animal blood.
Dorff concluded a number of points including that there is no reason to believe that the production of such wines is conducted as part of pagan (or indeed,any) religious practice. Most wines have no non-kosher ingredients whatsoever. Some wines use a non-kosher ingredient as part of a fining process, but not as an ingredient in the wine as such. Dorff noted that material from this matter is not intended to infiltrate the wine product. The inclusion of any non-kosher ingredient within the wine occurs by accident, and in such minute quantities that the ingredient is nullified. All wines made in the US and Canada may be considered kosher, regardless of whether or not their production is subject to rabbinical supervision. Many foods once considered forbidden if produced by non-Jews (such aswheat and oil products) were eventually declared kosher. Based on the above points, Dorff's responsum extends this same ruling to wine and other grape-products.
However, this teshuvah also notes that this is a lenient view. Some Conservative rabbis disagree with it, e.g.Isaac Klein. As such Dorff's teshuvah states that synagogues should hold themselves to a stricter standard so that all in the Jewish community will view the synagogue's kitchen as fully kosher. As such, Conservative synagogues are encouraged to use only wines with a hekhsher, and preferably wines from Israel.
Historically, kosher wine has been associated in the US with theManischewitz brand, which produce a sweetened wine with a distinctive taste, made ofVitis labrusca rather thanV. vinifera grapes. Due to the addition ofhigh-fructose corn syrup, the normal bottlings of Manischewitz are, forAshkenazi Jews, not kosher during Passover by the rule ofkitniyot, and a special bottling is made available. This cultural preference for a distinct, unique variety of wine dates back to Jewish settlements in early US history.[11]