To Vushal or not Mevuashal? That is the question

[Rafael Joseph]

Ok,

Since getting into wine, I've obviously discovered that Non-Mevushal is the way to go. What I wanted to know is if I am confronted with a Mevushal only situation (i.e. events/people who insist upon it) what ones can be recommended. I know the process has everything to do with this but I'm really looking for specific wines that you can hand on heart say are nice and not just bedieved (Plan B wines).

My mother-in-law is planning an event and the sponsors have offered her the Teperberg Cabernet/Merlot Mevushal blend, any good?

I'll start with the only one I can say I've tried and tested (one glass in a restaurant) - Dalton Safsufa Cabernet, entirely drinkable and reasonably-ish priced @ £17.99 (yeah count yourself lucky yanks and sabras) I think I also had a decent Segals at a wedding one time as well.

Gentlemen, the floor is yours ...

[David Raccah]

Rafael - are you looking for a scuffle or war of words - really? Man - you have thrown a hanging curve ball for all the folks here to whack out of the park.

So let us start with the basic rules we have mostly agreed to accept - excepting for Gary and a few others (hence the scuffles):

1) Drink most mevushal white wines - within a year or two from the vintage of the wine. So a 2010 mevushal white would be as far as I would go with most white mevushal wines.

2) Drink most mevushal red wines - within two to three years from the vintage. Rogov used a far more strict rule, but these have been OK for me

3) Throw those rules out for all wines from Herzog and Hagafen and maybe Shiloh - for now - as they have proven to not deteriorate the wine through the mevushal process.

OK - those are the baseline rules. From there - there are many producers who do a decent job. I have not liked the teperberg silver wines for much more than a year or two from vintage and same with Segal Fusion. The Binyamina mevushals were better to me, and a few folks here like the Barkan Classic mevushal process. To me the Barkan Classic wines have not shown as well in the past few vintages, I hope they turn the ship around soon - again that is my opinion.

There are a few lovely French mevushal wines and a few Elvi ones as well. Along with Herzog and Hagafen and Shiloh.
David

[Steven B]

If you're going for value I mentioned on a different thread that the mevushal 2010 Recanati Shiraz was rated by Wine Spectator as one of the 100 best value wines of 2012. It goes for as as low as $12 in the US, not sure about the UK though.

[Gabriel Geller]

OK, I actually just returned from a wedding where the wine (yes, purchased from me) was Teperberg Silver Cabernet and the Chardonnay as well, one case being 2010 and the 2 others were 2011. The requirements were: 1) Badatz Eida Haredit 2) Mevushal 3) good 4) reasonable price. I've come to the conclusion that these wines (they make also Merlot, Syrah and Sangiovese. Teperberg's Moscato and Emerald Riesling are also mevushal. I dislike the Moscato as it tastes like sparkling coughing syrup to me) are solid and as Dave says it drinking well within 2, perhaps 3 years from vintage. The 2010 and 2011 were very similar yet the 2011 had a bit more extraction (concentrated fruit, fuller body) and a bit more tannins. As well, at about 35-50 nis/bottle (£ 5-8), it's QPR in my book. I've got an order as well for another wedding this coming Thursday and the 2011 Silver Merlot and Terra Emerald Riesling will be poured.

My TN for the Teperberg Silver Cabernet Sauvignon 2011:

Teperberg, Silver, Cabernet Sauvignon 2011: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, aged 6 months in used French oak barrels. Very dark garnet toward royal purple, medium to full-bodied (almost full) with on the nose concentrated aromas of ripe blackberries, cherries and black currants. The same follows on the palate with some blueberries as well as a hint of spicy vanilla with nice silky tannins on a fairly long finish. Not complex by any means yet a true, easy-drinking and well-balanced Cabernet Sauvignon. Can keep 3 years at best.

Again, solid.

Best,

GG

[Elie Poltorak]

Rafael:
If I had to choose 3 mevushal wines at various ranges of the price spectrum that offer the most bang for your buck, they'd be:
1. Recanati Shiraz at around $12.
2. Fleur du Perigord at around $25.
3. Shilo Legend at around $45.
The Recanati is a powerful, albeit not subtle, shiraz that everyone likes. The Fleur is a supple Bordeaux-style wine that you can't tell (at this point) is mevushal, at a very reasonable price. The Legend is a nuanced Mediterranean wine. It isn't cheap but the price is on par with similar wines (e.g. Carmel Mediterranean). All 3 are ready to drink and probably won't do well for any length of time in the cellar.
As far as Herzog, I'm not a big fan of their mevushal wines. Some are better than others and some vintages are quite good especially the Alexander Valley Cabernet) but all in all, they're safe bets if you're ordering at a restaurant but not memorable wines. (For all their preaching about how mevushal wines are no different, Herzog still makes their best wines non-mevushal.)
Hagafen is in a class of its own, being the only winery to consistently make high-end cellar-worthy wines that are mevushal, but I don't know their availability/price in England so I left them off the list.