Wine and Culinary in the Desert

Wine and food in the desert, exploring tradition and innovation

At the beginning of May, 30 women embarked on a culinary adventure to the desert - two full days of winery visits, farms, restaurants and wine bars - some well established and some brand new introducing a new foodie scene to the Negev.

We visited forests ,vineyards, crates and agricultural plantations, and immersed ourselves in the awesome silence of the desert.

We met with entrepreneurs leading the way in the Negev. They shared stories of the early days of the wine region, and we discovered agro-culinary ventures that are bringing winds of change to the whole area for both locals and tourists. We ate and drank deliciously and got to see that despite the harsh climate, it is possible to produce high-quality wine grapes in desert conditions.

Big thanks to the Mirage Fund, dedicated to turning the Negev into a leading destination for wine and international agro-tourism.

Special thanks to Noah Schwartz and Nicole Hod Stroh for their participation in the project, for their great contribution to the Negev wineries, and for spreading the word and understanding of the desert terroir.

Thanks to all of our partners on this trip:

Yatir Winery - CEO Yaakov Ben Dor, winemaker Eran Goldwasser, export manager Eti Edri, visitors center management Smadar Medi, and Shiri Rosen.

Pinto Winery - founders and owners - David and Tanya Pinto, winemaker Ya'acov Oryah, marketing and sales manager Nimrod Shaked.

Nana Winery - founders and owners the Raz and Ben Yehuda families - Eran (Nana) and Shahar Raz, Lee Ben Yehuda and Din Ben Yehuda.

Owner and farmer of Marom Farm - Simcha Marom.

Winemaker Tsur Shezaf.

Winemaker Tsuf Ben Eliezer, Tsuf Winery.

Avishai Nagar and Yinon Biton, Sumsumiya restaurant.

Gavriel Tene and Shahar Saban, Mid-bar Wine.

Ma'ayan Portnoy, Roni Adas, and friends of the Mitzpeh Ramon eatery Cafe Gina.

Photos: Nava Movshovitz, Merav Sarig, Tal Tauber