The consumption of wine has always played an important ritual role in Jewish life at all festivals, with many examples in the Old Testament of the Bible. Moderate consumption is recommended to the faithful as beneficial to health. On the Sabbath, wine is drunk at the beginning (Kiddush) and at the end (Havdala). At the beginning of the Sabbath (Friday evening), a cup of wine (Kiddush cup) is filled four times during the celebration. First, the father says the blessing over the wine: Blessed are you, God our Lord, ruler of heaven and earth, who created the fruit of the vine. Then he takes a sip of wine and passes it on to everyone.

Graphic left: Hebrew lettering for the term "kosher". Graphic centre: The seal for a certified kosher wine. Graphic right: Sign in a vineyard in Israel, where the new variety Emerald Riesling is widely used for the production of kosher wine, among other things.
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For my many years of work as an editor with a wine and culinary focus, I always like to inform myself about special questions at Wine lexicon. Spontaneous reading and following links often leads to exciting discoveries in the wide world of wine.
Dr. Christa Hanten
Fachjournalistin, Lektorin und Verkosterin, Wien