Dadah Winery
CarmelDadah Winery is a kosher boutique winery on the slopes of Mount Carmel near Kerem Maharal, founded in 2007 by Jacky Hazan together with his friend, engineer Nehemia Khatbi. It is named after Jacky's grandmother "Dadah," a Jewish-Moroccan winemaker from Marrakesh who, by family account, made wine over a century ago; the winery brands itself "Israel's first Moroccan boutique winery." It became kosher in 2010 and is closed on Shabbat. The wines come from grapes grown in the Golan Heights, Upper Galilee and the coastal plain, aged in French oak for roughly 18-28 months. They have won several Terravino International medals, including Double Gold for the Five Elements Special Reserve. Signature wines include the Cabernet Sauvignon Reserve, Petit Verdot-Syrah Reserve and Marselan Special Reserve, alongside rosé and Port-style fortified dessert wines. Production is small-scale (reported figures range from ~7,000-10,000 up to ~20,000 bottles a year). Tastings and purchases take place at the on-site visitor center at Makura Farm, an organic farm (olives, avocados, persimmons, its own olive press) set inside an extinct volcano with ancient cisterns and presses. Tours are led personally by founder Jacky Hazan and his family and can include a walk through the organic spice garden and a spread of refreshments, in a warm "Moroccan/family" atmosphere with a balcony overlooking the Carmel forest. A visit must be coordinated in advance.