Kosher Wine Etiquette

What is the etiquette of kosher wine? Which wines are kosher, which ones are appropriate for gifts, and is there any way for someone who does not keep kosher to share a glass of wine with someone who does?

What's Kosher and What's Not
Which wines are kosher?
For the purposes of wine etiquette, a wine is kosher if it has reliable certification. For more details on what makes a wine kosher, see here.
Even more practially speaking, most Jews in the US accept the certification of the "OU", the Union of Orthodox Rabbis. Their symbol is the letter O with the letter U inside. Another widely-accepted organization is the "OK," which has the letter O with the letter K inside it. If you're looking for kosher wine for someone who keeps kosher, look for wines that carry either certification. (More discussions about kosher and certification can be found here.)

Can I Share a Glass of Really Good Wine?
Actually, probably not, but let me explain. There's a problem with almost all of the better kosher wines: A wine that has been opened, handled, or poured by a non-Jew is no longer kosher. Some Orthodox Jews abide by rabbinical opinions that extends similar restrictions to non-observant Jews as well. This can make sharing a glass of wine very difficult.

There is a loophole. If the wine is heated to near boiling, it becomes "mevushal" — "cooked" — and the restrictions disappear. If you are giving a bottle of wine to someone who keeps kosher, under circumtances where you expect the bottle might be shared, your best bet is to give a bottle of "mevushal" wine.

"Mevushal" wines are marked as such somewhere on the bottle (a few wineries will have these notes only in Hebrew for unknown reasons — avoid these wines). Sometimes the abbreviation "Mev." is used. Almost invariably wines served at catered celebrations (e.g., a wedding) are "mevushal," since both Jews and non-Jews can be present or handle the wine.

All the reviews on this site include whether or not the wine is "mevushal," and you can also see this list of wines sorted by whether or not the wine is "mevushal."

One final note. Every Orthodox Jew decides for themselves how to interpret Jewish law; some may keep more strict customs than the ones I have outlined, in accordance with their family traditions and their understanding of Jewish law. Please don't be insulted if you bring a bottle of wine to your host and they decline to open it on the spot.

And in my house, I occassionally serve non-mevushal wines to my non-Jewish guests — I simply keep the bottle under my control and pour out the wine myself.

What To Give, What To Share

Heavy and Sweet?

Good kosher wines were unknown in the United States until the early 1980's, and therefore most Orthodox Jews were raised on a diet of heavy, sweet wines. Unless you know that someone enjoys dry wine, there's little point in that sort of gift. Here is a list of wines sorted by dryness; the list includes many good sweet wines. (Because heavy sweet wines do not lend themselves to accompanying dinner, many of these individuals drink only the minimum amount of wine dictated by religious custom.)
Then again, there's those who have developed a palate for dry wines, and they are perfectly delighted to receive a good dry red wine, in which case you can simply search for highly-rated wines.

Wine and the Holidays
Passover is the time when almost all Orthodox Jews actually drink some wine. The custom is to drink red wines; see my most recent list of Passover recommendations for some ideas.
As for other times of year, perhaps the holiday of Purim might be a good time for a gift of a good wine, unless your taste runs to something stronger — a good single-malt whiskey, for example. Jewish New Year is a time of reflection and repentance, not of celebration and parties, so there's no increased consumption of champagne (not that I would say no to good champagne at any time). The holiday of Tabernacles, with its outdoor activities, might be a good time to enjoy a robust white wine.

Check back at this web site from time to time for more information as well as updated lists of suggested wines for Jewish holidays.