The kosher wine show season 2024-25 rolled on with Kosher Food & Wine Experience (KFWE) New York, once again held at the Park Hotel Meadowlands in East Rutherford, New Jersey (formerly known as the Hilton Meadowlands).
KFWE NY is in some ways the highlight of the American kosher wine shows as it draws easily the highest number of winemakers and winery executives.
About 900 attendees attended KFWE NY including retail and distributor clients, both national and from the local NY Metro area.
KFWE is a chance to taste many of the new wines to hit the market, meet with winemakers and wine tradespeople, as well as many of the other personalities in the business. It is an opportunity for wine buyers to choose as well as an opportunity for winery representatives to “sell.”
Additionally, the event draws media representatives of all stripes. KFWE NY 2025 again was open only to trade and not to public consumers, differing in feel from KFWE Miami, which is run by WIZO.
A well-run event owes props to the event planners, Booky and Dewy Tessler of @confetti_events_.
Recall for a moment that the event is still branded as KFWE and the F stands for food. Royal Wine Inc. is a sister company of (the far larger) Kayco, formed via the merger of Kedem Foods, Kenover Marketing, and B&W Foods. Kayco also owns the iconic brand of Manischewitz, currently undergoing a major rebranding initiative. You may have seen some of the great bits from comedian and writer, Eitan Levine, all seeking to modernize the Manischewitz brand while retaining its very Jewish kishkes.
Yet KFWE NY is still a trade only show, so the food component was muted. While KFWE has often been an expo of food as well as wine, in the past showcasing the wares of local restaurants, this year’s show was run by a caterer, who featured Kayco food brands such as Tuscanini Premium Imported Italian items, Manischewitz Hot Dogs, Manischewitz rugalach and Old Williamsburg premium beef jerky. Additionally, there were offerings from the following vendors:
Food was certainly available all night without lines, something that can not be said about many other KFWE events, or any events generally.
Ha’misada Mediterranean Kitchen, (5325 US Route 9, Howell, New Jersey 07731, United States, ph: 732-314-1006, under KCL supervision), provided hot, fresh eats until closing time, serving freshly made falafel, half pitas, and all the fixins. Those falafel balls were among the best I’ve ever tasted.
There was a bevy of fleishig pizzas from Sizzle & Slice (ph: 732-674-0969), of which I tasted a few. Excellent dough!
West Wing (12 Irving Place, Woodmere, NY, (516) 900-6100, under Vaad of Five Towns) had some tasty bites at their station.
The Fishermans Plank, based in Tom’s River, NJ (Tartikov kosher supervision), was serving tasty cured fish bites. They sell preordered fish boards and can be reached at (973) 378-1311.
There was once again a pretty nice lineup of whiskeys and other spirits, including some really funky looking tequilas. But I’ll allow others more inclined to the spirits to reflect upon them as I tasted none.
But wine remains king at KFWE, and let’s be honest, it’s a Royal Wine event, and wine’s were aplenty. So much so, that I could not make it to every table in the four-hour time frame. Part of me would like to see either a two-day Sommelier TLV type event, or a return to a longer event, perhaps once again trade hours only before doors open to the public. But as events such as KWD have propped up, Royal feels less need to open to the public for a very costly event.
I attend these events primarily to connect with the people, and KFWE NY is irreplaceable as the event to do just that. So blame my shmoozing on the fact I didn’t get to every table nor taste a vast majority of the wines.
As it was recently, the event was separated by the hallway on two sides, with one room hosting all of the Israeli wines and the other (larger) room the rest of the world. Spending at least the first couple hours in the Israel room, I was able to taste many of the new 2023 vintage offerings. As 2022 was a shemitta year, and Royal does not import shemitta wines, lots of new wines were on site. I was enthralled with the new Razi’el, Blanc, 2023, made from Roussanne and Viognier and aged for 8 months in 600 liters French oak barrels. This wine will be limited when it hits the States, but you’d do well to get your hands on one.
I was also excited to taste the new wines from the Negev’s Pinto Winery, and winemaker Ya’acov Oryah. I really enjoyed the Chardonnay, 2023. Ya’acov seems to have an especially talented hand with Chard and this new wine was lovely. The Grenache was very interesting, as well, super light in color, but showing nice fruit. Expecting big things from this young winery established in 2020.
I very much enjoyed the new Vitkin, Israel, Journey, Red, 2023, a wine which never misses for me. Vitkin is one of my favorite wineries, with the Carignan being perhaps my favorite Israeli wine.
It was so much fun to see so many of my favorite people on both sides of the hall. One very notable absence was my dear friend, Gabe Geller, who was sitting shiva for the recent loss of his father.
I did not set out for this write-up to be a review of wines, so I’ll just note a few of the new wines I tasted which I think have star potential.
I enjoyed the three Cahors Malbecs from Clos Triguedina, each in its own price range, with the entry level, but nice Triguedina, Malbec du Clos, 2022 (mevushal), simple and fruity, to the more mature Clos Triguedina, 2022 (non-mevu), to the beautiful Clos Triguedina, Probus, 2022 (non-mevu) which showed great concentration and brilliant acidity – easily the best kosher Malbec available now.
I also very much enjoyed the new Chardonnay from wunderkind, David Edelman, Capiō, Sonoma Coast, Chardonnay, 2021.
It was so wonderful to see 3/4 of the Cohen-Aleta family, with Dr. Moises Cohen, newly minted oenologist daughter, Leah, and the always-affable fan-favorite son, David. I hope next KFWE will bring matriarca, Anne Aleta to our shores. I very much enjoyed the new Elvi, Clos Mesorah, Garnatxa, 2022.
Josh Rynderman, of ESSA Winery, was in attendance, but sadly his very-limited Fumé Blanc was not! Alas, I have still not tasted it. Great review from Geller and Raccah created a run on the wine. Thanks to my friend Yaakov Malachowski for shlepping a bottle to the event for me, though it made its way back with him as I had no method to hold it during the event. I know destiny holds a bottle for me somewhere. Good things come to those who wait. In any case it was so great to see Josh. His wines are excellent and affordable.
It was fun to meet the high-energy Moishy Mayer (we need to do a collab) along with Kendal Montgomery, DipWSET, as well as once again see Erik Segelbaum of SOMLYAY.
I would be remiss not to mention my excitement in seeing my dear friend, the great New Zealand winemaker, Matthew Rutherford of Goose Bay, one of the greatest people I have had the pleasure to know in my life. A special soul.
I tasted the Herzog, Special Reserve, Clarksburg, Chenin Blanc, 2023, mevushal version. The mevu is slated for restaurant and caterers only. The non-mevu is winery/wine club only. I loved this wine. It is worthwhile to seek it out.
One of my favorite people to see is the always-exuberant Etti Edri, who was proudly showing the brand new Yatir, Darom, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2023, non-mevu, which will retail for $32. Somehow, after catching up with Etti, I got distracted and missed getting a taste of the new wine.
A note on the live music at KFWE NY 2025. I heard lots of complaints about the excessive loudness. While I tend to be in the old guy yelling at the clouds crowd about wedding music, I really enjoyed the band at this event. Yes, if you were standing right next to the stage, it was loud. But music has a way of being swallowed up in a large room with that many people. I thought it was great and appreciated that the music was generic, secular instrumentals vs. the more likely selection of Avraham Fried classics you might hear in the aisles of a kosher supermarket. (Before you spin off an angry retort, I love Avraham Fried, but there’s a time and a place.)
In terms of crowd size, I think it was perfect. Plenty of room, plenty of accessibility to each table and wine representative.
In fact, I noticed Barkan Head Winemaker Olivier Fratty was just standing all alone by the Tabor table. I fanboyed my way over to shmooze with him, remarking that I could not believe no one was bugging him. I immediately realized the irony in my comment but reveled in my approach, nonetheless, in an ends justify the means sort of way.
All in all, another excellent show from Royal Wine Corp. I wish I had the time to pull the American trifecta and attend KFWE LA or the upcoming KFWE London, but if there was one not to miss, it was KFWE NY.
More to come soon. For now, lots of self-important photos:
Kosher Food and Drink 
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