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Your Comprehensive Kosher Wine Guide to Jewish Weddings

Wedding wineWedding wine

So… you’re getting married. Mazel tov! Time to plan the wedding. With everything on your list to do, you will inevitably come to the big question: How much wine should I serve?

We generally suggest choosing one of the following options: 

  • Open bar: We recommend calculating one bottle of wine per seven guests. It averages out well because some people are into their wine and drink more, while others may only take a few sips.
  • Table wines: If you choose this option, we recommend serving two bottles of wine per table: one red and one white/rose.

The type of wine you choose will also depend on what you’re serving. We’ve included the best wine options to pair with meat, chicken, fish, dairy, or buffet meal (you can also talk to your caterer about their wine options).

Another key factor is season. A good general rule is that spring and summer weddings tend to offer white and rose wines, while fall and winter weddings serve red wines. 

Wedding WineWedding Wine

Kabbalas Panim/Chosson's table (about $45-60/bottle)

For the pre-chuppah reception, start the festivities with a sparkling champagne such as Drappier Carte d'Or, a white wine produced from pinot noir grapes with fresh red fruit overtones. Alternatively, offer a high-end red wine. We prefer the Shiloh Mosaic, a bold but smooth Israeli blend with a deep purple color and packed with red to black fruit flavors. Whiskey is also a popular choice for the men’s reception table (also called chosson’s tish).

Bridal BouquetBridal Bouquet

Chuppah (about $15-25/bottle)

Wine plays a central role under the chuppah when the bride and groom officially become a couple. There are several wonderful quality wines that are budget-friendly for this exciting stage of the wedding. These are served following two blessings that are recited to seal the betrothal, just before the ring is given. The officiant recites the two blessings, hagafen and kiddushin, and then the rabbi/officiant, groom, and bride each take a sip. Following this, it is time to read the ketubah and recite the Sheva Brachot (seven blessings). The bride and groom take another sip of wine from the cup, the glass is broken, and everyone happily shouts “mazel tov!”

Orthodox or more traditional families typically use red wine for this stage* (see note at the end for Talmudic sources for this), but it’s up to you. We recommend both red and white wines:

QPR White - White wine is a good idea because it avoids staining the bride's dress. We love the crisp Hagafen Sauvignon Blanc for its buttery smooth lemon, grapefruit, and kiwi taste.


QPR Red/Rose - Try the Dalton Canaan Red. The flavor is medium bodied with forest fruit, berries, subtle spice and just a hint of vanilla.

Wedding WineWedding Wine

Reception: Dinner/Dancing (about $10-15/bottle)

A joyful wedding is enriched by a festive meal and good wine. It is a mitzvah to do things that make a new couple even happier than they already are (Talmud Brachot 6b). There are two options that people usually consider for a Jewish wedding reception.

Option 1: Full/Partial Open Bar

For Spring/Summer weddings, your guests will dance the night away with Casa de Cielo Chardonnay and Baron Herzog Rose of Cabernet, both of which are best served chilled. The chardonnay is light and fun, the perfect choice for a light dairy, fish, or chicken course. The rose is elegant and will brighten your wedding feast with notes of strawberries and craisins.


For Fall/Winter weddings, go with Casa de Cielo Reserve Carmenere and Carmel Selected Cabernet Sauvignon. The Carmenere is a rich red wine with red fruit notes that are layered with tobacco and spice. The Carmel offers blackcurrant and berry flavors and an aromatic experience that will match quality meat dishes.

Option 2: Wines for the Table

Salad Course

Festa D'Estate Moscato. A popular wine for weddings and formal gatherings, it’s a fun, easy-drinking sparkling sweet wine from Italy.

Soup

Elvi Vina Encina Rose. A refreshing rose from Spain, this 100% syrah wine contains cherries, strawberries, and subtle floral notes for a nicely structured wine.

Main Course (3 Options)

Fish:  Borgo Reale Rose. This smooth rose offers delicate floral aromas infused with honey, opening to notes of red raspberry, cherry, apricot, nectarine, and peach.


Chicken: Baron Herzog Chardonnay. A great pairing choice for most chicken dishes, enjoy tropical fruit, citrus, apple, soft peach, and a hint of vanilla.


Meat:  Chateau les Riganes Bordeaux. A red Bordeaux with clean flavors of forest, earth, blackberry, and blueberry, this medium-bodied wine is smooth and will complement the richness of your meat course. Open an hour or two before serving to allow the flavor to mature fully.

* A word about mevushal wine vs. non-mevushal wines:

  • Because kosher wine has a prominent place in Jewish life, the kosher guidelines are stricter than regular food. Mevushal wine is kosher wine that has been briefly boiled, or flash pasteurized, and is the preferred option for kosher catered events where people of varying observance will be present. It goes back centuries when people used wine in idolatrous practices, and the rabbis forbade using this wine or benefitting from it (Daniel 1:8; Avodah Zarah 36a). 
 
  • Although this is not a concern nowadays, many Jews are careful about serving mevushal wine because it was originally introduced to protect kosher wine standards. It became a tradition that was passed down for many generations and is still an accepted practice of halachic observance. It is not forbidden to serve non-mevushal wine of course, but most prefer to serve mevushal wines at weddings and other large gatherings.
Wedding WinesWedding Wines

Dessert (about $10-35/bottle):

If you have room to play with in your budget and what you think your guests will enjoy, you have a variety of wines that you can pair with dessert. We suggest serving a sweet wine like Teperberg Red Moscato that will play nicely with cake and other treats. Or you may want to offer an elegant liqueur like the Morad Double Espresso Liqueur.

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Sheva Brachot (about $35-40/bottle):

A good quality wine is recommended to end the evening. Anyone remaining at the end of the wedding is invited to take a sip after the bride and groom drink. Herzog Special Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon Alexander Valley is a delicious well-balanced wine from California’s Napa Valley layered with berries, mocha, and vanilla. This wine will top off the evening on a smooth and velvety note.

We also invite you to contact Ari Lockspeiser, our fine wine consultant, for personalized and unique wine recommendations for your wedding.

*The rabbis debate red wine vs. white wine:

  • The Gemara brings a verse from Mishlei (Proverbs): “Do not gaze at red wine as it lends its color to the cup, as it flows on smoothly.” The Talmud understands this verse to imply that red wine is preferred over all others. (Yerushalmi Pesachim Ch. 10 Halacha 1; Talmud Bavli Pesachim 108b.)

  • Some rabbis say that one should only use red wine whenever there is a requirement to use wine for a mitzvah (such as kiddush, havdalah, and the Passover seder.) (Ramban on Buba Basra 97b, quoted by Beit Yosef, Orach Chaim 272; Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim 272, 4.)

  • Others say that it’s better to use red wine, but white wine is also permitted. (Beit Yosef to Orach Chaim 272; Shulchan Aruch 472, 11. See Shulchan Aruch Orach Chaim 272, 4; Mishnah Berurah ibid., 10.)

  • Some say if the white wine present is superior to the red wine, it is better to use white. (Ramah to Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim 472, 11; Mishnah Berurah, Orach Chaim 272, 10.)