Israeli whisky

Israel is one of the youngest countries on the whisky map. Its big name is Milk & Honey, a Tel Aviv distillery that started production in the 2010s and has shown that quality malt can be made in a very hot Mediterranean climate. There whisky matures much faster than in Scotland, and evaporation is so high that a few years in cask are equivalent to many more in a cold climate.

In the catalogue
4 whiskies
Distilleries and brands
1
Most common type
Single malt
Peated
1 of 4

History, style and where to startIts distilleries on the world map

4 whiskies

Guide to Israeli whisky

History

Until recently, hardly any whisky was made in Israel, although more and more of it was drunk. At the beginning of the 2010s a group of entrepreneurs founded the Milk & Honey distillery in Tel Aviv, advised by Scottish experts, and it became the country’s first malt distillery. Its first whiskies came out at the end of that decade, after only a few years in cask, thanks to the heat-accelerated maturation. Other distilleries have appeared since, such as the one in the Golan Heights, and Israeli whisky has begun to find a place in specialist shops in Europe.

Style and flavour

Tel Aviv’s warm, humid climate speeds up maturation: the whisky draws a lot from the cask in a short time and loses a significant share to evaporation. That is why Israeli whiskies tend to be young but rich, with ripe fruit, spice, vanilla and sweetness. Milk & Honey also plays with local casks, such as Israeli red wine casks, and with sherry and bourbon casks or casks that held peated whisky. Many of its bottles are kosher certified.

Average flavour profile of Israeli whisky in the catalogue (4 whiskies)

Sweet
3.1
Fresh fruit
2.6
Ripe and dried fruit
1.8
Floral and herbal
0.8
Cereal and malt
1.5
Vanilla and creamy
2.3
Oak
1.9
Spicy
2.3
Toasted
1.4
Smoky
0.8
Maritime
0.1
Body and intensity
2.5

Where to start

Start with Milk & Honey Classic, the benchmark malt, fruity and with vanilla. If you like it, the Elements series lets you compare the effect of different casks: sherry for a more indulgent profile, red wine for more red fruit and a peated version for those who want smoke.

This text was generated and translated by AI and may contain errors.

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