Ramot Naftaly was established in 2003 in the Upper Galilee in Moshav Ramot Naftaly. It produces about 10,000 bottles per year, with the wines being kosher since the 2009 vintage.

Yitzhak Cohen, the winemaker, started as a farmer and administrator of agriculture cooperatives of the region and moved on to winemaking by experimenting and learning winemaking in Israel. He still works hand-in-hand with the local winemaking community, providing wine manufacturing and wine processing services to other wineries in the Moshav and surrounding area.

The vineyards are located at the southern edge of Kadesh Valley between Moshav Ramot Naftaly and Moshav Dishon, an area surrounded by a high mountainous range that serves as protection from the wind. The rows of vines are planted in deep Terra Rosa soil on moderate slopes, enjoying natural drainage, morning mist, and soft sunrays even in the hottest months of summer. The grapes are harvested manually early in the day and the containers are immediately inserted into the winery’s cooling room. During the evening hours, the grapes are removed and manually sorted, before transferred to a small crushing machine. The crushed grapes are then moved to temperature-controlled fermentation tanks. In the winery there is a cooled barrel room, home to new French oak barrels. Once fermented, the grapes are placed into these barrels and left to age. The aging period takes between 12 to 24 months.

Boutique winery owners, some of whom also complete the role of vigneron, constantly look for distinctive conditions that will differentiate them from other wineries and growing areas. Everyone grows and produces the traditional leading wine varieties, yet the uniqueness and distinctiveness in wineries is in the development of the grapes, which varies depending on the area of growth. The Ramot Naftaly winery’s production vision is to develop, grow and manufacture wines from different varieties that are suited to the Galilee. They grow six grape varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Shiraz, Petit Verdot, Malbec and Barbera. Yitzhak’s dream is to see the Kadesh Valley turn into the most important Appellation of the Israeli wine industry.