Binnun Winery

Gezer, a settlement established in the 4th century, B.C.E, is located in the very center of the country, on the King’s Way leading from Egypt northwards and presiding over the coastal plain. Whoever stayed there could see every arriving ship to Jaffa old port, every convoy which headed to Jerusalem. The vineyard was planted in the lands of Kfar Bin Nun, along with the slopes of the Judean Hills spreading down from Jerusalem, in the same area where King Solomon’s ancient vineyards used to be.

The Gezer area has been known as a wine-producing area for hundreds of years. From Biblical times there are pieces of evidence of wine-growing in the area. In a tour around Tel Gezer, one can find evidence of wineries and presses that testify to the production of wine in ancient times. Many have been excavated and uncovered, and they can be visited this day. Following the renaissance of boutique wineries and vineyards, the area is returning to its greatness and is gaining momentum.

The village of Bin-Nun in the Ayalon Valley, which belongs to the Gezer Regional Council, was established in 1952 in an area rich with a Jewish history from more than 1000 years B.C. The original entrance to the village was an ancient Roman road, which connected the King’s Road from the Jerusalem mountains area to the seacoast road. This road passed near the hill next to the Bin-nun winery, where two ancient winepresses were discovered.

One of the winepresses was identified with the help of experts as a simple winepress model of a grape-treading surface from the First Temple period (960 B.C.). The second one is a unique ancient winepress factory, which believed to be from the Second Temple period (about 500 B.C.) and used a technique of wooden beam winepress. At a short distance from the ancient winepress, a Mikveh for ritual purity was found, and it is estimated as a Jewish Mikveh from the Hasmonean dynasty period (140 B.C. – 63 B.C.).

Controlled growth conditions and adequate trimming allow for an appropriate ratio between the amount of landscape and the amount of fruit, something which guarantees optimal ripening conditions for the grape clusters. Precise irrigation, significant dryness, and controlled exposure to the sun’s rays contribute to the formation of quality grapes with small grains and a high concentration of flavors.

We insist upon a measured number of grape clusters per vine in order to ensure that every grape receives as many minerals and flavors as possible from the vine and the ground in order to create fine, quality wines. We aim to maintain a crop of 600-800kg per dunam, which allows the vine to concentrate all of the flavors, colors, and aromas in the remaining clusters. Today, we grow merlot and cabernet sauvignon in the vineyard. Propagation material for planting was brought by special order from France. The planting was undertaken with our own hands and with a personal connection to the land, and we insisted upon the preservation of correct spacing and personal attention for each seedling. From the vineyard’s first years it has yielded quality grapes of exceptional aroma and taste.

This year we will bring in additional species of grape from France and Italy to the vineyard in order to expand our variety.