Binyamina

The Binyamina winery was founded in 1952 by Joseph Zeltzer. He emigrated to Israel from Hungary with a passion to continue winemaking as he did in the country of his birth. Zeltzer originally named the winery Eliaz after his son who was killed in battle during the Israeli War of Independence in 1948. He soon began producing wine in the heart of what was then considered Israel's official wine region.

The site for the factory was chosen because jasmine plants grew abundantly in the area and were used to make fragrant essences. The factory eventually failed and closed its doors in 1937. Apart from occasional use as a hideout for members of the Haganah, the Jewish underground movement, the building remained abandoned until the establishment of the State of Israel.

It was then that Zeltzer's desire for a winery producing sweet wines and liqueurs led him to the heart of Binyamina, the center of Israel's wine region. Here, with vineyards right at his fingertips, Zeltzer established his operations in the building of a former perfume factory with a rich and remarkable history.

Zeltzer Winery originally specialized in sweet wines, simple table wines and liqueurs, and was made with grapes only from vineyards in the Binyamina area. All winemakers at the time had to work their way up through the Carmel Mizrachi wine cooperative. David Ben Gurion, Israel's first Prime Minister, personally intervened on behalf of Zeltzer to pass a law allowing Zeltzer to accept small quantities of grapes for independent wine production. The winery became famous for its quality liqueurs and brandies produced under the brand name Hard Nut Liqueur, named in honor of Ben Gurion, who was known as a "hard nut to crack."

Although it always remained privately owned, the winery changed hands several times by the mid-1990s. Bankers, real estate professionals and film producers considered the winery an Israeli treasure where agriculture, industry and Zionism converged. It was eventually purchased in the early 1990s by film industry executives who gained full control in 1996. They wasted no time and invested huge resources in transforming Binyamina into one of Israel's leading wineries. Over the next 14 years, they invested in upgrading the vineyards to obtain the highest quality raw materials, purchased the best wine making equipment and established one of the best barrel cellars in Israel. They also renamed the winery, which has been known as Binyamina Winery since the mid-1990s.

In August 2008, the winery was purchased by private investors who recognized the winery's enormous potential and sought to continue its role as a leader in the Israeli wine sector. To this day, they continue to invest regularly and heavily in vineyards, space, equipment and human resources.