The Golan Heights Winery, which grows its grapes on the plateau that Israel captured from Syria during the Six-Day War in 1967, will display its bottles on shelves in Dubai this week, the Israeli company said.
The sale of Golan wine in Dubai, and soon elsewhere in the United Arab Emirates, follows the normalization in relations reached between the UAE and Israel in September.
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A shop owner in Jerusalem holds a bottle of wine from the Golan Heights Winery
(Photo: Reuters)
The UAE foreign and economy ministries did not respond to requests for comment on the wine deal. The Gulf state has described the Golan as Syrian territory, and along with the international community did not recognize Israel's annexation of the area in 1981.
Last year, U.S. President Donald Trump recognized Israeli sovereignty over the Golan, which Israel captured during the Six-Day War. The UAE said at the time the U.S. move "disrupts all efforts to achieve lasting peace in the Middle East."
The Golan Heights wine brands - Yarden, Gamla and Mount Hermon - will be sold through African + Eastern (A&E), one of the largest importers of alcohol in the Gulf, Golan Heights Winery said in a statement.
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A man drives an agricultural tractor in a vineyard in the Golan Heights
(Photo: Reuters)
The wines will be available in hotels, restaurants and retail alcohol stores. In the UAE only non-Muslims are legally allowed to drink.
Kosher wine from South Africa is already sold in the UAE but this will be the first Israeli-made wine in the Gulf state.
The Golan winery is targeting the wave of Israeli and Jewish tourists expected to visit the UAE as well as other tourists and locals who are allowed to consume alcohol.
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The fence on the ceasefire line between Israel and Syria in the Golan Heights
(Photo: Reuters)
"This is an historic launch and we expect a successful and long-term collaboration with the Golan Heights Winery," A&E CEO Jason Dixon said in the statement.
Golan Heights Winery CEO Yair Shapira said the UAE was a market "with interesting and unique potential."
He said his firm would "open the gate" and introduce UAE residents and guests to the Israeli wine industry.