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Harvesting Wild Grapes
Report on expedition to harvest wild grapes in the western Negev
In early August 2024, BOSTAN TREE staff along with s small group of volunteers harvested grapes that grow wild and unattended in Nachal Shiqma (Hebrew for ‘Sycamore Riverbed’), a mostly dry riverbed that runs near the kibbutzim Yad Mordechai, Brur Hayil and Or a’Ner in the southwestern corner of Israel.
Nahal Shikma is an important ecological corridor, linking the desert and the sea, bridging the Mediterranean landscape to the arid land. It encompasses a distinct savannah like ecosphere with Sycamore trees being the dominant species. Throughout history, this area has been the ecumene border, the edge of settled, cultivated land and the cultures that accompanied these entities. Within the feral landscape of Nahal Shikma, wild grapes grow on the ground, in bushes, and even on the Sycamore trees themselves, lending testimony to numerous vineyards of the past that once covered this location.
Indeed, this area is rich with archaeology, ranging from important biblical sites (Tel Hesi) to the Philistine and later Roman-Byzantine Ashkelon harbor (2 hours by foot), that was a gateway to the Mediterranean and for exported Negev wine. Within the vicinity of Ashkelon, several large Roman-Byzantine wine estates have been excavated and dated to the first millennium CE. Thus, it is no surprise that throughout the region and especially near Nahal Shikma, large wine presses from the first millennium CE have been found. Less than one hour's walk from where we harvested our wild grapes, the Israel Antiquities Authority recently excavated an enormous industrial complex of Byzantine-era wine presses.
It is highly likely that the wild grapes that we harvested in Nahal Shikma are remnants of the ancient Byzantine wine industry that existed in this locality for some 400 years (3-7 centuries CE). The grapes we picked were from a black (red) grape cultivar, an endemic heritage grapevine variety These grapes were genetically tested and identified as Syriki (read more about this find at our Negev Wine Revival site) whose earliest descendant (in the form of a 1200-year-old grape pip) was found in Byzantine Avdat in the Negev Highlands.
Dabouki Grapes grow feral in Nachal Shiqma
During our preliminary fieldwork, we identified 2 locations with Syriki grapes; near kibbutz Or a’Ner and another near kibbutz Yad Mordechai. These are large grapevines that survived by attaching themselves to old and large trees. Some have 30–40-meter branches that hang between several trees at over 10 meters high. Most of the grape bunches are compact (~ 20 cm), with small berries (~200 grams per bunch). To access the grapes that were growing way above ground, we used long sticks attached to bags that enabled us to pick entire bunches. In some instance, we also climbed the trees to reach a few of the more promising bunches that were hanging on high.
In just under 5 hours, the BOSTAN TREE team harvested some 150 kg of wild grapes. The grapes were transported in the back of our vehicles some 250 kms north, to the Adir Winery at the Dalton industrial complex in the Galilee. At the winery, winemaker Ari Erle will transform these living relics into an all-natural Syriki wine – the first of its kind since ancient times!!
Stay tuned for our tasting notes…
