Agrotourism Archives - Page 5 of 5

Tali Grapes offer various activities at their vineyards near Moshav Lachish. And after several visits, I am going to share our experience. When is the Grapes Picking Season? Grapes picking takes place from July to December. September to November is the best time for a visit. All our visits were in October (Sukkot) and November. In some years, the second half of November was towards the end of the season. Grapes Picking Season Opening Hours The opening hours may vary. In previous years they were open during the weekends, and all our visits were on Saturday mornings. Before visiting, it is recommended to register at the official site. Entrance Fee Adult/child (above two years old) - 30 NIS.First basket - 10 NIS. Each additional basket is 20 NIS. Map Lachish is located in southern Israel, about 13 km from Kiryat Gat. It is also only 10 km from Beit Guvrin National Park and near Tel Lachish National Park. Enter "the vineyard in Lachish" into Waze, or click this link to Waze. But remember that the meeting point has changed several times over the years. Thus I would suggest following the directions you receive when registering. Directions for drivers: Link to Waze and Link to Google MapsDirections for public transport: Link to MoovitInteractive map of the area:Offers:Hotels, hostels, and apartments in this area: Booking.com Buy photos of Israel and support this blog.Get 10% off for your next tour at Bein Harim with coupon code LEV10#12306. Near the entrance, there is a dirt parking lot, and there are also chemical restrooms. The parking lot at Tali Grapes What are the Included Activities? Currently, these are the included activities: Picking grapes - you will be picking from one of the vineyards. You can eat as much as you want and take home the baskets (about 1.5 kg of grapes fit into each basket). Educational activities - on-site guides will tell you about growing grapes and answer all your questions. Also, sometimes there are additional educational games. Pressing grapes at a winepress. Activities at Tali Grapes Tali Grapes "Tali Grapes is the brand name of the cooperative of growers from Moshav Lachish. Moshav Lachish (est. 1955) is home to 66 active growers, in addition to about 100 families of whom most are second-generation growers." Source: Tali Grapes During our visits, we received an explanation regarding the Tali Grapes brand. As it turns out, there was no real person called Tali. Moreover, since they adopted this name, none of the girls born in Moshav Lachish is called Tali. The growers hired a well-known marketing specialist, and he came up with this name. Interestingly, the same marketing specialist created the Gali Shoes brand in the same period. Self Picking Grapes Over the years, the tours became shorter and shorter. During our visit in 2022, when entering, we received explanations for about two minutes and then visited the vineyards. Thus I will leave the explanations below as additional information, but there is no tour, and you do not visit the raisins factory. Self Picking Grapes Tali Grapes And instead of the ancient wine press, they constructed a small wine press. Wine Press The Tour The tours are near Moshav Lachish, close to Kiryat Gat. You might remember the Lachish stream from Lachish Park. The tour has several stops, and now we will go over them. Note: if you want to pick a lot of grapes, you better prepare some free place in the freezer or plan to make fruit jam. Visiting each stop involves self-driving (about 5 min each time). And at each stop, you can stay as much as you like. There are guides at each stop, explaining when a big group of people arrives, about every ten minutes during our visit. At the Vineyards Before you start eating and picking grapes, you will receive a short explanation about the place. One of the interesting things that we were told is about organic pesticide methods. For example: spreading non-fertile insects. Most insects do not live long and have one chance to bring the next generation. If they waste that chance on non-fertile females, it interrupts the reproduction process. Visiting one of the vineyards: Crimson Grapes Other pest controls are organic as well. Thus you can freely eat grapes. Picking Grapes in Moshav Lachish They grow twenty different grape species and even winter grapes. The one we got to harvest is Thompson. Thompson grapes Grape leaf Thompson grapes During that visit, in mid-October, there were rotten grapes as well towards the end of the season. But on another visit in November, everything looked good. So I guess it depends on the weather and the type of grapes. There is a high chance that you will pick a different kind of grapes during each visit. For example, this is the Crimson Grapes: Crimson Grapes There are red and green Crimson Grapes: Crimson Grapes Raisins Package Factory Note: This stop was available during our first visits. But it is no longer included in the tour. The second stop was the raisins package factory. We did not get into the factory. We got explanations outside, next to the raisins. Raisins As you can see, the grapes are dried outside for two to four weeks. Before spreading the grapes, they add oil (similar to sunscreen protection) and salt (for protection again insects). Grapes that were dried under the sun are always brown. If so, where do the white raisins come from? White means that they were dried in ovens. The following is logical, but you never think about it when buying raisins: all raisins are created from second-class grapes. The best grapes are sold fresh. Ancient Wine Press The third stop was an ancient wine press next to the historic 3,000-year-old city of Lachish. You can find additional information at Tel Lachish National Park. At the ancient wine press As you probably know, pressing is done barefoot. The reason for taking off shoes is grapes seeds. If barefoot, you will not squeeze the seeds (crushed seeds will add bitterness). Summary Picking grapes is a lovely family experience. And for many parents that struggle with children that do not like eating fruits, this could be beneficial. Since there are no more tours, the whole visit takes about an hour. Therefore, you can combine grape picking with a visit to Tel Lachish National Park or other nearby attractions (check the interactive map at the top of this page). It will be a lovely half-day family trip. Have you ever visited Tali Grapes? Tell us about your experience in the comments below. That's all for today, and I'll see you in future travels! Stay Tuned!