Landmark Windmill in Jerusalem

The Montefiore windmill in Jerusalem is a real tourist attraction, especially for Israelis. It is an amazing location to take beautiful photos, either of the mill or the Old City of Jerusalem. But now there is an extra reason to visit the windmill: a few months ago Jerusalem Wineries opened a Visitor Center inside.

According to the manager, there is a lot of interest in the wines that are sold at the mill. You can do a tasting, browse and watch a film about the history and restoration of the windmill. The wines are all the same brand: Jerusalem.

Jerusalem Wineries Visitor’s Center | Photo credit: Christians for Israel

Vineyards
Interesting, wine from Jerusalem? “Yes,” the manager enthusiastically replies, “This place, these hills around the windmill, used to be covered in vineyards. They were tended by the Christians from the Old City. No one lived outside the safety of the city walls, but the land was used.

When the first Jews came to Jerusalem at the beginning of the nineteenth century, they bought grapes from the vineyards to make wine. No, they didn’t buy the wine because it wasn’t kosher. But they could use the grapes just fine. So from a historical point of view, it isn’t strange that wine is being sold here again.”

Visiting
The manager knows that the windmill was restored by Dutch donors through Christians for Israel. He quickly takes a bag of flour from the shelf. “This flour is from the mill; we grind flour regularly. Visitors can see the inside of the windmill. Every month we open the floors above the store to visitors for one week.”

On the plaza at the windmill, there is an attractive wooden cart where you can buy coffee. Together with some tables and chairs, it makes the area around the windmill more inviting. Now you can take in the view of Jerusalem with a nice cup of coffee.

The coffee shop on the plaza at the Montefiori windmill | Photo credit: Christians for Israel